ARC Review: Written in the Sand by T.A. Foster and Mary-Kathryn Craft

I really loved the cover of this book, and I have to come to enjoy T.A. Fosters books after having read quite a few now. So when I first saw Written in the Sand, I knew I wanted to read this one. Written in the Sand is written by T.A. Foster and Mary-Kathryn Craft, and this is the first that I have read of Mary-Kathryn Craft's work. While this one had a lot of promise, I felt like this book just fell flat for me. I had quite a few issues with it and although it had its good moments, for the most part it just wasn't what I had been hoping for or expecting.

Best friends Maggie and Blair head to an island for the summer before beginning their new lives. They are determined to have their last summer together be the best it can, but both of them start to feel a bit bored after a month on the island. Then they meet cousins Justyn and Reid and everything changes. Both girls make a pact to keep things casual with no entanglements, but soon they are both developing real feelings. What happens when summer ends and everything you though you wanted suddenly isn't what you want anymore?

I liked all the characters in this story, but I didn't really feel connected to them. Reid and Justyn were great and they were just your normal good guys. But there really wasn't much about them that stood out as far as being anything really different or unique. Same for Blair and Maggie. They were sweet girls that had a great friendship, but I didn't find myself relating to them. All four of them seemed to have moments of immaturity, and at times they felt as though they were younger than their actual ages. I felt like there was some chemistry and attraction between each couple, but everything felt a bit rushed and forced to me.

I think my biggest problem was that there was so much push and pull with all of the characters, that it just didn't ever really seem to come together for me. Even when it looked like things were finally on track, something would happen to derail everything again. It just got too drawn out for me, and irritated me to the point that I lost interest. I also thought that it was weird how all the way through the book the girls and the guys would often refer to Blair and Maggie as "The Blonde" or "The Brunette". It just felt strange and I wasn't sure why they kept doing it. It almost felt like they couldn't remember the name of who they were thinking about or referring to. While I liked the idea of this book, it just never quite delivered for me. It was a mostly enjoyable read, and I think it was nice to get a good beach story as we head into cold weather. But this book was predictable and just felt like so many other NA stories already out there only not as well executed. If you are looking for a NA story that you can just relax and read without much depth or emotion, this one might be something you would enjoy. But those looking for something different or with a fresh take on the genre might not want to read this one.

**ARC Provided by Inkslinger PR**

Purchase: | Amazon | B&N |