TAYSHAS 2019 #12

Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett

I have wanted to read this for a while, long before it made the TAYSHAS list. I loved Alex, Approximately by the same author, and figured there was a good chance I'd like this too. I did. The thing is, neither book really should be on the TAYSHAS list. Both are fun to read, but both are basically fluff--not that there's anything wrong with fluff.

Zorie is almost a senior in high school in the San Francisco area. Her parents are an acupuncturist and masseuse in their own clinic, so Zorie works for them as a receptionist. Her father's clientele has started to dwindle because, according to her father, of the sex toy shop next door. Zorie is forbidden to go over there because her father hates the owners, who used to be their friends before they opened their shop. Zorie goes to retrieve a misdelivered package, which turns out to be photos of her father with another woman. This is not even the main conflict of the story either.

The main conflict starts out with Zorie being invited to go on a glamping trip with a friend from school, Reagan. Apparently, Zorie and Reagan used to be fairly close, but then Reagan's family became wealthy, so Zorie was pushed to the side a little. Zorie doesn't really want to go on this trip, but she feels pressured by her mother and Reagan, so she goes. Turns out there will be boys on the trip. One of these boys, Brett, Zorie has a huge crush on. Another boy, Lennon, is the son of the sex shop owners, and broke Zorie's heart at homecoming the previous year.

So they go glamping. Brett gets them all kicked out of the glamping compound because he steals wine and then pees on a neighboring yurt. It's still ok at this point because they were going to go camping in the back country anyway, so they do that a little earlier than expected. Once there, Brett's tent is destroyed by a bear because he can't be bothered to follow simple instructions. This causes a rift between Reagan and Zorie because Reagan and Brett are going out, but only because Reagan is making it a big deal. By this point, Zorie sees what an idiot Brett is, so the thrill is gone. In response, Reagan, Brett and the other two people who came with them up and leave Lennon and Zorie to find their way home.

Over the course of the next couple of days, Zorie and Lennon confront their feelings about their past and present. There's a snake bite, and a lot of hiking. Then we're brought back to the problem of Zorie's dad.

Again, this was a nice read, but after a certain point, all I kept thinking was "Can they just go ahead and have sex already. Jeez."