Mini Review: Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles

Title: Wild Cards
Author: Simone Elkeles
Publisher: Walker Books for Young Readers
Pages: 288

After getting kicked out of boarding school, bad boy Derek Fitzpatrick has no choice but to live with his ditzy stepmother while his military dad is deployed. Things quickly go from bad to worse when he finds out she plans to move them back to her childhood home in Illinois. Derek’s counting the days before he can be on his own, and the last thing he needs is to get involved with someone else’s family drama.

Ashtyn Parker knows one thing for certain--people you care about leave without a backward glance. A football scholarship would finally give her the chance to leave. So she pours everything into winning a state championship, until her boyfriend and star quarterback betrays them all by joining their rival team. Ashtyn needs a new game plan, but it requires trusting Derek—someone she barely knows, someone born to break the rules. Is she willing to put her heart on the line to try and win it all?

Review::
I'm a huge Simone Elkeles fan. She writes one heck of a great teen romance. I've been waiting for something new forever. Wild Cards didn't disappoint.

At first I thought this had a lot of similarities to Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally. You all know how much we loved that. Girl plays football, someone on team has a dad who plays in the NFL, hot boy plays football too, etc... But, really that is where the similarities end. They are very different stories. The only thing I didn't like was how hot and girly Ashtyn was. I mean, in the interests of reality a girl who plays football would probably be more of a tomboy or at least a little bit more muscle. Ashtyn was skinny and girly. Not that they can't be...but it just didn't fit in my mind. I know I'm being stereotypical but the stereotype is there for a reason! I couldn't wrap my head around it.

I really loved this book. I read it in one sitting. I just devoured it. I loved Derek and Ashtyn's stories and how they came together. If you love Simone Elkeles then you know. She's just good! She'll do you right. Wild Cards is worth it.