Dienece Darling here today, offering a book review of Aussie author Jenny Glazebrook’s contemporary YA romance Seeing Jess.
Book Blurb
Jess Cardelle likes to fix people. She’s used to being the helper, the dependable one. But losing her brother Toby in an accident was never part of the plan. Why didn’t God give her a chance to save him?
When Tim Bateman begins seeing Jess for physiotherapy after losing a limb in the same train crash that took Toby’s life, Jess finds it hard to deal with his angry, bitter tirades.
And when her bubbly, fifteen-year-old sister Milla begins losing her sight, Jess is pushed to the limit. How can she maintain her friendly, professional façade when her world is falling apart and she is helpless to fix it? Where is God in all of this?
Dienece’s Book Review
I really enjoyed Seeing Jess, such depth and love and beauty lay within this contemporary Australian romance.
Jess is the peacemaker, but from the moment, she meets Tim all she wants to do is fight him. He rubs her up all the wrong ways because he is bitter at surviving a crash that killed Jess’s brother. Her struggle to be kind with Tim was authentic, and I really felt for her.
If not for the excellent writing, you’d probably hate Tim, but the author weaves this compelling story of the life he lost, the reason he’s so against God, and all of a sudden, you’re routing for grumpy, hurting Tim.
It takes skill to make an unlikable character likable. Well done, Jenny Glazebrook!
And even though my early edition had some formatting issues (which I’m told have since been resolved), the story was so compelling I got swept up and away and stop noticing. Now, that’s good writing!
Tim: tall, dark, brooding and handsome but also hurting.
Jess: invisible, professional, and feeling lost.
There were a host of other characters in this book. Jess’s sister gets her own story as a little subplot/third POV, and I really enjoyed that. Who doesn’t love two romances for the price of one? We also glimpse characters from other books in the series, but this works just fine as a standalone. Although, you may (like me) suddenly go track down the other books because you just have to read their story after ‘meeting’ them in Seeing Jess!
I recommend Seeing Jess to fans of the New Adult genre as the main couple are in their early twenties. But the little sister is a teen, so it has some YA appeal as well. If you love rural contemporary romance and organic faith journeys, try this book!
Hi Dienece, Thanks for sharing your insightful review. I don’t usually read YA/New Adult and I’ve heard great things about this series. I love her Trinity Lakes Romance books.
You wrote:
“ If not for the excellent writing, you’d probably hate Tim, but the author weaves this compelling story of the life he lost, the reason he’s so against God, and all of a sudden, you’re routing for grumpy, hurting Tim.”
I love the depth of characterisation in Jenny’s books that reveals her character’s inner turmoil and the motivations for why they behave in certain ways. That’s why we can empathise with her characters and understand them – even if our strong first impression is to dislike them. 😊
I have her first trinity lake novel in my TBR pile. Hopefully, one day soon!
She does write characters so well.
I don’t read a lot of YA/New Adult either, but I connected with this book through the Around the World challenge Carolyn Miller is in. I had the time to read it, and I’m glad I did!
Thank you for commenting and sharing your experiences with Jenny Glazebrook!