Review: Jenny B. Jones, There You’ll Find Me
There You’ll Find Me by Jenny B. Jones
Can I just say I <3 Jenny’s books? This YA novel is a sequel of sorts to her latest rom com, Save the Date. You can find my review of it here.
Grief brought Finley to Ireland. LOVE WILL LEAD HER HOME.
Finley Sinclair is not your typical eighteen-year-old. She’s witty, tough, and driven. With an upcoming interview at the Manhattan music conservatory, Finley needs to compose her audition piece. But her creativity disappeared with the death of her older brother, Will.
She decides to study abroad in Ireland so she can follow Will’s travel journal. It’s the place he felt closest to God, and she’s hopeful being there will help her make peace over losing him. So she agrees to an exchange program and boards the plane.
Beckett Rush, teen heartthrob and Hollywood bad boy, is flying to Ireland to finish filming his latest vampire movie. On the flight, he meets Finley. She’s the one girl who seems immune to his charm. Undeterred, Beckett convinces her to be his assistant in exchange for his help as a tour guide.
Once in Ireland, Finley starts to break down. The loss of her brother and the pressure of school, her audition, and whatever it is that is happening between her and Beckett, leads her to a new and dangerous vice. When is God going to show up for her in this emerald paradise?
Then she experiences something that radically changes her perspective on life. Could it be God convincing her that everything she’s been looking for has been with her all along?
Finley Sinclair is the little sister of the hero in the last offering and so we get to see a bit of Alex and Lucy through phone calls, emails and text messages which is nice. I’m always a sucker for knowing what happens after ‘happily ever after’.
Finley is a bit lost. She’s searching for something – for God, for friendship, for love, for [to quote Michael W. Smith] her “place in this world”. Her older brother, Will, had been killed doing humanitarian work halfway around the world, but before that he’d spent time in Ireland as a foreign exchange student. Finley is following in his footsteps, hoping to find what he had – enduring faith.
Almost immediately she finds herself in the presence of the star of a Twilight-like series of movies. The latest heartthrob to grace the pages of every magazine and teeny-bopper website. She’s unimpressed and only spends time with him because she has to. Can the forced togetherness lead to something more? Can she trust what he says rather than what she sees with her own eyes? And what other problems are tormenting her – to the point that she may not even realize it?
With catty teenager girls bent on making the lives of Finley and her new friends [the daughter of her host family and the friends she makes through them] difficult as only teenage girls can, Finley comes to know the true love of Christ. As with her other books, Ms. Jones shares compelling Biblical truths as she waves a wonderful story for us to enjoy.
Overall Rating: 8.5 out of 10 stars