ebook review: Firsts by Laurie Flynn

Seventeen-year-old Mercedes Ayres has an open-door policy when it comes to her bedroom, but only if the guy fulfills a specific criteria: he has to be a virgin. Mercedes lets the boys get their awkward, fumbling first times over with, and all she asks in return is that they give their girlfriends the perfect first time- the kind Mercedes never had herself.

Keeping what goes on in her bedroom a secret has been easy- so far. Her absentee mother isn’t home nearly enough to know about Mercedes’ extracurricular activities, and her uber-religious best friend, Angela, won’t even say the word “sex” until she gets married. But Mercedes doesn’t bank on Angela’s boyfriend finding out about her services and wanting a turn- or on Zach, who likes her for who she is instead of what she can do in bed.

When Mercedes’ perfect system falls apart, she has to find a way to salvage her reputation and figure out where her heart really belongs in the process. Funny, smart, and true-to-life, FIRSTS is a one-of-a-kind young adult novel about growing up. 

Goodreads | Amazon

My Review:

Flynn really impressed me. Honestly I haven't seen such an awesome display of characterization in a while. Mercedes is the girl no one really liked in high school--the one sleeping with all of your boyfriends. It's for a good reason though. She's just got her own little version of sex ed for guys. I couldn't really get a read on the target audience of this book--the main character's a girl, so you would think it would be young women. But the content and acknowledgement of the struggles and double standards men go through when it comes to sex makes me want to recommend it to young men too.

This book didn't blow me away and have me gushing to everyone about it. We just didn't hit the same note there. But I was engaged in the story and interested enough to keep my mind on only the book when I was reading it.

The only thing that I really didn't buy was Mercedes' mother. Totally lost on me, couldn't even really entertain it. But it would make for a great movie. Like, one I'd pay actual money for and not just pirate off the internet.

While I may not buy this book for myself, I'd probably buy it for my shelf so my daughter might read it one day. It would also make a great gift for any teen in your life. 

4.5

I got this book though NetGalley in exchange for an honest review