Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles

Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles

Release Date: October 1, 2013

Publisher: Walker Childrens
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 352

Summary: 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?

My Thoughts: I seriously love Simone Elkeles! One of my favorite authors of all time! Whenever she has a new book coming out, I must read it quickly! Love her and her stories!

We are introduced to Derek who lives with his stepmom and her son. His dad is in the Navy and is on duty right now. Well, his stepmom ends up pregnant so they move back to her hometown where her younger sister and father live. This is a big change for her as she hasn't talked to them in a long time. But she needs family at a time like this. They pack up and move to Chicago. Its quite a big difference for Derek. He had some trouble back home and he has to start all over.

He meets Ashtyn who is his stepmoms sister. He doesn’t quite hit it off with her but they soon get used to living with one another. Talk about chemistry, they sure do have it!

Ashtyn plays football. She’s a tomboy I guess. She wants to play pro one day. This is her dream. She is dating the quarterback and she knows what she wants. But things get shoved in her way too and things don’t go as planned.

I loved both Derek and Ashtyn. I loved their bickering back and forth and I loved the shed scene, heck both of them! They were both such likable characters. And Derek’s little stepbrother (really he considers him a brother) was so stinking cute!

Even though Derek didn’t handle things very well some of the time, I still could see his point of view. And I understood why he kept his secrets. I understood what he went through with his mom and I understood how hard things were for him, and to get close to anyone really. I understood Ashtyn too. There was just something about her I could relate too.

I really loved the plot of this, and I loved the whole family. I loved the way they came together and made things work. And I adored how it ended. Things wrapped up nicely and I was proud of how far Derek had come and how he was fighting for what he wanted.

Overall: Another favorite from Elkeles for me! I can’t wait to see the rest of the series! They are going to be AMAZING! I hope! I loved this one to bits and pieces! Winner!

Cover: Its cute!! Love it! It fits perfectly and I’d grab it off the store shelf! Yay!

What I'd Give It: