Paradise City by CJ Duggan

Title: Paradise City (Paradise #1)

Author: CJ Duggan

Publisher: Hachette Australia

Published: April 28th, 2015

Rating: 3.5/5

Seventeen year old Lexie Atkinson has been homeschooled in Red Hill, rural Australia and really wants to go to a public school for her last year. She comes to an agreement with her parents that if she maintains excellent grades this year she can go stay and attend school with her cousin, Amanda. Lexie is a straight ‘A’ student and she’s off to Paradise City! She’s excited to get back with Amanda who she used to be best friends with before she moved to the city but the city has changed Amanda. Amanda is hateful, resents having to share a room with her and doesn’t want Lexie spoiling her secret nightlife. 

At school, Lexie manages to get into trouble from the first moment she enters reception, assembly and class. When she meets Luke Ballantine, she’s smitten, the chemistry between them is volatile! How will Lexie cope with the new school, new relationships and attraction to Luke? Life is about to get very interesting for her and all is not going to go well!

For a supposedly straight ‘A’ student Lexie is somewhat naive,  immature and silly. I am so glad she isn’t my daughter as she really seems to be lacking in both common sense and self respect! Call me old fashioned (I am) but I wouldn’t want any daughter of anyone to think her behaviour with Luke or Amanda’s with Boon is how she should be behaving – and certainly not on a first non-date! Her academic ability and actions really don’t seem to match. It is a fun read with lots of teenage angst, misunderstandings and turmoil but, for me, too much too quick sexual action. I really like Luke Ballantine. He seems much more rounded, complex and, apart from the ending, to have and use more common sense than most of the other teenagers put together! It has some really fun moments and the cliff hanger ending leaves the reader wanting the next book to read now, please!

Thanks to the author, publishers and NetGalley, too, for letting me read an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is available from a variety of sources including

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