In Honor by Jessi Kirby (Review)

Genre:	Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Road Trip
Publication Date:	May 8th, 2012
Pages:	288
Published By:	Simon and Schuster
Website	Jessi Kirby
	In Honor on Goodreads
My review copy:	Bought

Where to get:

A devastating loss leads to an unexpected road trip in what Sarah Ockler calls a “beautiful, engaging journey with heart, humor, and just a pinch of Texas sass.”

Three days after learning of her brother Finn’s death, Honor receives his last letter from Iraq. Devastated, she interprets his note as a final request and spontaneously sets off to California to fulfill it. At the last minute, she’s joined by Rusty, Finn’s former best friend.

Rusty is the last person Honor wants to be with—he’s cocky and obnoxious, just like Honor remembers, and she hasn’t forgiven him for turning his back on Finn when he enlisted. But as they cover the dusty miles together in Finn’s beloved 1967 Chevy Impala, long-held resentments begin to fade, and Honor and Rusty struggle to come to terms with the loss they share.

As their memories of Finn merge to create a new portrait, Honor’s eyes are opened to a side of her brother she never knew—a side that shows her the true meaning of love and sacrifice.

(Goodreads)

It occurs to me that I've never actually heard taps played in real life. As the first notes emerge, I try to be present in the moment, try to press into my mind what this moment means. My brother is dead. And this...this means it's real. He's playing for Finn.

He always told me to look strong, even if I didn't feel it, because sometimes that's all you can do.

Looking up at the stars was a way to look right back into the past.

I sat back in the seat and opened my mouth to protest, but he shook his head. "Nobody talks during 'Wayward Son.' Car rules." He turned the volume up another notch. I tried to hide it, tried to look exasperated, but it was no use. I felt a true, happy smile rise in me as Rusty sang along.

By now he treated it as routine, as if it were normal to do all these things in your underwear: Get out, stretch, look over miles of desert that didn't change, check the engine, get honked at and flashed by a car full of girls zooming by with their music blaring. None of it fazed him. Which was kind of even more attractive. Oh, god. I could barely stand myself. 

Denial's a stubborn thing. And necessary at first, so the world doesn't come crashing down on you all at once.

"It's one of your better qualities." He put his arm on the seat behind me and twisted around to back the truck out. "That and your little black bikini." 

Oh my God, guys. This book. This is my first Jessi Kirby book and what a book to start me on a Jessi Kirby love affair. This book has it all. Good writing, humor, love, sacrifice, road trip, sass, and so much more. This is a perfect summer read!

Honor, yes that's the main character's name. So awesome. I love it. Honor is grieving for her dead brother. Ouch, sucks. I can't even think about losing my own brother. I can think about losing a parent, because I've been there. But I really like how vulnerable Honor is. And honestly, I think it would have been a horrible decision to make her so strong in the beginning because let's be honest, when someone loses someone so close to them, they aren't strong right away. They learn to be strong. But they have to go through their own journey, make their own mistakes, bawl their eyes out, and handle grief in their own way. Only then, can they actual build themselves back up and be strong.

I pretty much acted the same way Honor was when my dad died. In fact, I was about her age too. And let me tell ya, I made a lot of mistakes. But looking back, I don't regret a thing because I had to go through all that to become who I am today. So, I'm really glad that Jessi Kirby made Honor vulnerable and had her build herself up.

Rusty. OH MY GOD. Can I get some more please?! He is cocky. He is snarky. He has these grins that just make your heart melt. He has family issues. He is a COUNTRY BOY. A cop actually calls him Tex. He is sexy. Courageous. PROTECTIVE. My knight in shining armor. Oh, I mean, Honor's knight in shining armor. Can you tell that I just LOVE RUSTY!!

Seriously guys, this book is a must read! There were times that I laughed out loud, because well, the relationship between Honor and Rusty is just awesome. I love this book so much and will definitely be putting Jessi Kirby on my automatic buy list. Thank God, I have another Jessi Kirby book! PICK THIS UP NOW IF YOU HAVEN'T already. This is going on my favorites shelf and I will probably reread it again in the future.