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Being True #1
Finding Ashlynn
Being Book One
Every Friday night, Jenna and her best friend, Stella, attend their local LGBTQ youth group meeting. It’s a great place for support and friendship, but Jenna wants to fall in love. In walks Ashlynn, a purple-haired girl who wants to know how bad coming out of the closet can be.
Living in two different worlds, Jenna and Ash have vastly different ideas about the difference between sex and love, the definition of virginity, and how to face a world out in the open where they can admit their true feelings… whatever they may be.
Every Friday night, Jenna and her best friend, Stella, attend their local LGBTQ youth group meeting. It’s a great place for support and friendship, but Jenna wants to fall in love. In walks Ashlynn, a purple-haired girl who wants to know how bad coming out of the closet can be.
Living in two different worlds, Jenna and Ash have vastly different ideas about the difference between sex and love, the definition of virginity, and how to face a world out in the open where they can admit their true feelings… whatever they may be.
123 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 12, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 7, 2017
This is so idealistic and fast-to-love it almost feels like a fairytale.
Ash, the punk rocker girl, and Jenna, the good girl are immediately smitten with each other upon meeting at a support group for LGBT teens. The only complication that arises in the story is due to class issues. Ash is the poorest of the poor, lives with her dad whom she never sees because he's working three jobs, living literally on the wrong side of the tracks in a neighborhood so bad she doesn't even feel comfortable walking to the door while Jenna lives in super posh suburbia with her loving father and mother.
Ash is ashamed of this. Jenna doesn't care in the least of Ash's background.
Jenna is out. Ash is not.
To both its benefit and detriment the story is overly simple and so are the characters. The story is technically written well but definitely lacks nuance. Personally, I like reading more complicated YA stories than this offers.
I found that the girls did have chemistry but they did more making out than talking to each other so there's little depth to their relationship and, yes, this is instalove.
For extra diversity besides the two leads being lesbian, there's a transgender (male-to-female) best friend and Jenna is a quarter black which was such a big issue that Jenna told Ash that right away to see if she'd retreat from the relationship...which I thought was odd but if you're in certain parts of America I guess that's relevant.
The story was okay for what it is (a positive representation of teens accepting their sexuality). The only item I saw that I balked at was a slut shaming thought run through Jenna's head (she's not one of THOSE types of girls since she still has her virtue and all).
This wasn't really my cup of tea but, if you want a super happy uncomplicated lesbian YA story, this fits the bill.
Ash, the punk rocker girl, and Jenna, the good girl are immediately smitten with each other upon meeting at a support group for LGBT teens. The only complication that arises in the story is due to class issues. Ash is the poorest of the poor, lives with her dad whom she never sees because he's working three jobs, living literally on the wrong side of the tracks in a neighborhood so bad she doesn't even feel comfortable walking to the door while Jenna lives in super posh suburbia with her loving father and mother.
Ash is ashamed of this. Jenna doesn't care in the least of Ash's background.
Jenna is out. Ash is not.
To both its benefit and detriment the story is overly simple and so are the characters. The story is technically written well but definitely lacks nuance. Personally, I like reading more complicated YA stories than this offers.
I found that the girls did have chemistry but they did more making out than talking to each other so there's little depth to their relationship and, yes, this is instalove.
For extra diversity besides the two leads being lesbian, there's a transgender (male-to-female) best friend and Jenna is a quarter black which was such a big issue that Jenna told Ash that right away to see if she'd retreat from the relationship...which I thought was odd but if you're in certain parts of America I guess that's relevant.
The story was okay for what it is (a positive representation of teens accepting their sexuality). The only item I saw that I balked at was a slut shaming thought run through Jenna's head (she's not one of THOSE types of girls since she still has her virtue and all).
This wasn't really my cup of tea but, if you want a super happy uncomplicated lesbian YA story, this fits the bill.
December 5, 2013
The one thing that surprised me about this novel was, simply enough, the subject matter--and that is only because there is a serious lack of light, fluffy, sweet lesbian YA stories out there.
Of course, we have some great classics like Annie on My Mind and some awesome new fantasy/sci-fi authors like Malinda Lo who write genre fiction with lesbian protagonists. But the straight-up fluffy romance novels are usually strictly heterosexual. Lesbian stories for young adults are often tragic coming out tales--and in this day and age, we're starting to realize that isn't the only story left to tell.
Finding Ashlynn certainly isn't highbrow lit, but it is sweet enough to satisfy any young queer girl's craving for characters that look, act, and sound like her and her friends. Ashlynn and Jenna are a little one-note sometimes (punk meets prep) and there's enough schmoop to fuel a candy factory for a year, but I think we need innocent, quick little stories like this in the YA atmosphere. There will be a girl out there who reads this and sees herself, and I think that's the most important thing.
Of course, we have some great classics like Annie on My Mind and some awesome new fantasy/sci-fi authors like Malinda Lo who write genre fiction with lesbian protagonists. But the straight-up fluffy romance novels are usually strictly heterosexual. Lesbian stories for young adults are often tragic coming out tales--and in this day and age, we're starting to realize that isn't the only story left to tell.
Finding Ashlynn certainly isn't highbrow lit, but it is sweet enough to satisfy any young queer girl's craving for characters that look, act, and sound like her and her friends. Ashlynn and Jenna are a little one-note sometimes (punk meets prep) and there's enough schmoop to fuel a candy factory for a year, but I think we need innocent, quick little stories like this in the YA atmosphere. There will be a girl out there who reads this and sees herself, and I think that's the most important thing.
December 5, 2013
Jenna is out and has the support and love of her family, what she doesn't have is someone special in her life. Until a certain pink haired, from the wrong side of the tracks, rocker chick comes into her life. Jenna is very attracted to Ashlynn but isn't sure how the shy girl feels about her.
Ashlynn is smitten from the moment she meets Jenna but after one visit to Jenna's house she is convinced that Jenna could never really like a poor girl from a broken home.
Can a girl from the wrong side of the tracks find happiness, love and most importantly acceptance?
LOVED LOVED LOVED Ashlynn. Her quite, shy personality especially around Jenna's parents was so sweet to read. Her embarrassment about where and how she lived read very true for someone of her age.
A strong cast of secondary characters helped round out and add depth to the overall story. I am very interested in Stella's story but have a feeling it's going to break my heart. I am happy to see stories that are centered around a safe place where GLBTQ kids can go and make friends and wish something like this was available everywhere.
Zoe Lynne writes like she has tapped into the mind of a teenage girl so the dialogue and situations in the book don't feel contrived but could be happening in any high school anywhere. A great book for the young adult set and can't wait for the next in the series!
Ashlynn is smitten from the moment she meets Jenna but after one visit to Jenna's house she is convinced that Jenna could never really like a poor girl from a broken home.
Can a girl from the wrong side of the tracks find happiness, love and most importantly acceptance?
LOVED LOVED LOVED Ashlynn. Her quite, shy personality especially around Jenna's parents was so sweet to read. Her embarrassment about where and how she lived read very true for someone of her age.
A strong cast of secondary characters helped round out and add depth to the overall story. I am very interested in Stella's story but have a feeling it's going to break my heart. I am happy to see stories that are centered around a safe place where GLBTQ kids can go and make friends and wish something like this was available everywhere.
Zoe Lynne writes like she has tapped into the mind of a teenage girl so the dialogue and situations in the book don't feel contrived but could be happening in any high school anywhere. A great book for the young adult set and can't wait for the next in the series!
July 2, 2017
Read this after 'That witch!' by the author. Good but not as good. Didn't feel as though the characters were as developed.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews