Rivals

Skid #2

by Doug Solter

Dad taught her how to handle everything inside a racing car...except the world outside of one. Racing in her second season of Formula One, eighteen-year-old Samantha Sutton wants to prove she's a future world champion. But her new teammate Emilio Ronaldo stands in her way. He said girls like her don't belong inside a race car. Samantha doesn't want to beat him. She wants to humiliate him.

Manny Wolert and Samantha fell in love over winter break. But when she becomes a self-absorbed racing star, can Manny save Samantha from destroying herself and them?

A story of two teens, struggling with a new reality.

Fans of Maggie Stiefvater's THE SCORPIO RACES and Enid Bagnold's NATIONAL VELVET should find RIVALS exciting and emotionally compelling. Fans of Ally Carter's HEIST SOCIETY series will enjoy the international settings and lifestyle.

This book is the second part of the SKID young adult racing series filled with teen drama, bite-your-nails-racing action, international locations, a girl you care so much about that you want to yell at her, and above all else...a story about racing for people who don't care about racing.

Genres: Racing, Young Adult

280 pages, Paperback

First published September 23, 2014

About the author

Doug Solter has worked in local television for over 20 years. He's directed rap music videos and short films. His screenplays have been semi and quarter finalists in the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences' Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting. He drank wine on the streets of Barcelona. Hiked the Rocky Mountains. Loved a cat. And worked as a Starbucks barista for a month.

Doug currently lives in Pennsylvania where he writes young adult novels full of escapism. Doug's first young adult novel Skid was first a screenplay before it was adapted into a book. Doug is an active member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.

Doug enjoys...
 
Reading young adult books, spy thrillers, biographies, historical fiction & non-fiction, and wants to read more science fiction & fantasy.

Watching every movie from the silent-era classics through the golden age and film-noir, through French new wave and the 70s auteur movement, and to the blockbusters of the modern era. (Yes, he's a movie nerd.)

Traveling to new places. Vacation is not an evil word. He believes travel is the answer to happiness. Traveled to 31 of the 50 states in his country. He's visited Canada, Spain, Italy, France, and Monaco. He hopes to do more.

Watching modern day television with all the great writing. He's excited about the flood of interesting shows that are out there now.

Cats. Wishes he could have one inside his small apartment but is forced to enjoy them on social media.

Hearing about science stuff and things about outer-space because it all blows his mind.

Cars. He enjoys looking at them and pretending that he has hundreds of them inside his mental garage.

You can connect with Doug on Facebook too! >>>>>> https://www.facebook.com/DougSolterYA...

Reviews

[Jess Mountifield · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was gifted a copy of this ebook in return for my review.

The book picked up a little while after the previous Skid story, following our darling heroine Samantha and her boyfriend Manny. I must admit the very beginning threw me a little. Samantha was driving fast and recklessly on a normal road, something I felt was a little out of character given her past and what happened to her father. This happened again later in the book and made me feel a little frustrated.

I loved the chapters from Manny's point of view and having Paige on the scene (Samantha's younger sister). I also liked the general plot of the book and the extra elements added by Manny's ex. The books was also written well in terms of pacing, and the balance of action and character dialogue and down scenes.

But despite my desire to love this book as much as I did the first I just couldn't. While some of how Samantha reacted felt realistic and understandable given the pressure she was under, she came across a little too immature for a girl her age. She whined a shed load, which was heavy slogging to read and although some of the things she did wrong were understandable I don't know a single girl above the age of about 13-14 that still gives someone the silent treatment when angry.

I also have mixed feelings about where the book ended, half-way through a season and the story's plot. While I can understand the author's desire not to publish a sequel that's way longer than the first one, I personally would have prefered a longer book that had a little less of the immaturity and whining and had a complete plot.

The last few percent redeemed the book a little so I'll definitely read the next one but unfortunately this isn't as good as the first.

[alex ☾ · Rating 2 out of 5]

it is so obvious that the author of this book has no idea how to write women. at all
female characters here are either a) beauty obsessed, slutty and spoiled or b) the wise matriarch type and honestly i am so damn tired of it.
can’t believe i paid 10$ for this series fr

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. It had action, racing, plenty of romance, a touch of humor, and a lot of drama.

However, I have given it a 3 star rating for two reasons. Firstly, because Samantha just rubbed me the wrong way. Her ego is huge, and she just doesn't give a thought to how others think, unless it directly affects her. And I know this is one of her character flaws, but it left me shaking my head at times as I read. She was really annoying. Secondly, I didn't really like the ending. I was expecting something exciting, but it sort of just fizzled out, with a promise of something exciting in the next book. Not memorable at all.

Now don't get me wrong, this book has plenty going for it. Very clear writing, well developed characters, a sturdy plot... it was well-written. But I'm not really one who likes a book to be mostly about the romance, unless I'm really behind the characters together. And with Samantha and Manny, well, I'm not quite.

This wasn't really my cup of tea, but it was still a good book, and I think there are people out there who would enjoy it very much.

[Bear Boxall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unfortunately this sequel wasn't as good as the first one. Samantha became a whiny little girl, as if she unlearned everything she learned in the first book. In the last 5% of the book , it finally became obvious what it was building up to, but it did take a long time to get there. Then the book finished and I saw the note from the author explaining that the story had become too long to make into a single book. I was expecting to see a complete f1 season per book. it annoyed me that it was in two. It would have been useful to have the note at the start of the book rather than the end.

That being said, the author knows how to write and has a good story to tell. I just hope there is more racing and less girly whining from Samantha in the next book. I definitely want to read more from this author and more about Samantha. I look forward to the next instalment.

[Doug Solter]

I wrote it.