Wanderlove
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Are you a Global Vagabond?
No, but 18-year-old Bria wants to be. In a quest for independence, her neglected art, and no-strings-attached hookups, she signs up for a tour of Central America—the wrong one. Middle-aged tourists are hardly the key to self-rediscovery.
So when Bria meets Rowan, devoted backpacker and dive instructor, and his outspoken sister Starling, she seizes the chance to ditch her group and join them off the beaten path. Bria's a good girl trying to go bad. Rowan's a bad boy trying to stay good. As they travel through Mayan villages and remote Belizean islands, they discover they're both seeking to leave behind the old versions of themselves. The secret to escaping the past, Rowan's found, is to keep moving forward. But Bria realizes she can't run forever. At some point, you have to look back.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Hubbard's second novel, following Like Mandarin, is rich with the unexpected joys and tribulations of new experiences. When 18-year-old Bria Sandoval is dumped, her art school plans fall through, and her two best friends renege on their summer travel plans, Bria signs up for a "Global Vagabond" tour in Central America. Upon arriving in Guatemala, she is disappointed by the tame, touristy group, and when a handsome stranger named Rowan and his half-sister, Starling, invite her to travel with them, she jumps at the opportunity. From Guatemala, Rowan and Bria make their way to a Belizean island where they stay in hostels, get on each other's nerves, and skirt conversations about their pasts: both are angry at themselves and focused on changing themselves. The sincerity of Bria's narration is balanced by a healthy dose of sarcasm, and her journaling and delicate, skillful pencil drawings contribute to the novel's strong sense of place. Bria's charged relationship with Rowan and the vast emotional and physical territory Hubbard covers make for an evocative and romantic read. Ages 14 up.
