Everyone Else's Girl Book

Meredith McKay has gone to a lot of trouble to create the picture-perfect life for herself-far away from her troublesome family, thank you. When her father's car accident forces her back to her hometown, however, she soon discovers that there+s no running away from family issues—there's only delaying the inevitable. Can anyone sort out a lifetime of drama in one hot summer? Throw in a hot guy from back in high school with an ax to grind, a best friend turned enemy turned soon-to-be-sister-in-law, and of course, the sometimes irritating, sometimes delightful members of her own family, and Meredith is on her way to figuring out that a trip through the past is the best way to move forward. With one revelation after another coming to light, Meredith must reexamine all the things she+s ever believed, including the truth about herself. Could it be that she isn't the picture-perfect good girl she always thought she was?

Library Journal

It's a late twentysomething's worst nightmare: moving back home with her parents. Meredith's mom is on a dream vacation, and her dad is at home with a broken leg. And since her two siblings in the area can't (or won't) be his nursemaid, "Saint Meredith" leaves behind her perfect life and perfect boyfriend in another state to help out. Sleeping in her old twin bed and running into high school classmates, she suddenly feels 17 again, i.e., awful. To complicate matters, her classmate neighbor has gone from super geek to total babe. These and other elements make for one hot summer during which Meredith realizes that maybe her perfect life isn't all it seems. In her second novel (after English as a Second Language), Crane shows a growing depth. Her characters are human and flawed, and Meredith sees some unflattering aspects of herself. This makes the novel work-there is warmth without being smarmy and hope but no perfect solutions. And the humor we enjoyed in Crane's debut bubbles up here, too. Recommended for all fiction collections.-Anna M. Nelson, Collier Cty. P.L., Naples, FL Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.