Review: Calling California by J.P. Grider

Calling California by J.P. Grider

Genres: New Adult, Contemporary Romance

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Cali Parker is poor. She has a lot on her plate - her
father is dying, she's working to help pay the rent,
and she's two-years behind in college.

Griffin Brooks is rich. He has not a care in the world - he's acing his engineering courses, his hobby is restoring his fifty-thousand dollar classic car, and he has a different girl on his arm every week.

When Cali sees Griffin on her first day of class, she's immediately smitten and thinks she's found the perfect guy. When Griffin sees Cali at the bank, he immediately forgets the blonde he was with that morning. Then they meet, and their worlds collide.

Cali doesn't belong in Griffin’s world, and he doesn't understand hers. But just when Griffin convinces Cali that their two different worlds can blend, a secret is revealed that tears them apart.

Is their love strong enough to bring them back together, or will their worlds drift further apart?

   I'm really on the fence with Calling California. The premise of this story definitely had my interest. There were parts of it that I enjoyed immensely. But there were also parts that felt off to me and left me confused while reading it. All in all, I'm torn when it comes to this book.

  A big draw back for me was the characters. Cali really grated on my nerves. There was an overwhelming vibe of judgement on Cali's part. It really held me back from connecting with her. There is a repetitive diatribe about Cali's life in poverty. While I have complete sympathy for her struggles, I don't need to be reminded every other page that she hasn't had the most stable life. I would rather read about her overcoming the obstacles of life rather than the reiteration of her less than pleasant situation.

  The main issue with this book for me was the romance, though. Whenever a book is marked as a contemporary romance, I expect it to sell me on the romance. Calling California just didn't do that for me. I never believed in the story.

  What I enjoyed about this story was the author's writing style. It's a very descriptive style that is easy to read. I think with a different set of characters, I would have enjoyed this book so much more. Like I mentioned at the beginning, the premise of this story was really something I looked forward to. I just wish that the characters could have delivered on that.

**I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review with no compensation.