Released: 4th August.
Blurb:
There’s a single defining moment within every skater.It lasts only a second. Two if you're good.
Three if you’re really good.
It’s the moment you’re in the air, your board somewhere beneath you, and nothing but wind surrounds you.
It’s the feeling of being airborne.
The sixteen-year-old version of me would’ve said it was the greatest feeling in the world.
Then at seventeen, I had my son.
And every single second became a defining moment. Even the ones that consisted of heartbreak when his mother left us.
Seventeen. Single. Dad.
That’s what my life became.
Yet, every day, I managed to find that feeling of being airborne.
Or at least I convinced myself I did.
But I lied—to myself and to everyone around me.
Until she showed up; Tanned skin, raven dark hair, and eyes the color of emeralds.
You know what sucks about being in the air?
Coming down from the high.
Sometimes you land on the board and nail the trick.
Then kick, push, and coast away.
Other times you fall.
You fall hard.
And those are the times when it’s not as easy to get back up, dust off your pads and try again.
Especially when the girl with the emerald eyes becomes your drug...
And you become her poison.
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Kristine's Review:
Reviewed: July 2015.
I'm sitting here trying to find words to do Kick Push justice, words that will convey the sheer agonising beauty of this book, words that will convey the depth of emotion I experienced reading this, but none come close, there aren't enough superlatives possible to describe what I feel right now, fear, pain, beauty, awe, joy, sorrow, excitement, LOVE ... none of them can truly capture the visceral response I'm living, because this book stole my heart within the first page, captured my soul in the first chapter, Kick Push was every thing I hoped for and so, so much more.
Josh Warden grabbed my attention in Where The Road Takes Me, he was strong, steadfast, fun and full of life and yet had this inherent sadness that always hovered somewhere just beyond reach, I knew with absolute certainty that he would the kind of character that would leave footprints on your heart, like Chloe he would change the way you look at the world, he would steal a piece of your heart and never give it back, and by God did he steal it, and the truth is I don't want it back, because getting it back means letting go, and I don't think I'll ever want to say good bye to this book, to these people, this family,
Becca Owens hides painful past behind her silent smile, her world has become a black void where she struggles to make it through each day, with no connection to anyone she's able to sink further into the darkness that surrounds her, until Josh and his son Tommy show her a reason to breath, a reason to smile, a way to coast.
There is a beautiful fragility to both Becca and Josh, one of them broken and the other bent, two people struggling at times just to breathe through the all consuming darkness, to put one foot in front of the other, to keep going day after day, they witness something in the other that makes the journey that little bit easier. McLean shows her growth here, roaming from laugh out loud funny to heart breaking, to joyous to the depths of despair, and you feel EVERY. SINGLE. moment of this breath taking story about two people and the family they create.
"You deserve for someone to look at you the way I have and love you the way I do. You deserve all of it."And there's the sheer beauty of Kick Push, because don't we all deserve that, we deserve to love and be loved in return, we deserve to find someone we can just coast with, we are more than what we are told by those who want to hurt us and bring us down, we're more than what we allow ourselves to believe in the darkest moments, we aren't broken, sometimes we need a metaphorical band aid, and sometimes we need to be reminded we just need to kick, and then push.
Some books allow you to forget your troubles for a moment, some make you laugh, some tear your soul apart, some allow you to see the world around you differently, some make colours brighter, and moments stronger, some leave you reeling and some break your heart apart only to piece it back together, never quite the same as it was before. Kick Push did all of this and so much more, but more than any of this, Kick Push reminded me why I love to read, it challenged me, it forced me out of my comfort zone at times, it left me breathless and wanting, and for that I will always be grateful to the author. A good book will feel like time has no value, that hours slip away like minutes, but a great book will leave you feeling spent and sated, it will leave you feeling like you've experienced every moment, it will feel real, it will make you forget you were even reading in the first place.
Kick Push wasn't a book, it wasn't a story, it was real, and it was one of the most breath taking experiences of my life, and now as I sit here trying to formulate something to tell you how much this story meant to me, the best I can do is to tell you to BUY KICK PUSH, read it, experience it, let the words wash over you, let every nuance seep into your veins and breathe new life into your soul. For the fifth time since creating Glass Paper Ink I am awarding the PLATINUM LIPSTICK, I am awed by this story, by Josh and Becca, by Tommy, by Jay McLean's words.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1TWxdY0
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1L0SmwZ
Amazon AUS: http://bit.ly/1IURfRb
Also available:
Where The Road Takes Me (The Road #1)
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1ImpWgd
About Jay McLean:
Jay is an avid reader, writer, and most of all, procrastinator. When she's not doing any of those things, she can be found running after her two little boys, or devouring some tacky reality TV show.
She writes what she loves to read, which are books that can make her laugh, make her smile, make her hurt, and make her feel.
For publishing rights (Foreign & Domestic) Film, or television, please contact her agent, Erica Spellman-Silverman, at Trident Media Group.
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