Review: Just a Little Crush by Renita Pizzitola

Summary:

Good girls stay away from Ryder Briggs . . . or, at least, they try to. In Renita Pizzitola’s emotional novel of heartache and seduction, one college freshman just can’t get enough.

Brinley Dawson doesn’t drink, she studies—and despite the accusations of her alcoholic mother, she’s still a virgin. But if Brinley’s life is so put together, why is she freaking out to be going to college with the gorgeous, green-eyed jerk she kissed on a stupid dare in high school? Ryder Briggs can have any girl he wants . . . and the rumors say that he does. So why, after publicly embarrassing Brinley four years ago, is he suddenly acting like he’s interested?

Ryder never forgot Brinley. In fact, those perfect seven minutes permanently raised the bar for what a kiss could be. The truth is, Ryder doesn’t dare get too close to anyone. He knows how that worked out for his parents. But when his roommate takes a shot at Brinley, Ryder can’t contain his jealousy. Now he must do the hardest thing he’s ever done: forget about sex and convince Brinley his feelings are real.

Brinley isn’t sure whether she believes Ryder, but for the first time, her body isn’t playing by the rules. Then she discovers that she’s an unwilling part of a cruel game, humiliating her all over again—and Ryder might be to blame. Has Brinley’s little crush turned into a huge mistake . . . or has she found the one guy worth trusting with her heart?

Publication Date: October 21, 2014

Just a Little Crush was a fun and cute read. I really liked the main characters and I felt there was just enough angst to keep the story interesting. I’d highly recommend the book to fans of New Adult romances.

Second chance romances can be a hard sell sometimes for me. I wasn’t completely buying what Ryder was selling at first. However, what he did to Brinley in high school luckily didn’t make him completely unredeemable. I enjoyed how the author peeled back his layers to reveal a good guy underneath the bad boy exterior. There was a twist about him I didn’t love, but I still felt invested enough in the romance to continue reading.

Although Brinley was sweet, I felt like the secondary characters outshone her and I wouldn’t mind reading spin-offs featuring Fallon and Mason. Fallon was very funny and Mason was there for Brinley when she needed him the most during high school.

There is a lot of back and forth between Brinley and Ryder and there were times I wasn’t sure if they would work out. I thought the author was heading toward a cliffhanger ending and I was pleased to finish the book and have the plot wrapped up nicely. Overall, a well-written contemporary romance that will appeal to fans of books like Beautiful Disaster.

Rating: 4/5 Stars

Thanks to the publisher for a copy of the novel for review!