The Ninja Reader

OMG! Instant music geek orgasm! Go request this on netgalley. Or read it. Now, now, now!How awesome is this book? It made me forget exam anxiety. It made me forget my surroundings. It made me sit my arse down and read, from start to finish, and all I can say is, thank goodness I didn't open the file BEFORE I went into exams because I would have surely missed it."Saving June" tells the story of Harper, a girl whose sister has just committed suicide. The two girls have been dealing with the fallout of their parents' divorce for a long time, and June's death, coupled with their absentee father, really throws Harper off-balance. As an extra slap to the face, June was one of those perfect girls who everyone wants to emulate, and Harper, troublemaker extraordinaire, finds it impossible to fill her shoes. When she learns that her parents will split her sister's ashes, Harper employs the help of her friend Laney to steal the urn and scatter them over the Pacific Ocean. The only problem? They have no car. Enter Jake, a friend of June whom she has never talked of previously, who seems to know more than he lets on about her suicide. The three embark on a cross-country trip that not only helps Harper discover some important things, but also for her to come to terms with her sister's decision and the reprecussions of it. This is one of those books whose pros more than outshine its flaws. It isn't perfect, but then again, neither is life. I loved Harper's voice - it was brutally honest, yet sincere, and it does a fantastic job at conveying her character. She's lost, but doesn't lose direction, and is much more insightful than her parents, or her very religious aunt, give her credit for.The banter was also fantastic, fresh and full of music references that made my little heart beat with glee. I had to physically restrain myself from compulsively quoting this thing on GR, because I thought my friend list would not appreciate the sudden influx of status updates on their dash. Suffice to say, it rocks.Also, Jake is an ABBA fan. What's ABBA, you may ask? Well, only the soundtrack to my childhood! Having them referenced in this book, by a guy... I love ABBA. I also happen to love Jenna Marbles. The two things aren't connected, but that gif fucking rocks. I'm not kidding when I say that this book is a multi-medium experience, even if it doesn't come with a set of built-in speakers... though it should... The music references, classic rock specifically, rival only Five Flavors of Dumb on the epic scale. It's a dream, especially when, like myself, you've grown up listening to those classic bands. Also? The version I got came with a playlist at the end. I predict that I won't be the only one playing "Let It Be" on a loop after finishing this.There are some problematic bits, of course. There always are. But I was willing to overlook them, simply because the overall story blew me away.What? Why are you still standing there? Go read this book! Naow!Note: A copy was provided by the publishers via NetGalley. I strongly predict I will producre my own copy as soon as this becomes available.