Whatever Life Throws at You by Julie CrossPublished by: Entangled Teen on October 7, 2014
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Sports
Pages: 373
Source: Purchased
Book Details
Rating: ★★★★★
Life loves a good curveball...
Seventeen-year-old Annie Lucas's life is completely upended the moment her dad returns to the major leagues as the new pitching coach for the Kansas City Royals. Now she's living in Missouri (too cold), attending an all-girls school (no boys), and navigating the strange world of professional sports. But Annie has dreams of her own—most of which involve placing first at every track meet...and one starring the Royals' super-hot rookie pitcher.
But nineteen-year-old Jason Brody is completely, utterly, and totally off-limits. Besides, her dad would kill them both several times over. Not to mention Brody has something of a past, and his fan club is filled with C-cupped models, not smart-mouthed high school “brats” who can run the pants off every player on the team. Annie has enough on her plate without taking their friendship to the next level. The last thing she should be doing is falling in love.
But baseball isn't just a game. It's life. And sometimes, it can break your heart...
Remember that amaaaazing book I read recently: I’ll Meet You There? Well, I finished that book and I was HUNGRY. I wanted another adorable, heart-wrenching romance that would sweep me off my feet. So I turned to Twitter and begged for suggestions. One awesome gal recommended Whatever Life Throws at You. IT WAS PERFECT!!!
I love a book that makes me fall in love with sports, and Whatever Life Throws at You did that with baseball. I was so into it!! I wanted to join the track team and convince my husband to take up baseball. I WANTED THAT LIFE!! And considering I think baseball is an extremely dull sport, that was saying something.
Sports aside, the rest of Whatever Life Throws at You was equally fantastic. There was kind of a two-say split: Annie and her father, and Annie and Jason. I LOVED THEM BOTH!! Annie’s relationship with her father was really sweet. He was basically a single parent, raising Annie on his own. I loved how close their relationship was (usually).
Then there was the delicious baseball star: Jason. Jason and Annie were PERFECT together!! I loved their interaction. They had adorable conversations like:
“If you could be any magical creature in the Harry Potter series, which would you choose?”
[…]
He scratches the back of his head. “I guess maybe one of those elves.”
“A house elf? Seriously? They’re slaves.” I shake my head. “Why would you want to be an enslaved elf? They can’t even wear clothes.”
And then there were the adorably awkward conversations:
“I’m wondering if,” I say, biting back any hesitation, “you’ve had a girl handle your parts and totally do it wrong? Like the worst hand job ever?”
I love how they actually covered some of the more awkward topics that people ALWAYS think about but they never actually go over in these romance books. Well, Whatever Life Throws at You TOTALLY WENT THERE!!
Whatever Life Throws at You was another book that I didn’t want to end. I loved all the characters—even the side ones—and I was addicted to the romance. Plus, this was another one of those books that made me all obsessed with sports and athleticism, I really like that! Even if the feeling only lasts for the duration of the book, haha.
The Verdict
I didn’t even know this one! Added it to my TBR. 😀
I think you’d love this, Bieke! We have very similar tastes when it comes to these kinds of books!
We do! 😀
I ADORED this book to no end. Once I picked it up, I could not put it down. I really love Julie’s writing. And just wait. She has another sports themed book on the horizon. I was fortunate to beta read and it was really good! I’m pretty sure she’s also toying with writing more in this series, which makes me EXTREMELY happy!
That is such exciting news, Brooke! I’ll definitely pick up Julie’s next book(s). I’m hooked!!
I’m not much for YA-almost-NA contemporary romances because they tend to all follow a rather predictable pattern, but this sounds like such a fun story! I’m not much for sports either, but I can definitely see how a book with sports in it might motivate you to want to be in those sports. 😛 I’ll definitely check this out on Goodreads — someday I might find myself in the mood for it!
A lot of them are predictable, but I adored this book. I loved the quirky, awkward conversations. It made the book feel fresh and realistic, you know?
I also think the close relationship with the MC and her father made the book different. Usually books like this are ALL ABOUT THE ROMANCE. This had an interesting family dynamic too.
YES! I loved WLTAY (actually, I love all of Julie Cross’s contemporary romances)! I think baseball is one of the most boring sports to watch ever. I fall asleep when my senior sports editor starts talking about the Rays’ prospects in the new season or whatever it is he’s going on about. WLTAY made me genuinely interested in baseball and what happens behind the scenes. I’ve never been more invested in a pitcher’s career in my life!
I’m on Julie’s Street Team, so I was lucky to score a free copy for my e-reader. She’s working on a book about Hockey right now and I’m so excited! If you want more sporty romance, you should check out her gymnastics book Letters to Nowhere.
This was my first Julie Cross book and I’m definitely hooked! Everything about this book spoke to me.
Thanks for suggesting Letters to Nowhere—I’ll definitely check that out! More awesome romance, here I come.
I neeeeeeed to read this. I live in Kansas City so I feel like I should jump on a book that takes place here. I’m so glad you loved this one!
Yes, yes you do! 😀 I hope you love it Megan.
Oh, this book is ADORABLE. Definitely one of the best YA contemporaries I read last year. I’m not much of a sports fan, but even I enjoyed the whole baseball theme. Made me start watching more baseball too, LOL. Sadly, my hometown team players are not as handsome looking as Jason Brody *sigh*. Anyway, so glad you loved this book!
Haha I love it when a book makes me adore a sport I’m not actually interested at all. 😀
JASON AND ANNIE!! Adored them so freaking much. Swooned over this book hard! Julie Cross is amazing when it comes to YA Contemporary romance (mixed with sports), I tell you. I’m so so happy to hear you loved this!
ME TOO!! They were so adorable! They’re officially one of my favourite couples.