Review: My Not So Super Sweet Life by Rachel Harris

My Not So Super Sweet Life (My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century #3)
       by: Rachel Harris

Publication Date: April 21, 2014
Publisher: Entangled:Teen
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Group: Young Adult
Source: e-ARC provided by the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Page Count: 190 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 5/5 stars

Cat Crawford just wants to be normal—or at least as normal as a daughter of Hollywood royalty can be. And it looks like fate is granting her wish: she’s got an amazing boyfriend, Lucas; her fabulous cousin, Alessandra, living with her; and her dad planning his second marriage to a great future stepmom. That is, until her prodigal mother reveals on national television that she has something important to tell her daughter…causing a media frenzy.

Lucas Capelli knows his fate is to be with Cat, and he’s worked hard to win her over once and for all. Unfortunately, Lucas has his own issues to deal with, including a scandal that could take him away from the first place he’s truly belonged.

As secrets are revealed, rumors explode, and the world watches, Cat and Lucas discover it’s not fate they have to fight if they want to stay together…this time, it’s their own insecurities.

Well, and the stalkerazzi

 

 

I cannot tell you all how much I just love this series by Rachel Harris! It is seriously one of my all time favorites and I really loved this one so much because Cat and Lucas just hold a really special place in my heart. We get our share of familiar faces in this one and we get some unexpected new ones too! This book was just really cute and whew did it make me swoon! I love Austin hardcore, but Lucas Capelli is one sexy guy!

Pacing: I felt this one had a good pacing. I feel we really got to understand Cat and Lucas's characters by the dual POV, and Rachel did a good job of showing us the evolvement of both our main characters throughout the book.

Storyline: This story is the more contemporary one of the three novels in the series. Instead of dealing with a gypsy named Reyna and time traveling, we are in present day Los Angeles dealing with the hurricane known as Caterina Angeli. Just when Cat has finally gotten to a place where she is letting people in and not being so afraid to form attachments, her world is rocked to the core as her mother is back in town and announces very publicly that she wants to make things right with her daughter. However, Caterina Angeli doesn't do anything low key. Everything is very public and flamboyant, throwing Cat's subdued, quiet life into chaos. Naturally, this brings out the protective, fierce side to Lucas and had me swooning from how crazy in love with her he is. I adored their romance and watching them fight for one another and their love.

Characters: Cat has always had a hard time letting people in. She pushes people away for fear they will just end up leaving her, like her mother once did. She is finally at a point where she is learning to trust and open her heart. Alessandra, Lucas, Jenna, and even Austin have all become such pivotal people in Cat's life and they really go above and beyond to show her they will always be there for her. Caterina Angeli really did a number on Cat, abandoning her and never really knowing or understanding why. She never thought she measured up to her mom's standards and that really has to shatter a young girl's self-esteem and self-worth. Therefore, Cat and her dad are very close. It wasn't easy for Cat to accept another woman in her dad's life, but she is really warming up to Jenna. Jenna cares about Cat a lot and will do anything to protect her, which while Cat appreciates, she ends up feeling a bit stifled by that protectiveness in this novel. I felt for Cat. She wants answers. She needs them. For so long she's wondered if SHE did something to warrant her mother leaving, which is why she hasn't been able to fully open her heart to Lucas. Everyone is afraid for Cat, that's she making herself too vulnerable and exposed by agreeing to see her mom. Secretly, Cat hopes her mom could be genuine, but she is not going to go in and get blindsided either.

Lucas stole the show for me. He is the most hard-edged of Harris's boys thus far, and I really loved it. He is fiercely protective of Cat and he refuses to let her go into this thing with her mom alone. His possessive nature of Cat is really endearing to me because finally Cat has someone who loves her and is completely in her corner. He doesn't agree with all of Cat's decisions, but he is going to make a point to stand by her no matter what. Lucas understands what it's like to not feel as if he doesn't measure up to his parents' standards. Lucas doesn't want to play soccer like his Dad wants and expects him to. He doesn't want to follow in his brother, David's footsteps. He wants to pursue art and he wants his father to recognize that he is his own person, not someone who is trying to measure up to his deceased brother. His father isn't the same man he was before he lost his eldest son and Lucas describes him as emotionless. I can't imagine the pain this family feels after losing a son and a brother, but Lucas doesn't want his dreams to be cast aside just to make his father happy. I am so proud of his determination and his drive to go after what he wants. Lucas is a genuine great guy and I loved getting his POV.

Cat needs Lucas. She craves him, in fact. He is the one real thing in her life, and while she doesn't feel she can be completely whole with him until she seeks answers from her mom, he does still provide a stability for her just by knowing how much he cares for her.

I could not stand Caterina. I feel I have to talk about her because the book is heavily centered around her. She is self-absorbed, manipulative, and has her own agenda. She does things for herself and to make things better for HERSELF. She claims she wants to atone for her past mistakes and be the maternal figure she never was to Cat. Yet her own selfishness is brought to the forefront time and time again and I just couldn't board that crazy train.

Another character I can't really talk much about, but I love to death is Ransom. Rance is a musician and is Alessandra's brother's doppelganger. He's confident, but he's also a mystery too. Lucas doesn't trust him, but Lucas is very wary of all things Caterina Angeli and with good reason.

Final Thoughts: I loved this one. Seeing Cat and Lucas overcome their insecurities and learn to trust and believe in one another and their love really fills your heart and I am not at all ready to let these characters go. Get ready to swoon, laugh, and cry- My Not So Super Sweet Life is just the read you need in your life.