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On high school graduation day, Riley decides it’s time for her to do something for herself. She’s been nonstop scheduled by her single mom for years to keep her from getting into trouble. (She has managed to cause mischief despite all the scheduling.) She didn’t get into any of the 10 colleges she applied to, so her life is looking pretty open-ended. Sure, she’ll probably go to the community college and work at the coffee shop, but that’s not exactly pressing.
What comes to the forefront at graduation is that she hasn’t seen her best friend in four years.
Riley and Tom were inseparable until he and his mom moved up to New York City. Now, not only has she not seen him for all of high school, but she hasn’t heard much from him for a few months. When he texts to say he’s watching her graduation ceremony remotely, she thinks once again about their list of things they want to do together someday. She’s even folded up a copy of The Getaway List in her graduation cap.
So she grabs a bag and takes the bus to New York, ostensibly for the weekend. And the two best friends connect again right away as if no time has passed. They decide to try to check off a few items from the list.
When a weekend visit turns into a stay for the whole summer, Riley starts having to really face several things: her complicated relationship with her mom, her desire to find out who she is and what she wants from her life, and how to navigate some newfound feelings for Tom.
The Getaway List is enjoyable and readers get to roam around the Big Apple virtually. Riley falls in love with the city and spends time with new friends who love it as well. Their adventures are fun and in many ways lighthearted. This book falls into the genre of “new adult,” and it explores the themes so common in these stories. Young people at this age are trying to find out who they are, what they want, and what they will do with their lives. They may have some concerns in their relationships with their parents that they’re trying to figure out. The characters here are dealing with all these common feelings.
Emma Lord is wonderful at capturing the feelings and experiences of this time of life. I enjoyed the book, though now that she’s published five books, I STILL have to say I loved her first, Tweet Cute, the most. Incidentally, I don’t like that her books have gotten stronger in content. Tweet Cute and When You Get the Chance are rated moderate, and Begin Again and You Have a Match are high, but they have fewer than half the number of instances of strong profanity than this latest one has. This just felt like a whole lot.
Rated: High. Profanity includes 47 uses of strong language, around 60 instances of moderate profanity, about 40 uses of mild language, and about 20 instances of the name of Deity in vain. Sexual content includes some kissing and some references to the main character’s mother having gotten pregnant with her young and not ever being married.
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*I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
