Member Reviews

This book was just a cute rom-com. Endearing and completely forgettable. I had a great time reading this book, but I know it is not one that will resonate with me for much longer. .

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Chester Falls is just too small. For someone who has such big dreams Charlie longs to escape. Escape a home life that feels like it is just holding on by a thread, friends that only want to party and are stuck in the same relationships that are not healthy for them, and more importantly get away from small time living and people’s ideas about her. Charlie will do anything to escape her life including working for their town’s version of Uber. Yet when a ride goes wrong Charlie enters a deal to start driving Andre around wherever he needs to go. Little could either of them expect how starting to ride together could change their lives.
This is a fun book. I love that you have two characters who have the exact opposite personal problems. Charlie longs to go elsewhere and Andre who doesn’t want to look beyond his own hometown. They do such a good job of complimenting each other. I do feel like the ending was a bit rushed, but the growth that both characters go through is so important I understand why the author chose this route. This will be a great book for teens who are getting ready to go on to the next stage of their lives. I can’t wait to recommend it this summer.
Thank you to Clarion Books and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy.

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Ride with Me would be considered a Meet Cute book, but it just didn't seem very well developed. There are nods to aspects of the story where the author could have really delved into the storyline, but the book just kind of gently floats along without building any momentum. The characters seemed a bit two-dimensional and lacked much/any personal development. I honestly considered putting the book down on many occasions but kept hoping that it would get better.

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I wasn't too enamoured with this book but it was cute and carefree so it was a quick rread. I thought the main characters were a bit difficult to like but still their struggles were intriguing and I did like the resolution a lot.

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This book was a cute quick read I think young entrepreneurs will like this book and will probably be able to connect with the character Charlie. I think you’re a teenage girls were like this book because the character Charlie is just trying to find her knees and where she fits in my life. Ride with me is a Romance but it’s also more about falling in love is awesome you’re falling in love with yourself your family and where are you come from. I definitely recommend this book!

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Ride with me is a great coming of age story. The dynamic and growth between the main characters is well written and believable.

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I was really surprised by how much enjoyed this. The main characters interests align well with my own. I also really enjoy the forced proximity, especially in a car. I read this story so quick. It explores topics that I think will relate a lot to teens. Charlie's situation with her parents was good to see. I also enjoyed the discussion of what makes a place your "home".

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Thank you for giving me an early e-arc to read!

This was my first book of Lucy Keating's to read, and I was not disappointed. It was a quick read that got my interest early on. I was immediately interested in the characters and setting. Charlie was very dedicated to her goals and dreams and Andre was the perfect foil to her. She needed to lighten up and I loved watching her change as she got to know Andre more and more. He was easier for me to root for at first since he was much more open to other people. Charlie was so closed off and really just a passenger in her own life. She allowed herself to miss out on so many things because of an assumption she had. That could be frustrating to some readers, but I understood her single-minded determination and stubbornness.

This was a great read especially for summer!

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Ride With Me is a coming of age, YA contemporary that follows Charlie Owens as she tries to pave the way towards her future, hell bent on leaving her small town. That is until Andre Minasian throws a wrench in her plans by showing her what she's been missing all long...

the best way to describe this one is that it's one of those stories that starts off a bit messy and chaotic but in the end everything falls into place

Charlie is clearly future focused and extremely dedicated to get what she wants. I guess her determination was admirable for a 17 year old but at times i felt that she was quite rude and judgy, and was only thinking about herself. While Andre was a sweetheart that opened her mind to a whole "new old world"

i read this relatively quick, and while the story held my interest, there were still a few questions left unanswered at the end

*𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳, 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘊𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘳𝘤 𝘪𝘯-𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸*

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A cute rom-com about two teens with opposite perspectives. This was a quick and breezy read that was enjoyable.

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****4 Stars!

“Experiences aren’t meant to be forever, but that doesn’t make them less special.”


First I would like to thank Clarion Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read an arc of this book. I am honored to have been given the chance to read it and give it an honest review.

This is a story about a young girl named Charlie who is a driver for her local rideshare app. She loves what the open road gives her and that is freedom, extra cash for an epic road trip, and a path to getting out of her sleepy town of Chester Falls, Massachusetts. Charlie has met her fair share of mysterious passengers and witnessed explosive break-ups in the backseat of her car, but Charlie lives a no-strings-attached lifestyle and never gets involved.

When a usual party pick-up ends with Charlie rear ending her car into Andre, her school’s notorious party boy, she’s forced to make a deal to drive him anywhere he needs to go, at any time, until his car is repaired. Suddenly Charlie and Andre are stuck together, and they couldn’t be more different from each other. When Andre’s charm wins over Charlie’s passengers, she finds herself at risk of breaking her most sacred rule: don’t fall in love.

This was a very innocent coming of age story about two people who are so very different from each other. The writing was very well done and easy to read and I felt the pacing of the story was done really well. I really enjoyed the concept of Charlie’s rideshare app, it made for an interesting situation and gave her a chance to interact with interesting characters who received a ride from her. The whole moral of the story was something I enjoyed, being able to see the beauty that is right in front of you is something very important that not many people do. I really like how the story stressed that.

While the story was very sweet, I didn’t feel as connected to the characters as I would have liked. I wished Charlie and Andre had a few scenes and sweet moments to themselves to further their chemistry. They were still a very adorable couple, but I just wish they had more time to further set it in stone for the readers. I liked how passionate Charlie was about her hobbies and dreams for the future, that was a very admirable trait. I didn’t particularly see Andre as a party boy, but he was very kind hearted and I liked how personable he was with everyone in the town and that he wanted to help them in whatever way that he could.

Overall this was a very interesting book and I would be very curious to read more from this author. If you like sweet meet-cute situations and coming of age stories, then this is a book that I’d highly recommend!

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Thank you Clarion Books for the eARC of Ride With Me by Lucy Keating in exchange for my honest review.

This book was exactly what you'd want from a YA rom com. It has well rounded characters, with detailed backstories. I felt connected to each character and celebrated their wins and was tied emotionally to their losses.

I really loved the premise -- that Charlie Owens crashes her way into the cute boy's car & life. This book delivers on exactly that. It has a standard cast of characters, but I like that we saw interactions with not only her friends, but the dialogue with her parents was also fantastic.

Overall, a very cute book. 4/5 stars.

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An innocent coming of age YA romance. Slightly different take on the way these two are 'forced' together but it works. I found the gap in the story for me was that Andre was supposedly the typical jock party goer and yet actually he wasnt...probably more likely Charlie was the dullest teenager ever!
It was a quick read and it was written well, the characters just didnt win me over.

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Ride With Me is the coming of age story of Charlie - a teenage girl trying to find her niche in the world. She drives for a ride share service (think lyft or uber) to make money so she can go on a cross country summer trip. And ultimately so she can escape the trappings of her small town life. Charlie is obsessed with leaving her small town behind and making something of her life. She's convinced that all those she's leaving behind (her parents, friends, neighbors) are "stuck" and are only staying because they have no other options.
Ride With Me is a romance, but it's so much more than just falling in love with a boy, it's about falling in love with yourself, your family, and your roots.

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I thought that this was the cute, fluffy YA romance that I expected it to be. I thought the premise was really interesting and seeing the different people Charlie met on her drives was the most fun. One thing I did wish there was more of was smaller moments between Charlie and Andre that really cemented their chemistry and overall relationship. For some reason I had a bit of trouble completely seeing them together but they were still cute. This was a fun and quick read so if you're looking for that then look no further!

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THE GOOD

🚋 Small town Massachusetts setting
🚋 The people Charlie drove around and their interactions
🚋 Charlie's friend group & family
🚋 Andre and Charlie were fun characters
🚋 Short & sweet!!

THE BAD

🚋 Charlie & Andre didn't have much chemistry as love interests
🚋 The writing felt younger

Overall, I thought it was fun! It didn't have much substance to it, but it's a quick summer read!

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2.5 stars

Honestly so glad this is over. This read like a first draft to me. We’re supposed to root for our protagonist, Charlie, but she’s nothing but mean and pretentious this entire novel. Also, her friends only seem to appear in the narrative when it’s convenient.

The writing itself was also not great. Some descriptions didn’t quite make sense and at one point the author mentions a sister that doesn’t actually exist. I just hope this book goes through another round of editing before publication.

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc!!

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In the mountain town of Chester Falls, Massachusetts, Charlie Owens dedicates her time to school and driving for the town's taxi app, Backseat. She's determined to leave her small town and see more, believing her dream of becoming an architect to be the way to do it.

Until one post-party pick-up resulted in a minor crash in a car park, she always had everything under control. But Andre, high school senior, party goer and the owner of the car she damaged, is bothering her. With his car needing repairs, the pair are stuck together as Charlie is forced to offer to drive him around. Between working for an internship, trying to understand her parents' strained relationship and being a taxi for Andre, Charlie has a lot to work out.

Everyone has a story. Charlie needs to find hers.

This is a YA contemporary story that's great for not oversimplifying or romanticising anything. It recognises difficulties and, whilst some issues are solved with convenient, large-scale actions, it doesn't use the obvious or neatest solution just for the sake of it. As such, the plot is realistic and considered, with everything it does suiting the age range and tone. There are no sudden declarations or life-long commitments made- it's just teenagers having fun and figuring out what they want to do with their lives.

I found that it lost its direction slightly in the last 20% as it works to bring the plot to a satisfying conclusion; it manages this but in a roundabout way. It's a charming novel with a nice message and an entertaining plot.

‘Certain parts of our life aren’t meant to be forever. But that doesn’t mean they don’t shape who we are.’ 25%

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Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ride With Me is a cutesy YA story about growing up & realizing you don't have it all figured out. It features a fun modern-day twist on the classic YA tale about experiencing your first romance via the incorporation of a local rideshare platform on which the main character - Charlie - is a driver and the boy that changes everything - Andre - is a rider.

After unintentionally hitting Andre's car, high-school-junior Charlie strikes up a deal with Andre, the local heartthrob. She agrees to drive him around as needed in exchange for him not reporting her to the app and jeopardizing her side-hustle. Over the course of the shared rides, the two grow closer, helping each other and other riders through tough times before eventually realizing their feelings for one another.

Importantly, Charlie is also figuring out her own plans for the future. She hopes to become an architect and design 'clean' and modern-looking infrastructure in cities outside of her town. These desires clash with the more free-spirited design style & attitude of her parents as well as the lethargic, rural landscape of her hometown.

Charlie's struggles with deviating from her plans and feelings that she'd outgrown her hometown felt quite relatable to me. I sympathized with her desire to 'get out' and her belief in a 'right way to do things'... two things that she ultimately realized were untrue.

While I enjoyed reading about Charlie's enthusiasm toward her future career, I felt that Charlie's focus on the future was slightly over-emphasised. It seemed that the core of Charlie and Andre's relationship was a strong understanding of one another's psyches above all else. They were able to call the other out on how their fear was inhibiting them from taking action towards their hopes for the future but I'd wish they'd gotten to know each other more outside of all of that. I would've liked to see more of them bonding over light-hearted interactions and them *gradually* realizing their attraction toward one another.

Additionally, I also found that there was a little too much description of Charlie's hometown & its architecture. I appreciated her excitement for it all, but as someone who doesn't necessarily share the same passion, I found that the extensive descriptions of the scenery through her eyes bogged down the story a little.

That said, I still really enjoyed this book. Ride With Me was a quick yet adorable YA contemporary read with a very creative premise!

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Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. I wanted to like this book, but felt underwhelmed once finishing it. I found Charlie to be a bit pretentious and entitled, especially once changed her mom’s space and questioned the details of Ava’s internship. I understand wanting more of the experience, but felt she totally missed that she was 1) 17 years old and 2) given an opportunity with someone who was her supposed idol. On top of that, her judgmental behavior grew more pronounced as the book continued. While the overall plot was okay, the ending was entirely too rushed, and honestly, felt a little unbelievable that she would changed her entire mindset so quickly.

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