Audrey Covington Breaks the Rules is a quick read about a girl who decides it is time to start breaking all the rules. She lives a pretty sheltered life with tons of rules brought on by her parents. She gets angry after she is uninvited to a party by the only friends she has, so she goes on a rule-breaking spree. This involves, getting a piercing, stealing some stuff, and just catching an attitude in general. I thought it was okay. Audrey is a great character with a lot of heart and her grandma is pretty cool. The situations she finds herself in are unrealistic but it was still a fun read.

This was so much fun to read and such a wild ride! I loved the extended family and how they overcame painful experiences from the past to come together. Audrey's desire to have more freedom and be able to act more independently is one middle grade readers will identify with and cheer for themselves.

Audrey soon learns there is a limit on independence and getting complete freedom and her character arc growth felt real. I often laughed out loud as well as clung on tight as Audrey and her grandma Rhea faced daring adventures and close calls together. Another aspect of this book was the true meaning of friendship and Audrey learns she doesn't have to change to make her "friends" still like her; being herself is enough to find a real friend that will like you no matter what..

Thank you Little Brown Books for Young Readers and NetGalley for the advanced electronic review copy of this great book. I really enjoyed this fun read full of adventure, humor, rules, strict but loving parents, and relatable content for middle grade kids. The plot was fast moving, the characters — distinct and well-written, and overall it was a great read.

I went on a road trip with my grandma when I was younger, so I had to read this story, I definitely related. It is hard making your parents happy, and sometimes you just need a grandma to stir the pot and show you what life is all about.

Audrey Covington Breaks the Rules is an exciting, escapist, and insightful middle grade book about identity and finding balanced freedom as a tween. Although it centers around a family with celebrity connections, the themes explored in this story (friendship problems, grandparent relationships, the desire for greater independence, etc.) are relatable and timeless. It will definitely appeal to a younger middle grade audience as they reach for more independence from their parents.

This is a cute story about a middle school girl who wants to get out from under the thumb of her parents and become a little more independent.
She goes out for a night of hijinks with her grandmother and learns a little more about who she is.
It felt like a missed opportunity to learn more about who the grandmother is, or was, and have a special bonding between grandmother and granddaughter, but it was a fun book that should appeal to middle graders who want a light, fun, contemporary story.

Audrey Covington Breaks the Rules is a cute middle grade novel for tweens who are heading to middle school/junior high. It's a quick read (for an adult), so reluctant readers might enjoy this title!

Audrey's parents are super strict. But she's graduating from elementary school today, and she hopes they'll loosen up just a little. Her friends want to walk down to the ice cream shop a mile away, and surely she's mature enough to do that now.

But her parents say no, her friends go without her, and Audrey has a pit in her stomach. She can feel her friends pulling away from her, as they've been calling her "boring" and rolling their eyes when her parents won't let her do something they can do. Later that night, her two best friends text her and disinvite her to their annual sleepover because they want to do things she can't do, like watch PG-13 movies.

Audrey is crushed and unloads on her parents. They won't relent, and she pouts her way through the next morning, when they're going to her Nana Rhea's old house to help her move to a retirement community. Nana Rhea was a movie star in her youth, and living alone has gotten too dangerous - a fan broke in and scared her half to death. She doesn't really want to move to the retirement community, but she agreed to go.

When Audrey's family arrive at her home, she's not packed, and they spend a frenzied morning trying to get the essentials in boxes. The retirement community has rolled out the red carpet to welcome Rhea, but she seems sad. Audrey hides in the car so she can lurk on social media and see what her friends are up to, but when she does so, Rhea steals the car and they drive away together for one last adventure.

Audrey and Rhea's last day of freedom is a fun one, but will they decide that maybe all of this fun isn't what they wanted after all?

All of the characters feel utterly authentic, from sheltered Audrey to wistful Rhea, and the controlling parents to the not-so-great friends. Kids will identify with the feeling of wanting to hang on to old friendships, even though they don't fit quite right anymore, and how much it hurts to be the one on the outside.

Everything is wrapped up in a neat bow at the end, which isn't realistic, but makes for a good ending, and that is what middle grade fiction should have, a good ending.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy of this book.

After reading 'Grow Up, Tahlia Wilkins!' - a wildly relatable and humorous debut by Karina Evans, I was *dying* to read her second book. My girl didn't disappoint at all 🫶🏻 Especially the first couple of pages - the frustration of not being allowed the same freedom as your friends, feeling left out, replaceable all the time hit damn close to home as an Asian daughter. My parents are very protective, sometimes over possessive since they had three miscarriages. While I understand the trauma that they bear, their strict rules and regulations still manage to break my heart every once in a while. Moreover, my aunt was a mediaperson just like Audrey's grandma. I had to be in her shadows for the most part. People wanted to reach her through me even when it was my day to celebrate. Thank you so, so much for this book! For I could laugh, cry and heal with Audrey. The writing was enjoyable, portrayed a fun, adventurous ride but also taught valuable life lessons. Highly recommended ❤️✨

Cute premise and the characters were likable. I was hoping it would draw more of a parallel between Audrey not having enough say over her own life and her grandmother feeling the same way, but that wasn't a theme that was explored at all.
Also, Audrey is supposed to be a modern tween and used the term "Not!" which is definitely not what the tweens are saying these days.
Overall it was cute, but not particularly memorable.

Review and top 5 reasons to read!
Audrey is almost 12 and lives with a lot of rules. Her parents have rules for everything! When it starts to impact her friendships, she realizes that she is craving a bit more freedom and when she sees an opportunity, she takes it.

Even though I'm an adult, I found this book really relatable. I thought my parents were pretty strict when I was growing up and found myself frustrated a time or two as well. Audrey goes a little wild, wondering what she missed. Her adventures with her grandmother were heartwarming and hilarious and I loved the way the story wrapped up at the end. Highly enjoyable read for all!

1. Adventure and laughter
2. Family bonding
3. Relatable and sweet MC
4. Quick and easy read
5. Fun for all ages

Oh my days Audrey Covington Breaks the Rules is such a wild ride from start to finish and making Hollywood and it's surrounding areas actual characters.

I loved the relationship between Audrey and her Nana Rhea and I think they both realised for different reasons their need for a no rules day. I even started thinking about what sort of day I would have if there were no rules.

This book made me laugh and cry and I was on tenterhooks waiting to see what happened next. Oh boy this story was fast moving.

For all these reasons I am giving Audrey Covington Breaks the Rules 4 stars

Audrey’s friends have decided she’s just not that fun anymore. When her friends tell her she’s uninvited to the annual end of school year sleepover Audrey doesn’t have a choice but to spend the day helping her parents move her grandmother into her new home.

Audrey is upset about her friends and the fact that her parents don’t understand that all their rules are ruining her social life. I could feel her sadness and could remember how my own friendships were at that age.

Audrey was so cute! I loved getting to see her grow over the course of this book. Navigating life at the age of 12-13 is difficult and I liked how having her grandmother along for the adventure helped her understand that not all parents are like hers. Her grandmother gave her a bit of the freedom she needed within limits and safely.

This had lots of fun adventures and I thought Audrey’s grandmother was the perfect partner in crime (well not too much crime 😉). Not only did Audrey realize a lot about herself but her grandmother Rhea did too!

This book was a perfect mix of adventure along the road to self-discovery. I enjoyed it from beginning to end and can see how lots of young people can relate to Audrey’s experiences. I 100% recommend this one!

I received this book from TBR and Beyond Tours + the publisher in exchange of an honest review~

This is one of the books that I had been eyeing for a while and just HAD to have when I saw the sign-up. SO I am delighted that I got the chance to read it earlier. *dances*

In this book we meet a girl named Audrey, she is about to go to junior high/middle school (whatever it is called in the US) and she is excited for the summer! I really liked Audrey from the beginning, but I also felt for her. She just wants to have some fun and her parents are very restricting. OK, well, some I could understand, but others? Nah. Not so much. I just wanted to give Audrey a big big hug. She definitely deserved and needed that, especially when her friends (who I was both agreeing with and found bitchy, yes confusing right) ditched her because of her parents many many rules. I was happy when, as grandma decided to make up her own rules, she decided to hop along and even made some of her own rules. She wasn’t afraid to make her wishes known and I loved seeing her grow more and more confident. I could see a girl going into her teens and wanting to do her own thing. But, I was also happy to see that while she had fun, she also wondered about the consequences. Thinking about bringing back stuff, saying sorry, those things.

I have to say, I was expecting more grand adventures. Days of adventuring! Thanks to the blurb. But the whole book takes place over one day. Yep. In the end I didn’t mind it that much and loved how much the author was able to cram into that one day, but I just would have liked to see a bit longer adventure, get to know grandma just a bit more, see them break a few more rules, have even more fun. I am still happy with what we got, but I definitely would like a second book and see them go on a big big road trip! But again, what we got made me laugh and smile. We get them trying out special outfits and run away with a golfcart, there are ears to be pierced, there is friends to be found, hotdogs to be eaten, and of course, also discovering more about grandma, why she quit, that she is still quite famous and popular, see the fanclub follow them, and so much more. These two definitely had a day of adventure and I loved seeing them get closer.

A big big plus point to the cover, which was just so much fun, especially when we got to see that part in the book!

The grandmother was also a really fun character, and I am happy that she got part of the spotlight and that we got to learn more about her. About her past, about the bonds with her daughters (Audrey’s mom and aunt), about her movie career, how she feels about moving away from her home and to a safer and more elderly-centered place.

Audrey also makes a friend in this book and I loved it! I wouldn’t mind a book featuring them doing some fun adventures.

The ending also made me smile, I am happy that grandma did that for Audrey. And also finally had that chat with her daughter. Because that was definitely needed.

Time for some things I wasn’t a fan off, which I will put under spoiler tags. The parents? Well, I could understand that both Audrey and grandma have had enough of it all. I get it, Audrey is still 11, almost 12, but she is not 6. There were some rules that I was just shaking my head at and I wondered if, had the events of the book not happened, the parents would have ever listened to Audrey and seen that she was growing up.

I am also not entirely happy with the whole, well at least you have parents who care/who are alive-stuff/trope. I see it happen a few times in other books as well. And I just think it is hurtful. Audrey is allowed to complain about her parents. It is terrible that for someone else their parents don’t care, but that doesn’t mean that Audrey should just be happy/should just be grateful because she does have parents. I think I take it close to heart because of my relationship with my parents. Well, OK, mostly my mom. Yes, I am happy I have parents, but I am allowed to complain or be angry or be sad or whatever else. I am allowed to feel shit.
All in all, I really had fun reading this one, I just flew right through it! I laughed, I cheered, and I would recommend it to all~

Twelve (almost) years old Audrey's parents were strict and had many rules she had to follow. When her parents' rules stood as a barrier between her and her best friends, she determined to break them.

First of all, I hated her friends. Audrey wasn't allowed to do "fun" stuff because of her strict parents, so those two best friends uninvited her to their pre-planned sleepover OVER TEXT. Real friends won't do that.

At first, Audrey didn't understand that and wanted to prove to her friends that she could be cool too. Then comes the whole "break the rules" motto in Audrey's mind. I am a believer in 'Everything happens for a reason.' Her breaking the rules for a single day, getting to know her grandma, and meeting new people made her realize the importance of self-respect and independence. I am glad she finally realized she didn't need to prove herself to anyone.

Audrey and her Hollywood star grandma spend the whole day breaking the rules. The story was fun to read, yet it conveys a powerful message that we can't and shouldn't pretend to be someone else to stay in any relationship. Losing our originality is not worth anything or anyone. I loved this book so much.

I loved the relationships in this book. Audrey is a fairly typical insecure tween as her life begins to change she looks closer at her relationships and who she is. I can't wait for more of Audrey and Rhea's adventures.

With her signature warmth and charm, Karina Evans takes readers on a perfect start-of-summer adventure in Audrey Covington Breaks the Rules, her second middle grade novel. Audrey and her grandmother enjoy a night on the town, each seeking independence. With stops at iconic-feeling locations, the book takes a fun trip through Los Angeles for emerging middle grade fans, and there's just the right amount of pre-teen angst and emotional growth to give the story a fulfilling end. An adorable read.

Three and a half stars.

I shared this book with my daughter, who is on the older side for it at twelve, but was still interested in reading it. She found the beginning slow and was a bit bored by the book at first. However, she enjoyed the characters and found once the plot picked up that she enjoyed it. She ultimately wished the beginning had been condensed as she didn't feel like there was much at the start of the book that was important to the overall story. Still, I think younger middle grade readers will enjoy this fun intergenerational story of a girl on a romp with her grandmother.

I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, it is a fun story about two generations connecting over an adventure. On the other hand, I didn't like that the parents were displayed as horrible people because they had rules to follow. If you take out the part of the parents, the story would have just been a fun outing between a grandparent wanting to relive the best parts of her life and wanting to share that with her grandchild. How these two characters connect was what made the story fun. For the age group it was written I think they will enjoy the book just be aware that the parents are not written in a positive manner.

I was really exited to read this book, but it did not meet my expectations. I couldn't get into it and I didn''t like the writing style. It was probably written for an audience younger than me, though, so maybe I'm just to old for this one.

11 year old (almost 12) Audrey has just graduated 6th grade and feels that her parents' strictness is starting to impact her social life. She has a chance of rebellion with her Nana Rhea who also is struggling with loss of freedom while moving into a retirement community. A fun chapter book/middle school read with a splash of Hollywood.
(side note: I'm not sure how Audrey manages to have the same last name as her maternal grandmother)