Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, by Morgan Matson

(4/5 stars)

After reading this book, all I want to do is throw my things in a suitcase and go on an impromptu road trip across America. Anyone care to join? A big thank you to Lisa for the recommendation! 

What I liked: I really liked how fun this book was to read, and how I felt like I was on the adventure with Amy and Roger. I found myself relating to their trip a lot, especially since I had been to a lot of the places they visited. I couldn't help but smile when Amy described the beauty of Kentucky (one of the places I've lived) and it made me miss it so much. I also enjoyed seeing them eat their first meals at places like Sonic and Chick-fil-A -- I tend to forget how much of a Southern thing those places are. The relationship between Amy and Roger was organic and not forced at all, which I appreciated in a contemporary story like this one. They were friends first, and it casually grew into something more. The story also handled the concept of loss well- Amy's dad had just died a couple months before the story starts. The emotions were very real and raw. Her dad also reminded me a lot of  how my dad is (Elvis loving, obsessed with cutting his front lawn, etc) so maybe that's also part of why I was able to connect to those feelings- that relationship was very real as well.

What I didn't like: As much as I loved Roger, I was so completely over his wallowing for his ex-girlfriend. Dude, it's over, let it be done. But no, he had to drive to her house, after she had ignored all his calls, to confront her. That was dumb and annoying. But I guess it all led to good things regardless, so I can't be too mad.

I definitely enjoyed this book, and recommend it to fans of contemporary. It kind of goes into that category of "issue contemporary" (like TFIOS and Eleanor & Park), and even though I don't gravitate towards that genre first, I had a good time reading Amy & Roger's Epic Detour and had a crazy hard time putting it down!

-Annie