I purchased this book without knowing anything about it because the cover appealed to me. I had recently finished reading You by Caroline Kepnes, so for some reason I thought this book might be similar. (Deranged person obsesses over someone after one date--something like that.) Turns out, this book is a young adult novel about a young woman and the new relationships she develops during her first year in college. She makes some really nice girlfriends, but runs into some trouble when it comes to the guys (one in particular, rather). As I read this book, I constantly felt like I was waiting for something to happen, and for the most part, nothing I thought was going to happen happened. And nothing particularly dramatic occurred either, which isn't a bad thing, but I tend to enjoy scandal and gut-wrenching heartache. This is a good, clean YA read with A LOT of references to Taylor Swift. It would be most appropriate for a high schooler. ( )

Mine: A Love Story
Author: Scott Prussing

Synopsis:
When your guitar is your only real friend and you won’t let anyone hear you play, your life is hardly what you’d like it to be. Eighteen-year-old Heather hopes escaping her bickering parents by going away to college will help her come out of her shell. She knows it won’t be easy. Fortunately, her new roommate Marissa is everything Heather is not—outgoing, stylish, brash and totally confident. Heather is glad for Marissa’s help, until Marissa shoves her into a cute older guy from her English class and then disappears, leaving a tongue-tied Heather to fend for herself.

With a plot based on four hit songs of a popular artist and with many more musical references sprinkled inside, Mine: A Love Story is a book any country or pop music fan will love. But you don’t need to be a music fan to enjoy the romance, humor, heartbreak and joy of Heather’s first year at college. Buy Mine: A Love Story now and begin experiencing a journey with Heather you will not soon forget.

Our Review [By LITERAL ADDICTION’s Pack Alpha – Michelle L Olson]:
I don’t read Romance; Romance is generally too ‘real’ for me on some levels, and too unrealistic for me on others, which is why I stick to Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, Thrillers and Horror. Yes, I have a dark side, and I thoroughly and gleefully embrace it, so when Scott asked me to read and review Mine: A Love Story, to say that I was apprehensive would be an understatement.

Knowing that I forged forward with Breathless after being incredibly apprehensive and ended up loving it -- and Scott’s writing style in general -- was what gave me the extra nudge I needed to read more than the 1st 2 chapters of Mine.

Ironically, what has kept me away from Romance in the past is what made me love this book…it’s so REAL, and it’s believable! This Romance may have a Happily Ever After, but the road to that landmark was a rocky one; like they are in real life.

As a reader (who just so happened to be a careful daughter growing up in a dysfunctional parental household), I related to each and every piece of this story at a visceral level, and instinctually loved and hated the characters as I can only guess that the author intended.

While I find myself wanting to shake and slap most Romance heroines, Heather was like a vivid memory of myself at that age, and while I’m sure I wanted to shake and slap some sense into myself at some point or another, it wasn’t the same as the dreaded ‘damsel in distress’ syndrome I was fearing I’d get from a Romance lead character. She was a strong lead, who worked well with her supporting cast, but was able to hold her own on the page. I loved that about her.

Without spoilers I can’t go into the ‘villain’ of this tale, but I can say that he was definitely a character you will love to hate!
Now, the idiosyncrasies specific to Mine that a reader can look forward to… If you’ve read Scott Prussing’s Paranormal Romance, Breathless, you get carry over characters, multiple mentions of the book and an entire section in the middle where Breathless’s plotline is discussed. And yes, you will have several, what I called, ‘Déjà vu’ moments, to which Scott replied, “I figured if you can’t plagiarize yourself, who can you plagiarize?” LOL.

At the end of the day I devoured a book I wasn’t sure I could even start, all the while developing a kinship with Heather and her Love Story that made me want to call all of my Romance reading friends and tell them to read it ASAP.

With that said, I’m doing something I don’t do lightly…I’m giving Mine: A Love Story 5 Skulls. I would recommend it to Adult and Young Adult Romance readers, and anyone who wants a real and believable love story with a hard earned happy ending. Now I just want to interview Scott to see if he’s really the hopeless romantic I’m starting to think he is, and to ask him how in the world he knows so much about college age women’s fashion. ;-) ( )