Book Review: The Vincent Boys by Abbi Glines

Written by: Abbi Glines

Published by: Simon Pulse

Release Date: October 30, 2012

Series: The Vincent Boys

Source: Purchased

Buy: amazon | Barnes and Noble | IndieBound

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars - I really liked it.

Synopsis: Ashton is getting tired of being good, of impressing her parents and playing ideal girlfriend to Sawyer Vincent. Sawyer is perfect, a regular Prince Charming, but when he leaves town for the summer, it’s his cousin Beau who catches Ashton’s eye. Beau is the sexiest guy she’s ever seen, and even though he’s dangerous, Ashton is drawn to him.

Beau loves his cousin like a brother, so the last thing he wants to do is make a move on Sawyer’s girl. Ashton is off-limits, absolutely. That’s why he does his best to keep his distance, even though he’s been in love with her forever. When Ashton wants to rekindle their childhood friendship in Sawyer’s absence, Beau knows he should say no.

Ashton and Beau don’t want to hurt Sawyer. But the more they try to stay away from each other, the more intense their urges become. It’s getting way too hard to resist....

I was shopping at Wal-mart for our usual weekly necessities and because I am a Mundie Mom after all, I had to pause in front of the book area and whoa, this book just kinda fell into my hands. I admit that I bought it solely for the cover and the promise of a juicy love triangle between childhood friends.  I know love triangles bug some people, but not me. When they make sense, they bring the tension in the story to a crazy level.

I read this book in a day. Sure, it was a little predictable at times, but the characters were so believable, I frankly didn't care. The relationship between Beau (hello, bare-chested dude on the cover), Ashton and Sawyer stretches back to childhood. Unlike most of us, they didn't move away from their childhood homes. They all stayed in their small Southern town and what's a girl with a naughty streak to do but turn good in order to hang onto her prince. Surely, she wouldn't want the trailer trash, bad boy, would she? Fortunately for the reader, Ashton's bad streak returns just as the princely Sawyer is out of town for an extended period of time. The thing that got me is Ashton truly isn't bad. She is a teenager and like so many of us when we were that age, she doesn't fully know what she wants. But, she's beginning to realize what she doesn't want.

Abbi drops the reader in the middle of this turmoil and when Sawyer returns, the tension is palatable and yes, hits that crazy level I love. Here's the thing that Abbi does so well -- those childhood bonds come back to overlap all of their wants and dreams and expectations. I thoroughly enjoyed those moments. As someone who has lived on both the East and the West coasts but never in the South, I enjoyed the depiction of a small, stifling Southern town and a preacher's kid who follows her heart.

For those who will wonder, yes, there are sexual situations and language which may not be appropriate for very young teens. But, this Mundie Mom enjoyed an unexpected surprise in reading the Vincent Boys first volume and oh yes, I'm waiting for the sequel, The Vincent Brothers. In fact, I may be glancing at the calendar hoping it's December 18th.