Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen

Ruby is used to being independant. After her mother abandoned her to live on her own, she had been making it by herself just fine. Or so she thought. When she gets picked up by child services and sent to live with her sister who she hasn't seen for ten years, it's way out of Ruby's comfort zone. She isn't used to having to interact with or depend on people. She especially doesn't like getting to close to her new and intriguing neighbor Nate, but with her relying on him for rides to school she eventually starts to open up to not just him but to her new family and life. She finds a new job and meets some spunky and charismatic new people, but when Nate starts pulling away, Ruby start realizing that her seemingly perfect new life isn't all it's made out to be.

What can I say? Sarah Dessen has done it again. I have read all the books that she has written so far and loved them, so I definitely had high hopes for this book and it was all that I expected and more. The thing that I love about Sarah's writing is the smooth, kind of cozy quality it has to it (wow, that sounds wierd...). In each of her stories she deals with lots of hard issues but does it with understanding and relatability which really draws me into her books. And it's no different with Lock and Key. The writing is stunning, the plot is unique and addicting, and the characters are created with depth and feeling. All of that adds up to a pretty darn good book in my opinion. I think one of my favorite parts was the focus that the book had on family. And it wasn't just the biological family it was the neighbors and friends family too. It's a hard thing to define and I really felt along with Ruby as she tried to make sense of her complicated situation. I also loved all the spunky characters that were in the story; especially Olivia who shares my name. :P Nothing's better than reading about "yourself" in a book, and I think I may have a bit in common with her. Hee hee. So if you haven't read any of Sarah Dessen's books, I highly recommend you do so. And if you're a fan of hers, you should definitely check this book out. It's one of her best so far and will keep you turning pages until the very end.