Reviews

Somethin' About That Boy by Lani Lynn Vale

nicolerko's review against another edition

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4.0

I gobbled this book right up. Banner is Ford's brother and Trance & Viddy's son. I'm not one that always gravitates to a book with the characters in high school, but I knew I had to read this one. I'm so glad I did. Banner and Perry drew me right in. It's not a Lani Lynn Vale book without a little drama. It's a little scary there is that much animosity between a few characters for the age bracket. I loved Perry's parents. She does have a unique relationship with her dad. I would highly recommend this one because you'll have a hard time putting it down.

lmrivas54's review against another edition

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5.0

One of the sweetest and loveliest of LLV’s stories! I loved Banner and Perry! Banner is such a well-adjusted young man, who knows what he wants for his future. He’s forced to change towns and schools from Benton to Kilgore, and moves in with his brother Ford and wife Ashe. No wonder I loved Banner, since he’s Ford’s little brother!

Banner’s father, who is a cop, killed Vance’s father, who is a drug dealer. Vance and Banner were best friends, but from that moment, they are enemies and Vance is constantly on Banner’s back, provoking fights. He’s getting more unbalanced each time.

Banner starts his senior year at Kilgore and makes friends fast. He’s welcomed at the football team because he’s a talented quarterback. And he meets Perry and is immediately attracted. She seems prickly but there’s something about her...

This was one of those books where I loved not only the main characters but all the ones close to them. Perry’s father was particularly cool. And I sense that Banner’s friends will appear again in future books, and am particularly looking forward to Slone’s book.

In a surprise move that nobody expected, Vance also moved to Kilgore and enrolled in the same high school. Obviously, he wants to continue causing trouble to Banner, but this time, he extends the enmity and harassment to Perry.

This book was very easy and fast to read. I loved that Perry and Banner’s parents are so supportive, caring and understanding. It helps that Banner and Perry are very responsible and mature young ones, and they are driven. I loved their love story, loved visiting with Ford and Ashe again, and my only concern was that the ending was a little rushed and I didn’t feel a real conclusion with Vance was forged. Even so, I’m addicted to LLV’s books because they portray such delightful and colorful characters and sometimes her plots have a little crazy that I just love and enjoy.

booklovershangout's review against another edition

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4.0

This was my first book by Lani Lynn Vale. I know! Where have I been? All I know is I will definitely be going back and reading more by this author. I loved this story. It was cute with a little bit of steam. It was swoony with just a small amount of angst. It was a great balance. It was exactly what I needed right now. I am definitely looking forward to reading more from Lani. I know I have a ton of amazing stories to choose from.

patticorrea_ecbc's review against another edition

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5.0

Another HIT from Lani Lynn Vale!! Banner Spurlock is just all that and a bag of chips, in a high school football stars body. When his parents send him off to live with one of his older brothers in Kilgore, we all know this is going to be great. Everything that happens in Kilgore is great! When he meets Perry, the quiet/shy girl in his class, he instantly knows there is something there. The story goes on only as Lani can tell the story, with all of the drama, with all of the laughs and the HEA that we all expect!

kaydanielsromance's review against another edition

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5.0

Sigh...Sigh...Sigh...I'm in love with this high school romance. Vale's books are always excellent and this story is no different. Somethin' About That Boy is completely centered around high school students and interconnected within Vale's previous series, but is a complete standalone. 

Banner Spurlock is most recently related to Ford (you may remember him from Maybe Swearing Will Help), but while there are several interconnections to Vale's past works sprinkled throughout this can be read as a complete standalone if this is your first time reading any of her books so don't feel intimidated to jump in and enjoy.

My absolute favorite moments are when Banner and Perry are together in her room and it's just the two of them connecting on a deeper level, falling in love...I was mush...pure mush. Both of them know deep down they have deep feelings and although it's quick, they can't deny how they feel. It's sweet and I was smitten, yes, I admit I was full of smit!

Somethin' About That Boy is the perfect blend of connecting characters of the past, especially for avid Vale readers, but for this new book, this younger world, it was also an introduction to new players and establishing a place for a new series. I'm really excited to jump into Kilgore with this new gang.

Banner is relocated to Kilgore his senior year of high school due to a bullying situation back in his hometown. On his first day of school Perry catches his eye and while she keeps her head down during the school day she lights up the volleyball court when she plays. 

The only thing that could possibly mess up the connection Banner and Perry are building is when Banner's bully follows him to Kilgore. It may involve more than just breaking their hearts, this time his bully could go too far.  

cmorris109's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

read_on_reader's review against another edition

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4.0

I enjoyed getting Banner’s story because it seemed like he was dealing with quite a lot and it had me intrigued. He has a friend that is now his mortal enemy and will do anything to destroy Banner’s life, so he is forced to move his senior and start all over and that is where he meets Perry. Perry is the jock of the girl world and is great at any sport she does, at first, she is wary of Banner because it seems trouble is following him. Banner tris is stay away from Perry but his attraction and the threat that Vance projects makes him extremely protective of her. I loved seeing Trance and Ford again, the family bond that they all share, but I felt that the things with Vance was a little too rushed and we do not get a good grip on what happens with him. It’s like he just took the apology Banner gave him and left town, but he hated them so much he did horrible things and was off the hook. Overall a great read and start to a new series and I can’t wait to read about Blue and Titus and Slone and Tempy.

thebusybookmom's review against another edition

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4.0

After reading this book I have downloaded two more books to start reading from this new to me author. Perry and Banner are what all little girls hope to have for love in their life. It seems these two have great examples in their parents. This is not a typical/conventional High School Romance. These two are attracted to each other from the start, and Banner champion's Perry right from the first paragraph. I love that the author allowed a tough football player to show his vulnerable side right from the beginning, and he wasn't ever given any crap for it from any of the characters.

Of course there is always a bully in the book, and in this instance it was someone from Banner's past that followed him. This is just a genuinely great book that builds up to a great High School romance.

I am hoping this book will be a great start to a series that will allow us to see what happens to their core group of friends that I have come to love very much!

thebookishattitude's review against another edition

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3.0

Somethin' About That Boy was a cute and flirty insta-love high school romance.

Banner Spurlock is the new kid. The one no-one wants to be, the brand new senior. Forced to leave his old school, Banner was not expected to be welcomed and become the new IT boy of the football team almost instantly. But the guys love him and they form a fast bromance.

Perry Street is classed as one of the mistfit Jocks, she plays Volleyball, is on the Cross-Country team with her group of friends that don't really fit in anywhere else, but are also kinda popular even though they don't really see or want it.

This book had the potential for so many things to go wrong, but it didn't. I'm kinda hoping Lani resolves some drama somewhere else along the line cause I kinda felt like it needed to be fleshed out even more here and then wrapped up within the same book. It felt lack lustre when it seemed that Lani had set up a certain story line that didn't come to pass. Probably my own expectations but none the less this was another smooth sailing almost drama-free young adult romance.

I like Banners character, he definitely wasn't your typical jock quarterback, he had a huge heart and was also majorly in touch with his emotions. Perry was a typical teenage girl but massive love for her family and willing to do whatever she had to, to stop the "Cheerleaders" picking on her lunch lady mother.

I loved that Banner was honest with what he wanted even though he knew Perry was never going to be okay with it. Lani gave Banner a goal and even though it had the potential to destroy them in its own right, it seemingly made them stronger and set them up for what I'm hoping is future glances in the books this stand alone has been the bridge for.

bookish_kayy's review against another edition

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5.0

So, I’ve actually never read anything by this author that I can recall. And it seems like there’s a lot of stories that come before this one, HOWEVER, this is definitely a stand-alone.
Banner & Perry were sweet. There was an immediate connection between the two of them that was beautiful in its simplicity. Boy likes girl. Girl likes boy. They make it official.
Banner has some issues stemming from an incident in his hometown and they kind of run over onto Perry a little bit.
Perry is a good girl, not making waves, just kind of gliding through school with her attention focused on what she wants from life.
I would absolutely read more about this cast of characters. There’s a lot of good stories in place just waiting to be explored.