He was my light, my heart, my beautiful scalawag. And I was his GG. -Axi

Oh my goodness! This book was heartbreaking to read! It had so many ups and downs that by the end I didn't know if I should be happy or sobbing!!!!

First Love by [a:James Patterson|3780|James Patterson|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1284492096p2/3780.jpg] is a coming-of-age story about Alexandra (or Axi) Moore and her best friend Robinson running away on a cross country adventure, but it is also a story about falling in love for the first time. The story starts with Axi nervous because she is going to ask Robinson to run away with her. She just had this overwhelming urge to leave their small town of Klamuth Falls. After he agrees, they decide on a morning to leave, and here's what she says:

I was going to miss this apartment, this town, this life, like an ex-con misses his jail cell, which is to say: Not. At. All.

Leaving Klamuth in their dust, (figuratively and literally as they just stole a Harley Davidson!!!), their adventures begin.

At first, I thought this was going to be a wonderful story about first love and first heartbreak, but the dedication by James Patterson at the beginning of the book left me apprehensive. I mean, really?! It reminds him of their time together.....again, very apprehensive moving forward. Then at about 40% into the book, you find out why!!!

Spoiler

Axi is a cancer survivor too!!! Is she sick? I thought to myself. Is that why she wanted to run away? Then, came 60%.....she met Robinson on the cancer ward, now he's throwing up blood. This is [b:The Fault in Our Stars|11870085|The Fault in Our Stars|John Green|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1360206420s/11870085.jpg|16827462] all over again!!!!!!

Sorry had a minor rant! Only read if you've read the book! So where was I? Oh yeah, make sure you have tissues handy when you reach that part of the book.

I felt Patterson did a good job describing the feelings of being in love for the first time: the fear, the newness, how everything is just magical. Axi and Robinson both are very relatable characters and for me I could've applied them to myself or any number of people I knew growing up. Axi is the good girl, she gets good grades, never steps a toe out of line. Robinson is described as the bad boy, dropped out of high school, gives a rough kind of vibe at first anyways. Isn't there always more to the bad boy?

I also loved their adventure across our country, starting in the Redwood forest and ending up in Asheville, NC. They saw it all! Though I have to admit, I wasn't happy with them stealing cars to get from place to place. Couldn't they have just rode the bus? Or better yet, one of them owned a car? But that was just me, I guess I'm a good girl too! If you like romance, coming-of-age stories then you will enjoy this book!