Review: Finding Perfect by Kendra C. Highley

September 12, 2015

Note: This ARC was provided by Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

"Promise me, though. Promise you'll start paying attention to how amazing you are."

But not as amazing as Zoey, apparently. Paige doubted he would've gone to such lengths to win her over, and that sucked. Why couldn't she be the "one" this time? "I promise."

She's lived with nickname "Perfect Paige" for quite some time, but it's actually becoming quite difficult to live up to it now that Paige Westfield is a senior. There's a lot of pressure coming from her parents so getting a D in Calculus is causing her a great deal of stress. When Ben Franklin offers to tutor her in exchange for a date with Paige's best friend, she's left with no other option but to agree. Paige doubts that Ben is her best friend's type of guy, but the more she gets to know him, the more she sees that he's exactly her type. There's a connection they both feel but don't openly acknowledge. How long can they pretend that they're nothing more than friends when it's pretty clear that they're absolutely perfect for each other.

Don't you just love it when you've given up in finding at least one book that will hit all your high points on a day that everything else seemed lackluster and then voila! You actually have it and nothing distracts you from it. That's what happened today with Kendra C. Highley's Finding Perfect, which I suspect is the first in a still untitled series because of that epilogue she left us with. I loved this wonderfully written story about a high achiever named Paige Westfield and the barely noticed Ben Franklin. There's no such thing as "perfect" but Paige is desperate to achieve that status and while Ben does provide her with the tutoring she needs, he is also able to give her that confidence that she lacks and he lets her know he believes in her.

I've read books about a girl liking a guy who happens to like her best friend before but Kendra C. Highley gave this story her own spin on it and gave it a refreshingly creative feel. Paige and Ben are adorably impeccable together and the periods of awkwardness they have increases their cuteness factor. This wasn't merely about their love story though; this was also about the pressures that teens face from their parents, peers, and teachers. There was also the thought-provoking aspect of fitting in, what with Paige coming from an upper class family while Ben and his mother live modestly, trying to make sure they have enough each moth to pay for everything that needs to be paid for. The book was simply more than I had hoped for.

Aside from Paige and Ben, I loved Zoey Miller, Paige's best friend and the girl of Ben's teenage dreams. She was spunky and smart and was such a loyal friend. The girl was unexpectedly charming. Then there was Paige's father and Ben's mother, both of whom appeared to fit into a mold and then surprise, surprise. They broke out of that mold and had me grinning from ear to ear when it came to the love and support they showed their respective children. See, that's the thing about this book. I went into it hoping it would be good but it went above and beyond whatever expectations I may have had. It had a feeling of familiarity but was delightfully different. Finding Perfect was, indeed, close to perfection. Five-plus stars. ♥

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