A hint of Recovery Road, a sample of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, and a cut of Juno. A Really Awesome Mess is a laugh-out-loud, gut-wrenching/heart-warming story of two teenagers struggling to find love and themselves.
Two teenagers. Two very bumpy roads taken that lead to Heartland Academy.
Justin was just having fun, but when his dad walked in on him with a girl in a very compromising position, Justin's summer took a quick turn for the worse. His parents' divorce put Justin on rocky mental ground, and after a handful of Tylenol lands him in the hospital, he has really hit rock bottom.
Emmy never felt like part of her family. She was adopted from China. Her parents and sister tower over her and look like they came out of a Ralph Lauren catalog-- and Emmy definitely doesn't. After a scandalous photo of Emmy leads to vicious rumors around school, she threatens the boy who started it all on Facebook.
Justin and Emmy arrive at Heartland Academy, a reform school that will force them to deal with their issues, damaged souls with little patience for authority. But along the way they will find a ragtag group of teens who are just as broken, stubborn, and full of sarcasm as themselves. In the end, they might even call each other friends.
A funny, sad, and remarkable story, A Really Awesome Mess is a journey of friendship and self-discovery that teen readers will surely sign up for.
Releases simultaneously in electronic book format (ISBN 978-1-60684-364-2)
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful.
Fresh and honest voices, a great read
By Kelli of I'd So Rather Be Reading
4.5 starsA Really Awesome Mess was a great read! It was heartfelt, funny, and full of honest observations about life.The characters were the best part of this book. They were well-developed, realistic, and diverse. I love reading about all different types of people, and I really love reading about people with all different types of problems. And this book had that in spades: the setting is a reform school. Each character was at Heartland Academy for a different reason, and their own individual issues made for an interesting read. I loved seeing the characters work through their issues in healthy ways. I hate "love cures all" types of books, so to see people grow and change through hard work, therapy, and shifting their mindsets was really encouraging to read about.You might think that a character-driven book like this one would be a slower read, but it wasn't. The conflict resolution in each character's life provided enough intensity that the story moved at a great pace. The ending was perfect, I couldn't have asked for a more appropriate and satisfying end to the book.A Really Awesome Mess was a great, fulfilling read that made me feel good while reading it. It made me smile, and tear up a few times, and overall I had a great time reading it. The writing style was very open and easy to read. The voices were fresh and honest---two of my favorite things. I would recommend this book to anyone!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful.
Would have benefited had there been no romance
By Kate
I've read a few books where teens are placed in facilities and they're not meant to be there. They complain and moan and as you get into the novel you come to realize that they truly are not meant to be there. This is not the case with Emmy and Justin in A Really Awesome Mess. Oh - they gripe about being sent to Heartland Academy, and at the start it seems like they have a legitimate claim. But then, after spending a little time with them - it's clear that they are both really awesome messes. Emmy has spent a lifetime feeling like an outsider. As an adopted daughter from China, she has always felt out-of-place in her tall blonde family. So she diets trying to feel like appearance wise, she fits in. And the may have the slightest anger management issues when she decides to get retribution on a classmate by vilifying and humiliating them online. Justin's depressed and engages in some very risky behaviour trying to get attention from his parents.This dual POV novel was great at capturing angst, anger and the all round bad and slightly defeated attitude of both Emmy and Justin. They're feeling betrayed and their pain is evident when reading their stories. I enjoyed reading their stories. And the supporting characters? Amazing. I loved the great cast and their eccentricities.But this book is a mess (possibly the mess referred to in the title) when it comes to the romance between Emmy and Justin. It just didn't work for me. I can't stand when authors think that just because they're writing for YA audiences then there needs to be a love story. The relationship between these two felt superfluous and so very out of character for both.A Really Awesome Mess was an enjoyable read with some issues but there were a few heart-warming moments as well.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.LOVED THIS BOOK! Every. Single. Page
By Beckie @ Bittersweet Enchantment
As a avid reader I come across many wonderful books. Ones that make you think. Ones that break your heart. Ones that you will treasure forever and that you are proud to own. Only rarely you read a book that you know you will remember forever....that perfect book, a rare gem that shines among the rest.A Really Awesome Mess is exactly that. 5 Stars for me does not cover the sheer awesomeness within these pages. Here's why...The story is being told from dual narrators, Emmy and Justin. Both are living troubled lives.Emmy got herself into trouble over an internet prank that some mean kids pulled on her. Of course she wanted payback but ended up getting into more trouble and evidently her family put Emmy into a mental health ward Reform School called Heartland Academy. Emmy is mad at her family at this obvious betrayal, and it doesn't help that she already feels like an outsider within her family. Why? She is adopted. Asian and looks nothing life her family, this causes her to feel out of place and sometimes unloved.Justin on the other hand has both parents but they are divorced and live apart. While staying at his fathers home "something" happens with a girl Justin brought back to the house. His father just so happened to walk in on Justin and this girl in the middle of a "compromising situation". Days later Justin decided to swallow a bunch of tylenol...to kill himself...or a blatant cry for attention? Never the less he ends up in the same Reform School as Emmy.Both Justin and Emmy want nothing to do with Heartland Academy and feel they shouldn't be there. Only until they meet each other things start to change. But what happens to them both throughout the story is what makes A Really Awesome Mess....A Really Awesome Book!There is no doubt about it, I LOVED THIS BOOK! Every. Single. Page.Now I have never read anything by Trish Cook or Brendan Halpin but after reading A Really Awesome Mess I definitely need to and soon. I totally love when two authors join together to write a book. There are very few that do this but let me tell you both Trish Cook and Brendan Halpin writing style has the perfect blend of humor, captivating characters, a heart wrenching story that I will never forget. One of the favorite parts of the book was seeing both Emmy and Justin grow together and separately. Although their journey was not a easy one they both somehow found the strength to hold on in each other. Another great aspect in the story was the secondary characters who also lived at Heartland Academy. They all really added so much to the book, helping the story come alive.Everyone NEEDS to read A Really Awesome Mess. I definitely recommend it to all readers young and old. There is no doubt in my mind that his book will move you beyond words. For me it has already done just that and so much more. I want to thank Trish Cook & Brendan Halpin for writing such a beautiful and inspiring novel that will stay with me forever.
