For sixteen-year-old Charlotte Reynolds, aka Charlie, being raised by a single dad and three older brothers has its perks. She can outrun, outscore, and outwit every boy she knows—including her longtime neighbor and honorary fourth brother, Braden. But when it comes to being a girl, Charlie doesn't know the first thing about anything. So when she starts working at chichi boutique to pay off a speeding ticket, she finds herself in a strange new world of makeup, lacy skirts, and BeDazzlers. Even stranger, she's spending time with a boy who has never seen her tear it up in a pickup game.
To cope with the stress of faking her way through this new reality, Charlie seeks late-night refuge in her backyard, talking out her problems with Braden by the fence that separates them. But their Fence Chats can't solve Charlie's biggest problem: she's falling for Braden. Hard. She knows what it means to go for the win, but if spilling her secret means losing him for good, the stakes just got too high.
My heart died in the last few chapters of this book! Just like The Distance Between Us, I loved this book! <3
Charlie Reynolds was raised by a single dad in a family with three older brothers - four if you count their neighbor Braden who has always been there. As a result, she plays a lot of sport, dresses in sweats and doesn't know a thing about being a girl! When she gets pulled over and is given a speeding ticket yet again, her dad forces her to get a job, and when that job requires being a girly girl, she creates this 'alternate person' that she has at work. As a means of coping with this, she has late night chats with Braden, with a fence separating them.
On the Fence is a book that is very relatable, making the reader feel all the emotions that the characters are feeling (love, sadness, happiness, and even awkwardness). It has a very good plot, and though the overview is cliche, it is the kind of cliche that I enjoyed because the author was able to make it her own with the specific details.
There were a lot of things that I loved in the novel. First is how close Charlie's family is. She is very close with her brothers, and they really get along well, especially the one closest to her in age, Gage. I loved how they knew her so well and how they always wanted what was best for her. Second, I loved the tension between the characters because I was really able to feel it, and it made the book all the more exciting. Third, I loved how Charlie integrated her two 'alternate' personas to form the new her. Fourth, I loved how she realized that she doesn't have to change for anybody; and lastly, I loved how Charlie was able to be friends with .... despite their opposite personalities. In that way, the book was full of meaning.
I was able to read this book in just one sitting because of how amazing the plot is and how exciting it is. This book will definitely tug at your heartstrings, and I recommend everyone to give it a shot, because ahhhh~ All the feels! I'm telling you, you won't regret this one!
“Sometimes we expect more that people are capable of giving at the moment”
“We can't let boys define how we feel about ourselves. You have to know who you are before you should let any boy worth anything in.”
