Book Review: Locked by Parker Witter

Locked
Author: Parker Witter
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Released: August 19th 2014
Review Source: Poppy Books | Netgalley

"It had always been the three of us, and then it was the two of us-Ed and August. There was not, nor had there ever been a chance of a Noah and August. And that was fine. Because the truth was I had known Noah forever but I still had no idea who he really was. Especially not now. " In this sizzling novella, one girl must choose between loyalty and love.

August had the two best guy friends a girl could ask for in Noah and Ed. Then Ed confessed he felt more for her - and their new relationship changed everything. She had hoped it would be Noah that she'd end up with someday, but it's clearer than ever that Noah's just not interested in being a one-girl guy.

When the small seaplane the three of them are on crashes, August finds herself injured and marooned on an island with ... Noah. Unsure of what's become of Ed, August and Noah do their best to not lose hope as they fight to survive on an island that is not as deserted as they first believed. But fighting the elements - and their attraction to each other - becomes a losing battle. Soon, a secret from Noah's past that could bind them to the island forever is revealed, and August must choose between giving into her feelings for him, or struggling to make it back home.

After just watching Blue Lagoon: The Awakening I really wanted to read book similar to the movie. The stranded on an island type. I jumped at the chance to read Locked as it was just what I was looking for. Very pretty cover, too.

Locked began as a promising book but after chapter one it fell flat. Straight away I noticed there was a lack in detail. Where we needed details we didn’t get them but there was times where we were given information which was completely irrelevant and didn't contribute to the story. I was confused. August wasn’t a clear character. In fact, she was really blurry. I wasn’t entirely sure what she wanted or how she felt and the absence of character and emotional development didn’t help, either. After the plane crash I expected a certain amount of emotion from August and Noah, and what I got didn’t meet the ‘oh my god. Our plane just crashed and now we’re stranded’ level. That right there was a problem. If I’m honest, to me she felt emotionally numb. She didn’t react to situations or things like she should have. Neither did Noah.

And the ending... there’s no indication of a book #2. The abruptness of the ending and the overall set up was disappointing. It just made it feel like the book was for nothing.

Overall opinion: Putting all issues aside I still enjoyed the book. It had the potential to (maybe) be one of my 2014 reads but unfortunately I couldn't rate the book any higher because of the issues.