Racing California (ARC Review)

Book: Racing California
Author: Janet Nichols Lynch
Format: ARC
Pages: 182
Source: Received through ARCycling

Blurb:

Evan is shocked when the famous Tour de France winner Dash Shipley asks him to join his team for the Amgen Tour of California. It changes all his priorities. Instead of focusing on finishing high school and moving on to college, Evan is caught up in an amazing cycling race filled with spectacular triumphs, bitter disappointments, and allegations that Dash is using performance-enhancing drugs. There is no shortage of thrilling sports action in this YA novel about a gifted athlete who surprises everyone, especially himself, in his first pro event.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Rating:

 

I really am not a big fan of sports novels, nor do I follow pro cycling, but that didn't stop me from enjoying this novel. It's about a regular highschool kid who gets the chance of a lifetime to take part in a cycling race around California on his hero's team. If you're like me and don't know anything about cycling or the terms used in the sport, you don't have to worry about becoming lost because the book makes it easy to understand.

 

By the time that the race took place I found myself excited to find out what happened next and how it would all end. The race itself in this novel was exciting and I was on the edge of my seat rooting for Evan and the pro athlete's that had him on their team. The novel does have some twists that I didn't see coming and they really added to the overall story.

 

I had a few issues with the beginning of this book. It starts out pretty slowly and I found myself trying to push my way through it. I didn't want to continue through the first half and I came pretty close to putting the book down and not finishing. I am pretty glad I stuck with it though. Another thing that I didn't like was the fact that Evan was pretty dramatic. It's like when something bad would happen to him, everyone was trying to crush his dreams and that really bothered me. He also put racing ahead of everything else, like his girlfriend, school and even his parents and that seemed kind of immature.

 

Overall, this book was quick read. Cycling and Non-cycling fans alike will find themselves understanding the story and enjoying the action that the Tour of California brings.