Book: Trust Fall by Lynn Painter
Reviewed by Maggie Hayes
Rating: 4.5/5
Trust Fall by Lynn Painter
⭐⭐⭐⭐½ (4.5/5)
I really enjoyed Julia and Damion's young adult romantic comedy.
Julia is a fish out of water when her family inherits a brownstone and a truckload of money from an elderly neighbor, pulling her from her quiet life in Nebraska and thrusting her into the world of New York City's rich and spoiled elite. It was painful to watch her struggle to fit in while her twin brother was immediately accepted, especially because I loved her character so much. A particularly harsh breakup with her boyfriend of six years has left her distrustful of boys, but she's still willing to open her heart to the possibility of Damion. Her sense of wonder and gratitude for the little moments the city has to offer, which go largely unnoticed by the people who live there, felt so genuine.
And Damion? He could have easily been painted as a straight-up villain, using Julia's need for a math tutor to gain inside knowledge and try to steal her family's inheritance. But the situation is far more nuanced. Not only is he grieving the loss of his beloved uncle (Julia's elderly neighbor), but he was promised that the brownstone she now lives in would be his—a means of escaping his awful parents and the life they've mapped out for him without his input. He doesn't intend to fall for Julia, let alone fall as hard and completely as he does. It was really sweet to watch a boy who has always kept himself removed from everything find his place in a relationship. Talk about character development!
I love Julia and Damion together. Even when they're "enemies," they have excellent banter and plenty of chemistry-sparking moments (hello, holding hands in Times Square), but it's the quieter emotional beats that really got me. They open up to each other in a way that feels a little more mature than their years, but makes sense for them. The third-act conflict had me a little bit of a mess, tearing up as I wondered how they were going to work things out.
The book has major Gossip Girl setting vibes, but with a Nora Ephron-esque romance unfolding in autumn. It has been a long time since a romance felt so fall-centric—I could practically smell the bonfire and pumpkin spice rolling off the pages. It's the perfect book for the "ber" months.
Thank you to the author, Simon & Schuster, and NetGalley for providing an ARC!