Book: Talk to Me at Midnight by Stephanie Harina
Reviewed by NIN freak
Rating: 5/5
I really liked this story. It was sweet and told very well. It has romantic tension and will they/won't they throughout the entire book. We have two points of view in this story, Yanisa and Ash, but the novel thing about it is that the p.o.v. only switches halfway through the story. Maybe just me, but I haven't seen that before.
We meet Yanisa, an intern teacher, she's teaching a class and getting an evaluation when her new used phone rings. She gets the kids to follow her around the room as a choo-choo train, so cute, till she can get close enough to turn it off. Not good for the eval. Same number calls later when she's with her friend and coworker, Paul, it's an advert for Kop Kun Cup Milk Tea Manila. Later that night, her phone goes off and she answers, some guy is on the other side. He's being creepy, and she's worried because of what he was saying. Suddenly, another guy grabs the phone from him and apologizes for his friend, they sit there for a minute and then hang up. This prank call started it all, they started talking every night at midnight.
The makings of a beautiful midnight friendship. She feels safe that they won't ever run into each other because he's in the Philippines and she is in Thailand. They feel comforted and able to vent and just be themselves, no masks, no filters.
Due to circumstances out of her control, she moves to the Philippines. He has been developing a new english learning system, AES, and he's due to present it to a school.... the school she is interning for now that she moved. She knows this stuff, he talked it over with her and they worked out kinks together. She recognizes him when he steps onto the stage to start the presentation, and she hopes he doesn't recognize her.
Then the p.o.v. switches to him for the rest of the book. As the days progress he realizes he really likes her as more than a friend. Things happen there are almost kisses, some drowning and CPR, and then AES is set up to demo for a contract with a really large and prestigious school system. The future of AES rides on this contract... Will they win it? Will their relationship progress? Read the book!!!
This book had me going all over the place. At times it felt like a Rom-com, and at others it felt like an asian drama with all of her insecurities and sexual tension. I loved every minute of it. Eagerly awaiting the next installment.