The Perfect Blindside

I bought this book for my niece as a Confirmation present.Leslea Wahl does an amazing job of making her characters realistic while still infusing faith into her story. I love the way she has Sophie pray throughout the book. Her prayers aren’t overly pious long epistles; they are quick, in-the-moment, down-to-earth (“Seriously, Jesus, help me shut my trap”) kind of prayers. Basically, the way I pray! 🙂The trouble with some Christian fiction is that the characters are either holier-than-thou saints or really, really terrible sinners who suddenly do a 180. I enjoyed how Leslea gives her characters realistic flaws (you’d expect a boy who’d just won an Olympic silver medal to be a bit egotistical) and then let’s them have some character development without swinging the pendulum between sinner and saint too far or too fast.Not only are the characters enjoyable, but the story line is very engaging as well. This is a fun mystery with a bit of romance that parents can feel comfortable giving their teens!

The Perfect Blindside is a wonderful book for youth, teens, and young adults. I loved it. The story, which goes back and forth in its narration, between the two main characters, a teen boy and girl, is exciting, suspenseful, and at the same time, shows amazing and beautiful values. I highly recommend this book.

It is so well written! It grabs you from the beginning and doesn't let you go until the end. Great plot, adventure, faith and a touch of romance. A wonderful clean read for all ages!

I loved this book. The author clearly knows teenagers and how they think. The interaction between the two main characters and how their relationship evolved was heartwarming and the action packed story kept me wanting to know what was going to happen next. These characters definitely need a sequel to their adventures.

I really enjoyed this refreshing story of young love with a mystery intertwined to keep you turning the page!

All I can say is WOW! Leslea Wahl really understands teens. Jake, at the beginning, exudes an attitude that comes across to some as egotistical. He is afterall an Olympic silver medalist in snowboarding. But friends convince him to care about others and his heart slowly softens.Sophie is smart but has an ax to grind. She blames Jake for her increase in insurance rates - she was speeding to try and catch a glimpse of him when she got a ticket and then was tailgating her and she blew through a stop sign getting her a second ticket. She has such a cold attitude toward Jake that he labels her the Ice Princess. When they give each other a chance they discover the other one is really okay after all.At the urging of her priest, Sophie gently talks with Jake about her faith and by the end they are both relying more heavily on the Lord as they face difficult situations.The characters are well developed. The mystery plot is well-written and unpredictable. I look forward to reading more about these two in Extreme Blindside.I will be adding The Perfect Blindside to my k-12 Christian school library. I think it will appeal to middle schoolers and older.I received a complimentary copy of The Perfect Blindside. This is my honest review.

Today, I am reviewing The Perfect Blindside by Leslea Wahl. Before I start the review, I want to share a couple of links with you:Lesley Wahl's Site -http://lesleawahl.comGoodreads Giveaway of The Perfect Blindside - http://lesleawahl.com/2015/09/181/ (this is actually Ms. Wahl's site too, but the information about the giveaway is there... and who doesn't like a chance to win a book?!)I really enjoy reviewing books for teens because my son is about to turn twelve and I want to make sure I have "the right kind of books" here for him to read. Sure, we love all the classics, but as our Priest said on Sunday (paraphrased), 'As parents teaching your children about our Faith and morality, starts with you, at home. The love of God in your children's hearts; the teaching of virtue and commandments ALL start with you.' My immediate thought was - "NO PRESSURE!"It is with that in mind that I know my husband and I have to make sure our almost teen is presented with the right type of reading material. We do not believe in isolating him from society, but we do believe in insulting. He plays baseball and takes karate and is around non-homeschooled children on many occasions. Even when watching appropriate TV shows, he sees commercials we would rather him not see. He asks a lot of questions and we have constant dialogue.I have to be honest, at first, the chapters going back and forth between perspectives of the main characters Jake and Sophie, put me off. Chapter 1 was Jake's perspective, Chapter 2 was Sophie's perspective... back and forth it went. But after the second chapter, I got it... and I really liked it. It's different and frankly, I hope there are more books coming about these two and their little town.This book is about good, old-fashioned mystery solved by two teenagers that could not have misjudged one-another more... and I love it! We talk to our children about expectations and judgments. We tell them that things are not always what they seem... that people are not always what we perceive... that situations that may seem ______ could turn out to be ______. You just NEVER know until you get to know someone or go to the _______________. I left those blank intentionally because there are a zillion things any one of you may put in those blanks.The two main characters are:Jake. Olympic Snowboarder with a silver medal. Egotistical. Teen sensation. Struggling with all the normal teen stuff AND how to manage fame. His parents moved him to a little town in Colorado in an effort to shield him from fame. And he's torn between being cool in everyone's eyes AND wanting to fit in like everyone else.Sophie. Honors student. Budding Photographer/Reporter. Small town sweetheart. Judgmental and a little bit OCD. She and her best friend Kate are like so many teen girls. It made me smile when they planned their first day of school outfits (we all used to... awww).There are many twists and turns in this classic story about two people so determined not to like one-another that it becomes all they think about. They struggle with jealousy and insecurity. They struggle with their families, who are really good families (but teens struggle with authority figures). They struggle with other teens at school (you know, some teens can be so cruel).Through a series of unexpected events these two teens have to work together, learn to trust each other, and be humble enough to do God's will... in order to save Jake's reputation and their small town from a drug ring. SO exciting!This book is about learning virtues; appreciating the talents God gave us, and working together for the betterment of God and His people. And this book is a great book to have your teens read. The way Mrs. Wahl writes is exceptional.I highly recommend it. I'm so thankful I read it!Blessings all,Emily

I sped through this and felt sad to have finished, wishing it was longer. A really fun mystery-adventure-romance for teens. Fortunately the sequel is coming out in, I think, January so not long to wait.I really liked the characters and how clearly Wahl portrays their flaws whilst keeping them relatable, and how authentically she presents their character growth as they come to realise their flaws and start to work on defeating them.All the snowboarding terminology and awesome descriptions made me want to try the sport but that would probably be a bad idea!An exciting and credible climax that allows both the male and female lead to be courageous and shine.I loved the way the author captured the way the parents were all like "Why didn't you tell us?" at the end and the teens are (metaphorically) rolling their eyes and going 'Uh, because you wouldn't have BELIEVED us!" So true. Good illustration of being too quick to trust the adult and ignore the teen.Quite honestly, I wouldn't normally shell out this much money for an ebook on principle, but having read the author's other books I had to finally crack open the piggy-bank! I'm not sorry I did so, though I avoid these over-priced Pauline ebooks like the plague usually. Not one to miss, despite the over-pricing.[I am acquainted with the author through author groups. Opinions my own.]