Jennifer Marie Thorne

The Wrong Side of Right

tina

every now and then i’d read a ya contempo that actually makes me feel emotions. it happens rarely, but it surprises me everytime when it does. at the beginning of the wrong side of right, i thought i was going to give this book a 2 or 2.5 stars at worst or 3 stars at best, but instead i gave this a 4 out of 5 stars. i think the reason why i was able to enjoy this so much was because it primarily focuses on the family aspect. i wouldn’t even say it’s a romance since it isn’t even the center of the plot. this book was really heartwarming and it was very nice to see how much the author gave importance to the family dynamics, especially since it rarely is shown in ya contempos. this was a nice change and it surprised me so much that i ended up just really loving it! 


  You’ll never have the chance to work this stuff out unless you give yourself the chance.

I am in the best of moods right now after reading this.
I enjoyed The Wrong Side of the Right, and judging from the cover, it may sound really cutesy at first, but it tackles heavy personal and political issues. Kate is a normal high school girl who suddenly finds out she's the lovechild of a Senator who is also a presidential candidate with a family of his own.

As a political science major, it was a surprise to see politics layered into a YA novel. Even when I didn't necessarily agree with some choices being made, it made the entire book realistic and humanized. It offers insight behind the scenes of dirty, modern politics. All of it was incorporated into the book very naturally. The campaign staff sounded so authentic, too! Reading about the inner workings of a political campaign makes me wanna be part of a real one, all that planning and strategies and the lovely chaos of it all.

But rather than following Kate's life politics-wise, it also provided another angle on her family life and how she copes with the new scene. We begin to see how the people who run for office aren't just the people we see on TV, they have messed up lives too behind those camera-ready smiles. I know some readers found Kate a bit dull and boring, but to me she was very likable. It's great how she handles herself and the struggles she faces daily. She makes wise choices, is very strong and independent, but still manages to be kind and understanding to everyone around her. It did take her a fair amount of time to object to being pushed around, but I think that's part of her novelty, seeing her learn to eventually stand up for herself.

There were so many supporting characters here, but Jenn Marie Thorne doesn't just shove them out of the way. She provides us insight into their individual personalities through the eyes of Kate. We have her new siblings who have their own ways of giving Kate space to enter their lives. Her stepmother, Meg, was very admirable. Instead of taking the easy way out and turning her into the obvious evil stepmom choice, Thorne gives us a complex character doing her best to do the right thing. Meg quickly became one of my favorite character in this book, and I think she gave it a little more depth. Even her dad's campaign staff were interesting. 

And my favorite part was the romance. It was not overdone, it did not take up too much of the plot, and Andy plays a minor- role, but is still very swoon worthy. He's misunderstood, thoughtful, kind of a trouble maker but very genuine. They have very few scenes together, but when they do, it's all very intense and romantic. In fact, not EVERY young adult book needs romance, right? Just because it's classified under YA, doesn't mean it needs to have a romantic relationship involved.

For a debut novel, this was unexpectedly good! Very clever and emotional, all the themes coming together to create this perfect novel. I think a lot more people should acknowledge Jenna Marie Thorne, and I'm really looking forward to reading more of her work in the future.

The Wrong Side of Right

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