As her family attends an annual medical conference in Hawaii, Ada is upset over discovering her boyfriend has been cheating on her. To make things worse, she's fighting with her sister, and she thinks her parents' marriage is in trouble. In the meantime, she is trying to figure out what sex is and why it seems so difficult. When she runs into geeky Nick, who she knows from previous conferences, she decides that he is a safe choice for her first time, so they make a plan to meet on the final night of the conference when nobody will miss them. As the time to meet Nick gets closer and she becomes more confused about the anger she feels with her sister and her parents, Ada begins to wonder if maybe she simply isn't ready for such a big step.

With You All the Way is a fairly realistic view into family dynamics and the insecurities that surround people who in trying not to hurt one another, manage to cause the most pain. Ada seems like a fairly typical teenager with common goals and feelings, but she still displays a very dry sense of humor that makes her likable, even when she isn't making the best choices. In the beginning, Nick fits the stereotype of the nerdy game player, but as the story progresses, he shows himself to be much more than a geek and becomes very easy to like. Overall, this is a good family drama that centers around the teenagers and the issues and self-doubt they often face. 4 1/2 stars. ( )

One of my favorite books from last year was The How and the Why by Cynthia Hand, so when I saw that she had another book coming out this year, I immediately added it to my TBR list. While With You All the Way wasn’t as good as The How and the Why in my opinion, it was still a cute and lighthearted read!

The book is about 16-year-old Ada, who finds her boyfriend cheating on her shortly before her family leaves for a vacation in Hawaii. Ada is convinced that her boyfriend cheated because she wasn’t ready to have sex with him, so when she catches her mother cheating on her stepdad with a work colleague, she is livid. Ada then uses her 16-year-old logic and decides that her best course of action is to have sex just to get it out of the way. Everyone else is doing it, so why shouldn’t she?

This book portrays Ada’s struggles and experiences in such a heartfelt and genuine way. While it tackles some intense themes, it is not really a dense or heavy read. It was fun reading about Ada’s life and watching her find her way back to her family. I would have liked some actual romance in the book, but it was not completely necessary.

Overall, reading about the ups and downs of a teen navigating family and relationship drama was actually pretty touching. Although there wasn’t necessarily anything in this book that made it particularly memorable, it was a cute story and a quick read. I definitely recommend it for anyone who is a fan of the YA or Contemporary genres! ( )