Blog Tour Review - Us Kids Know by JJ Strong

BOOK DESCRIPTION
We all knew about Cullen Hickson.
Siblings Bri and Ray O'Dell are lost. Anxious. Restless. Ray—bullied at his Catholic school for being small and timid—wants to be someone people respect or, even better, someone people fear. Meanwhile, Bri knows that something is off about her friendship with the shiny, happy, sophisticated blond girls on her field hockey team. They don't really understand Bri, and if Bri is being totally honest, she doesn't really understand them either.

When storied delinquent Cullen Hickson enters the orbit of the O'Dell siblings, though, everything changes. Bri and Ray find an alluring, addictive outlet in Cullen, who opens their eyes to a world they didn't know existed. For Ray, that means experiencing the singular thrill of crime—from breaking and entering to grand theft auto—while Bri quickly dives into an all-consuming romance with the enigmatic upperclassman.

As Bri and Ray become more and more entwined with Cullen's antics, and their once-thrilling experiences grow increasingly dangerous, a series of life-changing events threatens to lead the teens down a dark path—one that could forever alter the course of their lives.

Review:

I was pleasantly surprised upon reading this book about teenagers needing an out so that they knew what it was like to live. Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect other than the fact that Us Kids Know is being pitched as a story in the cusps of The Outsider. I could see the comparison but luckily JJ Strong’s book is all his own.

We get the POV of three characters: Cullen, Ray, and Brielle. Ray and Brielle are brother and sister. How are the two connected to Cullen? Well Cullen sees Brielle and immediately has a sort of obsession with her. He has to have her. Ray meets him and the two hit it off by participating in criminal things. Ray gets picked on all the time and once he gets a taste of that adrenaline he feels with Cullen, well let’s just say that there isn’t any stopping him.

The three embark on a very interesting friendship and not to mention journey. I felt like as a reader I was immediately drawn to Ray. I felt his vulnerability and he felt he needed to do all that stuff. Cullen was a bit more complex and I felt for him from the very first page. I’m sticking to the whole “he’s misunderstood!” storyline. Brielle was a bit tough to like in the beginning. I didn’t like how she was trying so hard to be something she wasn’t. (Plus the whole hiding that she likes Cullen thing.) I’m happy to say she saw the light and stopped acting like a little punk. She then became something else entirely.

I think the book was great for a debut. The characters were some that I truly enjoyed reading about. I liked the growth and progression of the story and plot. When the author writes more books, you bet your bottom dollar I’ll be there to read it. Overall, if you’re looking for story that will most definitely make you feel, this is perfect for you. You’ll be able to identify with more than one or two of the characters guaranteed. Even though they are outsiders and don’t fit in, I know that if I were still in school, I’d be happy to call this group of teenagers my friend.

*Thank you to the publisher for providing a copy for an unbiased and honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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AUTHOR BIO

JJ Strong received a creative writing degree from the University of Southern California, and a B.A. in English from Georgetown University. His writing has appeared in Fifth Wednesday, the Santa Monica Review, and LA Weekly. He taught for many years in the undergraduate writing program at USC, before moving to the Washington, D.C. area with his wife and son.