Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Publication Date: May 13, 2014
Hardcover: 288 pages
Rating: 4/5 stars
  
BOOK DESCRIPTION:

DISCLAIMER: I read and reviewed this book not knowing it is a sequel and not having read Nantucket Blue.

I fell in love with Nantucket Red the more and more I delved into it. I completely enjoyed reading this book and finished it in just one siting. Its story revolves around our protagonist Cricket Thompson, a hardworking perfectionist overachiever who is spending the summer in Nantucket to save enough money for Brown. Along the way, she encounters all sorts of people and experiences that will change her life into something less perfect but something unexpectedly happier. 

This book was absolutely perfect for me. It was the best summer read and one of the most relatable books I've ever read. Cricket's narrative was so honest, so real and I saw myself in her plenty of times. The thirst for something more, for adventure and thrill, and the endless possibilities of summer all stretched out ahead of you is something I am not unfamiliar with, and I wanted so badly to be in Nantucket with Cricket and to go to all those wonderful places. I wanted to learn how to drive stick, to get drunk with my best friend, to go skinny dipping and to see the stars on top of a hill. It was already an amazing experience living out all of these through a character and I wonder now what it would feel like to actually do all those things for real.

Despite being full of adventure, Nantucket Red is first and foremost a character story, and I loved the development carefully woven into each character especially Cricket. I loved how driven Cricket is. I loved how hard she works for the things she wants and I loved how she is not afraid to make certain choices. I loved how she discovers herself in that summer and how she turns out into a mature and independent person in the end. Apart from Cricket, I was also enchanted to meet Liz, her posh British friend who lets Cricket stay in her place for the summer, and Jules, her best friend who always sticks with her no matter what rocky situation they've been through. I loved Cricket's parents as well, her mom and dad who are one of the kindest parents ever. I loved how complicated the numerous relationships in the story played out. 

In the story we meet two probable love interests for Cricket: Zach, her first boyfriend and first love, and Ben, the cute bartender Guitar Guy Cricket meets in Nantucket. Unfortunately, I hardly cared about both of them and actually preferred Cricket to not end up with any of them at all. It was funny because both Zach and Ben were such flat characters for me as opposed to the others who were such great, relatable, and well rounded characters. I didn't understand their relationships to Cricket as well. Interaction between Cricket and Zach only composed about 15% of the book and towards the end I realized that I knew nothing about Zach (but that is also probably because I haven't read Nantucket Blue). Ben is more in the book but I never found out that much about who he is except that he is a nice guy that has a lot of man pain. They were both okay, they didn't annoy or bother me, but I also didn't swoon over any of them.

Apart from this, the only other thing about the book that I didn't like is how there were a lot of brand mentions. I felt like it was unnecessary to mention certain brands, as for me it times the book. It makes the book only relevant during this time period when this certain brand is famous. Do you know the feeling when you're watching a show or movie and there's a lot of ad placements? That's what I felt like reading this book.

Overall, I was impressed with this book. When I read it I didn't even know that it was supposed to be a sequel. I never got confused with the story and it really does work as a standalone as well. Nantucket Red was a fun fresh read that gave me more insight into life. I loved the feeling I had while reading this book; it was the wonderful combined feeling of having your toes in the sand, the sun in your face, lying on a bed of grass, shouting from a cliff, and running around a field in the rain. It was peaceful but nice, calm but adventurous, and just downright wonderful.