Review: The Unwritten Rule - Elizabeth Scott

Where I got it: ARC from 1 ARC Tours
Rating:  4 stars
Cover Rating: 4 stars (I love the purple and how flirtatious and forbidden the feet feel)
Genre: Young Adult
Publication Date: March 16, 2010
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Page Count: 210 p.

The unwritten rule that all girls must follow is: Thou shalt not like thy best friend's boyfriend. But sometimes it's hard to follow that rule, especially when you liked him first. This is how Sarah feels. She is constantly in the shadow of Brianna, her best friend. When Brianna and Sarah go to the fateful party and Sarah starts talking to Ryan she feels on top of the world. Quite quickly however, Brianna comes in and takes Ryan as her own and he doesn't know enough to put up a fight. With stolen glances and squashed emotions Sarah has to tag along on all their dates and get-togethers. When Sarah can't seem to keep holding back though, things start to get a bit more complicated and amendments to the rule might have to be made.

This was an emotionally exhausting novel. But in a good way. Sometimes when you see something really awful about to happen you get a knot in your stomach even though you have nothing to do with what's happening. This story is that awful thing, like a car crash. Sarah, Ryan and Brianna have an awful love triangle going on and really we all know how this is going to end up, in tears. This novel was great though, the characters genuine. Sometimes we don't know what to say; sometimes we don't realize our best friend is actually really mean to us. This novel reminds us that it's okay we're not perfect. We can try to be good and as long as we try that's all that matters. People can't always help who they love. Unless they are trying to force love... then it's just silly. This novel will make you remember your first love or first crush. With every one of Sarah and Ryan's heartbeats you will feel the longing and excitement that bubbles up inside you when you just know what you want. This is a novel of heartache and love, betrayal and honesty, failures that make up life. Elizabeth Scott is not an author to be missed. If you like realistic fiction you should be reading this.

First Line:
"I liked him first, but it doesn't matter."

Favorite Line:
"It hurt for ages when I saw him at school, but after awhile it hurt less, especially when I finally got to hear him read one of his short stories and it was really awful."