In Honor

 

 Author: Jessi Kirby
Series: Standalone
Pages: 235
Challenge: Goodreads Challenge 2014
Genre: Contemporary
Acquired: Library
Rating: ★★★½

*****

Goodreads Summary:

Honor receives her brother’s last letter from Iraq three days after learning that he died, and opens it the day his fellow Marines lay the flag over his casket. Its contents are a complete shock: concert tickets to see Kyra Kelly, her favorite pop star and Finn’s celebrity crush. In his letter, he jokingly charged Honor with the task of telling Kyra Kelly that he was in love with her.

Grief-stricken and determined to grant Finn’s last request, she rushes to leave immediately. But she only gets as far as the driveway before running into Rusty, Finn’s best friend since third grade and his polar opposite. She hasn’t seen him in ages, thanks to a falling out between the two guys, but Rusty is much the same as Honor remembers him: arrogant, stubborn . . . and ruggedly good-looking. Neither one is what the other would ever look for in a road trip partner, but the two of them set off together, on a voyage that makes sense only because it doesn’t. Along the way, they find small and sometimes surprising ways to ease their shared loss and honor Finn--but when shocking truths are revealed at the end of the road, will either of them be able to cope with the consequences?

  *****

 My Thoughts:

In Honor follows Honor a young girl who recently lost her older brother, Finn. With a letter that arrives after his death Honor makes it her plan to fulfill Finn's request before her first day of college starts. As the book progressed Honor grew up and grew stronger to ultimately learn to cope with the death of her brother and the secrets she discovered from Rusty, Finn's best friend.

Although this book was an okay read I would not say it was one of my favorites unfortunately. I didn't really connect with any of the characters. I felt that they all were a bit boring. Rusty was one of the only characters that I liked which made him all the more interesting to me.

The story is told from Honor's point of view and the problems she faced were realistic and I liked that. For example, she experienced car trouble with was expected, when taking an across country road trip, and realistic. I also liked that she did not fall for Rusty the minute she laid eyes on him again. They were actually enemies for the first half of the book and only stayed connected by Finn. I liked that this wasn't a story centered around romance and more about learning to deal with the death of a loved one while uncovering secrets along the way.

I also felt that Honor became more of an independent and capable person out from behind her brother's shadow. She learned to make her own decisions and choices for herself and her life.

One of my favorite scenes was the airplane scene at the end as well as the secrets that were uncovered to Honor by Rusty about Finn. It really let you see into the kind of person Finn was and how he was as a protective brother and loyal best friend. The thing I liked least was actually Honor's character. For some reason I did not like her at all and found her boring and dull. I really wished that she would have been more interesting; I think I would have liked her more if she added more to the story as a whole with either her personality or actions.

The ending of In Honor was predictable but good to end the story with. It did not really keep me guessing but as a whole it was okay. I would give the cover a ★★½; it describes Honor's features and clothing and it also matches the setting of the book. I would recommend this book for contemporary lovers who enjoy reading about road trips and realistic situations. I ended up giving In Honor a ★★★★½.

*****