Why We Love the "Firsts"
What is it about first love? That first longing glance across the crowded dance floor/school hallway/parking lot? That first kiss?
Marco moves to close the distance between them, kissing away her tears before catching her lip with his own. As he kisses her, the bonfire glows brighter. The acrobats catch the light perfectly as they spin. The entire circus sparkles, dazzling every patron.
Erin Morgenstern, The Night Circus
For those of us who read and write young adult novels, the "firsts" often play a big role. And that's probably why YA novels aren't really just for teens. In fact, a 2012 study in Publisher's Weekly found that 55% of buyers of YA books were actually 18 or over, with the largest segment aged 30 to 44, a group that alone accounted for 28% of YA sales.
So what's the appeal? Well, in the case of YA romance, I tend to think it's that we all enjoy remembering that more innocent time - when love wasn't touched by things like mortgages and carpools - and it was all about the swoon!
"That was my first kiss," she said. "My first real one." 
He brought his head close, resting his forehead on hers. Blond waves fell around her face, soft against her cheeks.
His chest rose and fell as he drew in a breath. "Felt like the first real one for me, too."
Veronica Rossi , Under the Never Sky
For a second his dark eyes are on mine, and he's quiet. Then he touches my face and leans in close, brushing my lips with his. The river roars and I feel its spray on my ankles. He grins and presses his mouth to mine.
I tense up at first, unsure of myself, so when he pulls away, I'm sure I did something wrong, or badly. But he takes my face in his hands, his fingers strong against my skin, and kisses me again, firmer this time, more certain. I wrap an arm around him, sliding my hand up his neck and into his short hair.
For a few minutes we kiss, deep in the chasm, with the roar of water all around us.
Veronica Roth, Divergent
Those Veronicas sure now how to write swoon, don't they?
It's not always all about the kiss, though. Sometimes, it's about the anticipation.
There was hesitation in his step as he closed the distance between us, placing his palms down on each side of my hips. His face was dipped toward mine, his lips so close that if I were to exhale deeply we'd be touching. He breathed out slowly and I closed my eyes, my entire body tingling with anticipation, feeling lightheaded as I waited.
Amber L. Johnson, Beatless
For me, the waiting can be the best part. The buildup to that moment can be exhilarating. It's a time when we all remember that first love, and the sweaty palms, pounding heart, and butterflies in the stomach that accompany it. It can make us swoon or smile… or even laugh.
Ainsley carefully set her coffee cup on the shelf before grabbing a pale pink cape out of a drawer beneath it. She flicked it open, and it billowed around me before settling on my shoulders. "Don't worry," she said as she fastened it around my neck. "It won't affect your masculinity."
"I wasn't worried," I said. Of course, my voice cracked.
Ainsley laughed distractedly as she ran her fingers through my damp hair. I tensed, but she didn't seem to notice. "I would have shampooed your hair, Oliver."
I shrugged. "I was trying to be considerate. Didn't want you to get a handful of-" Okay, how could I finish that sentence without sounding completely disgusting? Nope. Couldn't think of a single thing.
Ainsley looked at me, eyebrows raised. "Handful of what?" she asked, lips twitching. "What do you keep in there?" She poked at my hair with the tail of her comb.
"Shut up." I tried to hold my frown but failed. "It's only polite, isn't it? I mean, you wouldn't go to the dentist without brushing."
"Could you imagine?" Ainsley wrinkled her nose at me in the mirror.
"Gross."
She grabbed a water bottle and sprayed my head a few times, then combed through it, wrestling with a couple of snarls. "Do you have an idea what you want?" she asked.
What do I want? What do I want?
I was pretty sure "for you to never ever EVER stop touching my hair" was the wrong answer.
- How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You, Chapter 7
Will Oliver get his first kiss with the girl of his dreams? Well, I don't want to give it away, but let's just say he gives it his best shot in How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You.
So what's your favorite first kiss in a book? Let me know in the comments!
Seventeen-year-old Oliver Wendell Holmes (Yes, his parents are just that peculiar, but his brother's name is Sherlock, so it could have been worse) knows that he's different. He's quirky, awkward, and he's okay with that. Oliver also likes making lists-meticulous procedures for achieving his goals, step-by-step. Whether it's "How to Get an A in Chemistry" or "How to Get Accepted to MIT," he has a process, and it's worked for him so far. He doesn't even care that the popular kids mock him. Oliver's got his eye on the prize.
So when he decides it's time to declare his feelings for Ainsley Bishop, the girl of his dreams, it's only natural for him to make a list-a point-by-point strategy to win her heart. He knows it will take a grand gesture for her to see all he has to offer, and her approaching birthday provides the ideal opportunity for Oliver to put his plan into action.
Finding the perfect gift is a challenge Oliver meets with his usual dogged determination. He'll need to watch her carefully for clues to pinpoint exactly what he should give her. And along the way, he might just learn that what Ainsley really needs is not quite what he expected.
Ainsley is available now!
My Review:
I received a free copy of the book from the author for my honest opinion.
Seventeen-year-old Oliver Wendell Holmes is kind of a peculiar person. When it comes to setting goals for himself; he likes making list. He is very fastidious when it comes to his list no matter what he sets out to do. Whether he is trying to make good grades or trying to get into a good college. He has his own way of getting things done and he likes it just fine.
So when he decides to get Ainsley Bishop to fall in love with him he has to have a list. He makes a list that he will follow up to the last detail. It is the only way Oliver knows. Oliver gets a lot of help from his friend Viney and an older gentleman from the center where he works fixing computers and where he also just hangs out with Hank and some of the other residents at the center.
Oliver has a hard time with other people in his school as he is not part of the popular crowd. But Oliver is ok with this and yes he gets picked on sometimes but he has learned to live with it and go on with his life. By ignoring it makes him the better person and besides neither the person nor the comments are worth the time or trouble that fighting back may cause to himself or anyone else. But there are times when you have to stand up for yourself, times when you are right in doing so.
Oliver has a little brother named Sherlock who like Oliver has his own thing to do. Sherlock is like his name sake. He likes investigating crimes or whatever happens to be going on at the time whether it is at school or at home. He likes taking out his little notebook and writing down all of the clues he runs across until finds the answer or what he thinks is the answer which is not always the case. Sherlock has a long ways to go before he can be an investigator like his name sake but he is only a child and has a long time yet to learn from his nemeses.
When I first realized that I signed up to review How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love With You I was like; "oh no you didn't. I couldn't believe it. I am more of a horror or paranormal kind of person. But on occasion I do dabble in other genres and I always find out that I do like the books after all and am glad that I read them and How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love With You was no different. After I started reading it I was like if this was a movie I would love it. The more I read the more I wanted to read. Once I started reading it I didn't want to put it down. I read it way faster than I ever thought I would. I read it in a few hours so hey, I must have liked it very much.
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T.M. Franklin started out her career writing non-fiction in a television newsroom. Graduating with a B.A. in Communications specializing in broadcast journalism and production, she worked for nine years as a major market television news producer, and garnered two regional Emmy Awards, before she resigned to be a full-time mom and part-time freelance writer. Her first published novel, MORE, was born during National Novel Writing month, a challenge to write a novel in thirty days. MORE was well-received, being selected as a finalist in the 2013 Kindle Book Review Best Indie Book Awards, as well as winning the Suspense/Thriller division of the Blogger Book Fair Reader's Choice Awards.
In addition to MORE and its sequel, The Guardians, Franklin penned the Amazon best-selling short stories A Piece of Cake andWindow, which also won a Blogger Book Fair Reader's Choice Award for Short Story/Fantasy. Her new YA romance, How to Get Ainsley Bishop to Fall in Love with You, is Franklin's first love story without a paranormal or fantasy element, although she believes love is the best kind of magic.
TWELVE, the final installment in the MORE Trilogy will be released in the fall of 2014.
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