To everyone who knows him, West Ashby has always been that guy: the cocky, popular, way-too-handsome-for-his-own-good football god who led Lawton High to the state championships. But while West may be Big Man on Campus on the outside, on the inside he’s battling the grief that comes with watching his father slowly die of cancer.

Two years ago, Maggie Carleton’s life fell apart when her father murdered her mother. And after she told the police what happened, she stopped speaking and hasn’t spoken since. Even the move to Lawton, Alabama, couldn’t draw Maggie back out. So she stayed quiet, keeping her sorrow and her fractured heart hidden away.

As West’s pain becomes too much to handle, he knows he needs to talk to someone about his father—so in the dark shadows of a post-game party, he opens up to the one girl who he knows won’t tell anyone else.

West expected that talking about his dad would bring some relief, or at least a flood of emotions he couldn’t control. But he never expected the quiet new girl to reply, to reveal a pain even deeper than his own—or for them to form a connection so strong that he couldn’t ever let her go…

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Field Party Q&A  with Abbi Glines

Maggie Carleton has just moved to a small town in Alabama to live with her Aunt, Uncle and cousin Brady a couple of years after a tragic event made her isolate herself and stop talking. She is intuitive and caring, but a little bit lost as she tries to fit into her new world. 

West Ashby is a handsome, popular,  star football player, but is dealing with his own pain and anger. He copes by avoiding the problem, pushing people away, and trying to distract himself into forgetting. He seems like a self centered player but it is a facade for a young man crippled with anxiety, fears, and sadness.

Their paths cross and their interactions are inconsistent and confusing, but on some deeper level they recognize the other's inner turmoil. They are two people dealing with demons and hidden pain that find themselves in need of each other. People don't understand their connection and many don't like it. But Wes and Maggie have the ability to understand and soothe each other in a way no one realizes. They both have challenges, fears, insecurities and pain to face, but they provide each other with support and comfort. They are young and inexperienced with true feelings and relationships. They are learning to love, and live and laugh again. But they also have to learn give and take and to find a healthy balance.  This is a story about their personal growth, exploring their connection, and hope, and healing.

It is a sweet, emotional, engaging story told in both Wes and Maggie's points of view. The characters have problems and depth. The side characters have interesting personalities and stories developing. It feels like the tv series Friday Night Lights and has a lot of the typical High School types with jocks, cheerleaders, nerds, and mean girls. I will admit that I had a bit of  a hard time connecting with the characters at first, especially Wes and his behavior in the beginning of the story. But I had to step back and think this is supposed to be about a high school boy and they do not always think straight or always make the best decisions. Sometimes they are just clueless and don't think about repercussions or how others see the situation. But I did warm up to him and felt for him. I liked Maggie with her sweet, giving nature, but sometimes I got a bit frustrated with her as well. But I did become engaged and more immersed in the story as we got to know them more and it got more emotional . 

This will be a series with the next book being about Maggie's cousin/Wes' best friend Brady. I really came to like him and am interested in his story but there are also some other stories brewing. I really liked Gunner, Nash, and Ryker too. I enjoyed their relationships with the parental figures. This is a YA series that my teen could read (even though it does talk about drinking and has references to sex), but I enjoyed as well. 

I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review.