Crashing In Love

While on an early morning bike ride, Peyton discovers a boy who has been hit by a car. She visits the hospital where the boy, Gray, lies in a coma and develops a crush on him. Peyton and her sisters move back and forth between their parents’ two homes, dealing with the aftermath of an amicable divorce. Their mother is a journalist and needs to break a good story. Peyton decides to solve the mystery of who hit Gray to help her mother, although she steps on toes and gets in trouble. Peyton revises her “perfect boyfriend” list to fit Gray, setting herself up for either perfect love or terrible disappointment. When Gray wakes up, Peyton is in for some surprises.

Jennifer Richard Jacobson has created a character who is clearly twelve, with all the foibles that come with that age. The strong first-person telling of the story works well and keeps readers with Peyton every step of the way. The characters are all well-developed and believable, the dialogue is spot-on for the ages of the characters, and the story is compelling. This is a perfect middle-grade book with plenty of mystery, romance, and angst.