Thank you Penguin Teen for an ARC!

She signed a purity pledge when she was 12, has her love life mapped out where she’ll share her sacred first kiss with her husband on her wedding day. But, as a high school junior, Jake enters her life, after moving back from Hawaii, he’s in the same church youth group, is a senior at her school, and unexpectedly becomes her first boyfriend... her first kiss... and the person who gets her back into surfing.

While I thought this book was really sweet, it reminded me of a movie that would be on Disney + a soul surfer vibe. Very innocent, and fun! It gave me summer vibes, and those young love feels! I also liked the religious references, but I think that should be mentioned in the description because if that makes a reader uncomfortable then that wouldn't be good.

Lovette looks to God for guidance. She signed a purity pledge when she was 12, has her love life mapped out where she’ll share her sacred first kiss with her husband on her wedding day. But, as a high school junior, Jake re-enters her life. After moving back from Hawaii, he’s in the same church youth group, is a senior at her school, and unexpectedly becomes her first boyfriend... her first kiss... and the person who gets her back in her surfing groove. Lovette wrestles with what God would want, and are things changing for the better?

This was definitely more of a Disney YA than a Freeform YA, and although there were a lot of God and Jesus references, I didn’t mind them. Lovette’s journey—all the internal spiritual and emotional struggles, how passion played a heavy role, and the friendships she had—made her such a perfectly imperfect character. There were a bunch of hilarious moments, like how she thought “Netflix and chill” meant literally that. And, I loved the final chapters the most. Overall, I enjoyed it; the religious aspect weighed in on the coming of age, and Jake was a great supporting romantic interest to that.

*Thanks to the publisher providing me with an ARC to review
Beyond the Break was an incredible story about first love, faith, and family expectations. I had a great time reading this book and really related to the main character in particular. She was so relatable and had a excellent way of telling the story. I thought the Christianity element was woven in so well. Those with or without the faith can read and relate to this book in some way. Lovette’s faith was a major element in the story but the book or author didn’t push the reader into the religion and wasn’t too forceful with it. This book also took on first love, which was done so well. The relationship built between Jake and Lovette was realistic and honestly so much fun to read. I loved the family dynamic as well. Lovette really struggled with some decisions because of her parents, and the author did a great job with this. I also loved the surfing element! It was lots of fun and such an interesting sport to read about, as it isn’t shown in books much. I would totally recommend this book!

Beyond the Break is a heartfelt coming-of-age story, that centers around faith, school, and surfing.

Whilst reading this book, I felt instantly transported to my own youth group days, as the descriptions of Lovette’s youth group experiences she provided felt like my own! I also really enjoyed how the school and youth group environments meshed together well, so it didn’t feel like we had too many characters being introduced in such a short time.

Speaking of characters, I adored reading from Lovette’s point of view, with all the struggles of gossip and love interspersed throughout. Whilst I would’ve gotten a hiding for sneaking out to do things if I was in Lovette’s shoes, I was rooting for her whilst she was still practicing swimming and surfing despite her parents orders! The surfing element truly gave me Soul Surfer vibes, which also mixed surfing and religion together, albeit this one has a lot more fluffy in comparison.

The characters also were easy to either like or dislike, invoking me internally shouting at times. I felt that Kelly was insufferable at the start (sort of like Effie Trinket from The Hunger Games), and I felt her developing more as a rounded character as the story went on was a super nice touch. I also enjoyed how the love interest (Jake) doesn’t take the front seat, rather a passenger seat in this story. The way Jake and Lovette interact at the start of the book is awkward and janky, much like when I was younger and had a crush that I was awkward around. I also could relate to Lovette’s strict parents, as they sounded just as strict as my own- something that I think I’ve only recently seen with the Stratford sisters’ dad in the movie 10 Things I Hate About You, despite Lovette’s parents being strict based on her brother’s accident years earlier.

The faith aspect of this book was well written and woven into this book, and is exactly how a lot of teens act: questioning the whys and what ifs that surround everyday life, and if something is wrong according to the ‘rules’ of religion. I liked how Lovette was called to the water based on her faith in God, which was pretty interesting to read about. I also loved the contrast between Lovette and Kelly and how they both displayed their faith, one being the loud, gossipy, judgemental one, and the other being a quiet one who’s just wanting to be left alone.

Gossip was created in the highschool setting, based on an essay Lovette had written about her love for God. Whilst felt harsh and nasty, I did feel like this was something that is the true representation of things that often happen in high schools. The way that Lovette and her other friend from Friday nice dishes and Spanish dealt with it together was nice and provided some hope that gossip doesn’t need to destroy one’s social life in the teenage years. It was also nice to read that the relationship between Lovette and Jake was sometimes cheesy and at other times, down to earth and relatable, despite the gossip that comes through.

Overall, this book is perfect for those who are interested in young adult contemporary that is a little cheesy, but also explores faith, highschool, and surfing in a lighthearted, fluffy manner that just feels good to read! I’d also recommend it to those who want something like Jenny Han’s books, but a little more sportier.