Originally posted at GingerReadFlat-Out Love surprised me, in more ways than one. It starts off as such a light and easy going read then turns into a quirky, smart story and then plummets into the depths of such raw emotions. I'll admit my head was spinning by the end. In the most amazing way.Julie has just arrived in Boston, for her first year of college, to find that the apartment she rented is in actuality a burrito joint. Her panicked mother in Ohio quickly comes up with the idea of calling her old college roommate, a professor at nearby Harvard, for a little help. Which leads us to Julie becoming the house guest of the Watkins'... a.k.a. the strangest family around.Mom & Dad Watkins are work-aholics, hardly ever home and over absorbed in their demanding, yet successful, careers. Matt, a junior at MIT, spends all his time either studying or caring for his thirteen year old sister, Celeste. Which brings me to Celeste. Outwardly, adorable and gorgeous. Inwardly, total odd-ball who idolizes her older brother Finn so much that she carries around a life size image of him that she has named, Flat Finn. And, Finn...the oldest of the siblings who travels the world doing dare devil stunts and sticky sweet volunteer work.The entire family seems to cater to Celeste and her infatuation with Flat Finn. She takes him everywhere except school, therefore she hardly ever goes anywhere. She has no friends and is completely socially stunted but extremely intelligent. It quickly becomes apparent that something happened to Celeste and she has created Flat Finn to fill in as her hero, while the real Finn is absent. Question is, what happened? No one wants to dole out any details to Julie. Celeste responds well to Julie being around and the family seems intent on keeping her around for the young girls sake. As Julie becomes ever frustrated with trying to find ways to help Celeste, she turns to Finn for help.Between emails, instant messages and Facebook, Julie and Finn form a strong bond and a mutual crush. He is always (virtually) there for Julie plus he's gorgeous and charming. Problem is, Finn has no immediate plans to return home and it is becoming increasingly more important for him to as his unconventional family, that Julie has come to love, crumbles in front of her.What I loved the most about Flat-Out Love is its smart dialogue and its geeky/ nerdy humor. I'm unclear on the distinction between geek and nerd. Geek, to me, lends more of a video game or comic book flavor. Where as nerd would be more science and analysis. Considering that to be true, this would be more a nerdy humor. Somewhat of a Big Bang Theory type funny. Regardless - Julie, Celeste and especially Matt are all so damn clever and I just could not get enough. Then, just when you are filled up with the cute warm fuzzies...bam! Park delivers some absolutely gut wrenching shit and you'll feel like a giant ugly troll is sitting on your chest poking your heart with thousands of fat sharp needles.Yeah, it's one of those kind of books.And I loved it.
