The Nature of Jade by Deb Caletti

I am not my illness. "Girl with Anxiety," "Trauma of the Week" -- no. I hate stuff like that. Everyone, everyone has their issue. But the one thing my illness did make me realize is how necessary it is to ignore the dangers of living in order to live. And how much trouble you can get into if you can't. Jade DeLuna is too young to die. She knows this, and yet she can't quite believe it, especially when the terrifying thoughts, loss of breath, and dizzy feelings come. Since being diagnosed with Panic Disorder, she's trying her best to stay calm, and visiting the elephants at the nearby zoo seems to help. That's why Jade keeps the live zoo webcam on in her room, and that's where she first sees the boy in the red jacket. A boy who stops to watch the elephants. A boy carrying a baby. His name is Sebastian, and he is raising his son alone. Jade is drawn into Sebastian's cozy life with his son and his activist grandmother on their Seattle houseboat, and before she knows it, she's in love. With this boy who has lived through harder times than anyone she knows. This boy with a past. Jade knows the situation is beyond complicated, but she hasn't felt this safe in a long time. She owes it all to Sebastian, her boy with the great heart. Her boy who is hiding a terrible secret. A secret that will force Jade to decide between what is right, and what feels right.

I was first drawn to this book because I had read Stay and loved it, and I had heard amazing things about Nature of Jade. When I looked closer and saw that it was a book about a girl with anxiety, I became even more interested in it (for personal reasons). This is probably my favorite of Deb Caletti’s books because of how perfect she got it. Jade is an amazing character who I could really relate to. Her emotions were written so well and I loved the way she interacted with Sebastian.

This story was incredibly sweet and well-written. It’s hard for me to even articulate what I liked about it. I read The Nature of Jade in one sitting and once it was over, I was incredibly sad because I honestly didn’t know what to do with myself. I loved how many different real-life aspects were included in the story. Christian was such an amazing male-lead. I loved the fact that he had a son, it added a lot to the story and let us see multiple sides of his personality.

I completely recommend this book. It enchanted me from the very first page and as soon as I can, I’m going to try and buy myself a copy so I can reread it. Deb Caletti wrote an addicting, sweet, realistic novel that you can’t help but fall in love with.

 

FTC- Library.