The Unwritten Rule by Elizabeth Scott

Summary:

Everyone knows the unwritten rule: You don't like your best friend's boyfriend. 

Sarah has had a crush on Ryan for years. He's easy to talk to, supersmart, and totally gets her. Lately it even seems like he's paying extra attention to her. Everything would be perfect except for two things: Ryan is Brianna's boyfriend, and Brianna is Sarah's best friend. 

Sarah forces herself to avoid Ryan and tries to convince herself not to like him. She feels so guilty for wanting him, and the last thing she wants is to hurt her best friend. But when she's thrown together with Ryan one night, something happens. It's wonderful...and awful. 

Sarah is torn apart by guilt, but what she feels is nothing short of addiction, and she can't stop herself from wanting more...

Review:

I've been wanting to read this book for a while, so I was really excited to et this book in the mail! Some have compared this to Susane Colasanti's Something Like Fate. While they share the same general plot, the two writers take their respective novels in two very different directions. 

I absolutely adore Scott's novels, and The Unwritten Rule was no exception. Scott presented a very realistic situation and handled it in the same way. I loved how deep and real the characters were.  Sarah is easily relatable and understandable. I liked her from Sarah was so used to be Brianna's faithful sidekick, she was always putting her feelings on hold. I loved seeing her grow to stand up on her own two feet. While I could sympathize with her wanting to be there for Brianna, I could definitely see times when Brianna took advantage of that.

I see why both girls were interested in Ryan, though for different reasons. Ryan is a sweet, understanding guy,  and all-around great guy for this situation. I loved that because he helped to emphasize how this situation could happen to anyone- the guy isn't not always the player, the other girl isn't always the "other girl", the girl isn't always the victim. I love how normalized the situation was. 

All in all, I think Scott handled the situation beautifully and realistically. I couldn't put this book down, and the ending was the icing on the cake.

My Ratings:

Plot:A

Fantastic.  Wonderfully realistic.

Characters:A

Great depth in all the characters (main and supporting). Even though I wasn't in love with Brianna, I was able to understand where she was coming from.

Cover Art:A

So cute! Conveys the plot before you open the book.

Length:B

It took a litle longer to get to the heart of the matter for me, but the backstory helped me to really understand the seriousness of the matter.

A great take on a classic dilemma, I give this novel:

Five Stars!