After reading and loving PERFECT YOU, I had to give Elizabeth Scott’s other books a try. That book had some messed up characters and managed to bring out some strong “I want to knock some sense into them” kind of feelings from me. Then there was STEALING HEAVEN. In it, Greg was particularly impressive. It was his constant presence and non-hero ways that turned me into a Scott fan. So, you can probably imagine my dismay when I could not connect with any of the characters from UNWRITTEN RULE.There was nothing in them that I liked or respected. “I’ve known Brianna forever, she picked me to be her friend and I’ve always been there for her.” Sarah and Brianna have been best friends for quite a long time. From what Sarah recalls, it seems they never were of equal standing. That quote above almost says it all… Brianna did the picking. This was my main problem with them. How could one stand being friends with such a person for so long? Well, apparently Sarah could. And Sarah did. She was simply too kind; she had no backbone even her mother pointed it out. Her recollection of a best friend of past.. foreshadowed what her relationship with Brianna would be like. Brianna was positively hateful. I ought to pity her given her issues. But Ms. Scott was very convincing in how she fleshed Brianna’s character out. Brianna is the kind of girl I love to hate… so hate her I do. I couldn’t even feel sorry for her. This is not to say that I “sided” with Sarah. I don’t (didn’t.)Ryan isn’t such a prize either. Was it cowardly for him to stretch things out for so long? I thought so. In UNWRITTEN RULE, he was there all the time but did not act until much later. He took the cowardly route by waiting things out. A. waiting for Brianna to get tired of him. B. waiting to know if Sarah reciprocated. His inaction made me dislike him immensely. As to the the story? Five points really: Sarah loves her best friend Brianna. Brianna loves her boyfriend Ryan. Sarah also fancies said boyfriend. Said boy secretly returns Sarah's feelings. Sarah feels guilty for (a) liking him and (b) resenting Brianna for the way the latter treats her and him. Wash. Rinse. Repeat cycle.And yet I gave it three stars. If I found the MC’s abhorrent and found the story repetitive why the three stars? Those are on account of two things: The ending and Sarah’s parents. One clear great thing about UNWRITTEN RULE is that the author didn’t tie everything neatly up in a ribbon. There’s no happy ending or at least… there is no complete happy ending. And yet.. I find myself questioning myself on this point too, Should I be happy with a message that says it’s OK to cheat as long as you love each other? Then her parents. Her mother especially kept my hopes for the book up. She called it like she saw it. Her father too was a relief to read. Her mom and dad in the book had me looking forward to something. While UNWRITTEN RULE is not my favorite of Scott’s, my love for PERFECT YOU and STEALING HEAVEN still drive me to give her other books a try.
