Purity

Purity by Jackson Pearce, 2012. 218 pages. Published by Little, Brown Books. Source: Publisher for review.

A novel about love, loss, and sex -- but not necessarily in that order.

Before her mother died, Shelby promised three things: to listen to her father, to love as much as possible, and to live without restraint. Those Promises become harder to keep when Shelby's father joins the planning committee for the Princess Ball, an annual dance that ends with a ceremonial vow to live pure lives -- in other words, no "bad behavior," no breaking the rules, and definitely no sex.

Torn between Promises One and Three, Shelby makes a decision -- to exploit a loophole and lose her virginity before taking the vow. But somewhere between failed hookup attempts and helping her dad plan the ball, Shelby starts to understand what her mother really meant, what her father really needs, and who really has the right to her purity.

First Sentence:

When I said it, I didn't mean it.

Purity was my first Jackson Pearce book and while I really enjoyed the author's writing and storytelling ability, I was disappointed with the way the book ended.

Besides the author's writing, what I really enjoyed while reading Purity was Shelby's friends. I liked the fact that they were pretty supportive of Shelby and that they tried to help her achieve the crazy goals on her list. It's always nice when the main character in a book has friends that can be counted on, especially when said friend(s) will get up in the middle of the night to pick them up from a bad date.

Shelby, the protagonist of Purity, had the potential to be a great character. But I found myself wanting to knock some sense into her because she was so very wrong in the way she interpreted her mother's last wishes for her and it just kind of made me mad. While I was frustrated with her and the choices she made, I do think that Ms. Pearce did a great job when it came to her main character. I loved how well she was able to write about character who was still grieving over the loss of her mother and the frail bond that she had wit her father. While it was no laughing matter over her sadness and that lack of communication between her and her father, I thought it was very well written.
What I really liked about this book that, even if I did not agree with some things, that the author took a chance to write about a topic that is rarely broached in books. Even though I admire the author for writing a book that dealt with the issue of virginity, I wish things could've turned out differently in the end of the book.

I would have to say that the only two things I did not enjoy about this book would have to be how horribly Shelby interpreted the three promises that her mother made her make and something that you'll have to read my *spoiler filled* thoughts on the content to find out about. I just think had the character reassessed the promises that she made to her mother she would not have been so confused or made some of the decisions that she did.

Content (will contain spoilers; highlight to see):
Sexual content: Let's see, Shelby is bound and determined to loose her virginity, so I'm guessing y'all can see why this is the top of the content list. While things don't necessarily go as planned in her plan at first, she sadly does succeed in her goal (my biggest disappointment while reading).

As y'all have probably learned from my reviews, I don't really enjoy books that have teens having sex, it just does not work for me. So, you can imagine my disappointment when Shelby sleeps with some guy she doesn't even know. Although, it was interesting to see that she did regret that she had done it afterwards.

Language: There, if memory serves, a little bit of swearing, but noting that sticks out too terribly much in my mind.

Final Verdict: Excellent writing, but the end of the book was a letdown.

Purity earns 4 out of 5 pineapples.