Dear Mr. Knightley

"Dear Mr. Knightley" is written almost entirely in 1st Person POV, which usually bugs me, but as it is in a diary/letter style, the author balances the self of the narrator vs the surroundings very well. We only see what she sees, but without really seeing other characters (except, again, as she recalls their conversations with her in her letters) so things that are able to sneak up on you as they do on her. Main character's young life was rough but she rises above it in adulthood, and finds help among new friends, old and young. I've read four of Reay's books now, and this is still my favorite re-read.

As a teenager who loves to read mystery/romance novels, this book met all my expectations! I could not put it down, so much so that I actually got in trouble in class for reading while the teacher was lecturing heh. Anyway, it’s a story of a girl who grew up basically in an orphanage and now that she’s an adult she has to choose a path for life. There’s an English college she wants to go to but it’s expensive and she doesn’t think she’ll be able to go until a mysterious person writes to her and says he’ll pay for her education as long as she writes to him. Its not as creepy as it sounds I swear! It’s really good and has a bit of a plot twist!