Taylor Jenkins Reid does it again with Malibu Rising. This is a creative story following one family through their crazy life journey. It starts off with who we think the main character is, June, and the life goals she has for herself. She meets a boy, Mick Riva, and the two fall madly in love. Mick is an aspiring singer and makes it big. In making it he leaves June and his children behind. The kids include Nina, Jay, Hud, and Kit. Fast forward and we see the kids in their prime trying to navigate life. Nina is running the family restaurant and is a well-known model. Jay is a great surfer that travels and competes. Hud is a brilliant photographer that follows Jay and takes his shots for magazines and ads. Then there is Kit who is still trying to find out where she fits. These siblings love each other unimaginably and work together as a family unit. Taylor Jenkins Reid was able write these characters with such depth you would think this is a true story. These characters each have complex stories and they are brought to life by the author’s writing. You see the struggles the family go through, the heartache they feel, and can even visualize their unique personalities. This story is unconventional and will leave you wanting to know more about the Riva family.
Top Quotes – “Nina understood, maybe for the first time, that letting people love you and care for you is part of how you love and care for them.”
“She had to choose what, of the things she inherited from the people who came before her, she wanted to bring forward. And what, of the past, she wanted to leave behind.”
“Family is found…whether it be blood or circumstance or choice, what binds us does not matter. All that matters is that we are bound.”
“Just because it is in Malibu’s nature to burn, so was it in one particular person’s nature to set fire and walk away.”
“She was a woman, after all. Living in a world created by men. And she had long known that assholes protect their own. They are faithful to no one but surprisingly protective of each other.”
“There’s no room for you in my life anymore. And I don’t owe it to you to make any space.”
Books Upon my Nightstand 