There's nothing I like better than a good companion novel to a great book. 'What A Boy Needs' was exactly that. It was fascinating to revisit Sebastian, Aspen, Pris and Jaden - especially through Jaden's eyes.In this story, we see how Sebastian and Aspen are getting on, but we also learn more about Jaden and Pris. I got to see them fight for their relationship when both of them were going through some major family issues. I really love how Nyrae Dawn makes her characters relatable. Jaden has on-going problems with his mom and dad, while struggling to find any value in himself because his self-esteem had been trampled on all through the years. So much so, that he didn't think he was good enough for someone who was crazy about him.My heart bled while I read this book. Seeing Jaden struggle against his weak mother and abusive father made me want to hug him tight and tell him everything was going to be alright. Priscilla was a tower of strength in this book. She never gave up her dream of being with him, but knew she had to move on. It was during the road trip that she teased and tormented Jaden into opening up more. She wouldn't leave him close up into himself like a clam even though he wanted to. She had her own problems though.I thought the story line - that of a road trip was fairly good. I love a good road trip and a lot of things can happen when you're confined in a small space like a car. There was plenty of drama, the occasional fight and then some making up in this book. But, they also grew into their skins during it.This book wasn't as light and fluffy as its predecessor, but it was still good. I think I went into this book thinking it would be as funny as I had found the last one, but it wasn't. This book was more dramatic. I actually had to allow myself time to write this review, because I didn't want the disappointment of feeling it wasn't as good as the first one to reflect in what I wrote. It was as good, but in a completely different way.And, I was pleased with the ending.I would recommend this book to anyone who loved 'What A Boy Wants' and anyone who likes fun and drama all rolled up into one great novel.Now for my rating.Four out of five starsThis review can be found here http://magicalmanuscriptsandwritingthings.blogspot.co.nz/
