Seventeen-year-old Thea Galehouse has long ago learned how to take care of herself. Her Mom used to own a rather scandalous club and tends to be a bit flighty. Her Dad is a recovering alcoholic, workaholic, and overall not the most relaxing person to be around. They’re divorced, of course.
Then Thea starts her first serious relationship with Will, an attractive and funny senior. They fit perfectly. She’s hooked on him and barely cares about school anymore, despite her Dad’s prodding.
When Will goes to college, Thea is happily relieved that their relationship seems stronger than anybody guessed. Her comfort level with him is off-the-charts and she finally starts to think he might love her as much as she loves him.
But when Thea discovers she’s pregnant – things go on a roller-coaster ride.
Thing is, it’s not so much causing problems with Will as much as their parents. Because Thea wants to keep her baby. And nobody is changing her mind.
But will her relationship last with Will through the pregnancy - and after? Is she making the right decision?
Wow. Hooked dumps you right into the moment Thea meets Will and elegantly convinces you of a legitimate relationship. We get good humor, believable and relatable dialogue, heartfelt and sometimes painful family situations, and a raw and honest tone that doesn’t make anyone out to be a villain or an angel. These feel like real people. In the end, I believe that is the biggest hurdle in a contemporary fiction novel. Catherine Greenman doesn’t stumble once, in my opinion.
Hooked takes you on a downward spiral of reality, in which we focus on a likable, smart, occasionally plausibly vexing character in Thea – who has a unique hobby in crocheting. I don’t want to give you too many details on the plot (I already wish I didn’t have to give as much as I did!) because the rhythmical prose smoothly takes you from plot point to plot point in an skilled manner that defies the fact that this is Catherine Greenman’s debut novel.
Really, I found Hooked to be an understated, sophisticated, poignant novel that is moving and uplifting. Superb!
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