Title: Firsts
Author: Laurie Elizabeth Flynn
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Publication Date: January 5, 2016
Description:
Seventeen-year-old Mercedes Ayres has an open-door policy when it comes to her bedroom, but only if the guy fulfills a specific criteria: he has to be a virgin. Mercedes lets the boys get their awkward, fumbling first times over with, and all she asks in return is that they give their girlfriends the perfect first time- the kind Mercedes never had herself.
Keeping what goes on in her bedroom a secret has been easy- so far. Her absentee mother isn’t home nearly enough to know about Mercedes’ extracurricular activities, and her uber-religious best friend, Angela, won’t even say the word “sex” until she gets married. But Mercedes doesn’t bank on Angela’s boyfriend finding out about her services and wanting a turn- or on Zach, who likes her for who she is instead of what she can do in bed.
When Mercedes’ perfect system falls apart, she has to find a way to salvage her reputation and figure out where her heart really belongs in the process. Funny, smart, and true-to-life, FIRSTS is a one-of-a-kind young adult novel about growing up.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23480844-firsts
Review:
***I received this book from www.goodreads.com first reads program/giveaway. All opinions are my own.***
I wanted to read this book since I had first heard about it. The premise was so intriguing. I love books that talk openly about teenage sex. It is something that every teen deals with and to idolize it as this thing that happens between two people in this special planned out way isn't usually accurate. Trust me, I was a teen once. So, when I heard that this book was discussing sex, much less casual consenting sex I really wanted to know what this new YA author had to say on the topic.
I have to say I was impressed. Not very often to we see a girl character who appears comfortable with her sexuality and I don't mean our main character, I mean her fun and easy going friend Faye.
Now our main character is the one whose sex life we really explore and I love hearing about that to but it was Faye who really stood out to me.
Mercedes, our protagonist, decides that she wants to help guys make their "first time" with their girlfriends special. She didn't have the greatest first experience and she wants to make other girls first time better than her own. It starts as just one but quickly escalates past 10 visitors to her bedroom for her to teach them what a woman wants in bed.
She wears something sexy and goes over kissing, planning their date, foreplay, the whole shebang in order to ensure a great first experience. In her mind this helps the guy loosen up by getting his first fumbling out of the way.
But lets be honest. This girl is sleeping with over a 12 guys, at 17, and these guys all have girlfriends. That's pretty shady and plus completely unhealthy on her part. She does practice safe sex and is cautious about her experiences with these guys but basically ends up having to confront some serious issues with her friends and her own first experiences.
It is hard to like Mercy. She isn't doing anything to make her seem like a good person. She has no real family relationships, she likes a guy but can't seem to stop taking people's virginity, she has a good friend in Angela but isn't very honest with her about anything, and makes a great friend in Faye but even tries to confuse that sexually.
In the end though I still loved her. She came very far and she definitely still has a ways to go but I loved her character growth. I also loved learning about what made her the way she is.
If you are looking for a book that has real conversations about teen sex, teen pregnancy, casual sex, friendships, family, relationships, and slut-shaming then I think you will enjoy this book.
Rating:
4.25 out of 5
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