Review: Over The Falls by Jordan Ford

Over the Falls (Ryder Bay #1)
by Jordan Ford

My Rating: 4 stars

Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Category: Young Adult
Type of romance: MF

Blurb:
He’s drowning in rejection. She’s riding the waves. Can a rich boy and a surfer girl find love at the beach?

Aidan isn’t used to losing. But when his popular girlfriend dumps him, and he tanks at the end-of-year swim meet, he’s not sure if his golden touch will ever return. Embarrassed and dejected, Aidan heads to the rough end of the beach and meets the surfer girl who’s about to change his life.

Every passing week gets Harley one step closer to escaping her crappy house and a mother who doesn’t care about her. Charging the rich pretty boy for lessons could be her post-graduation ticket out of town. But her fiercely independent streak starts to fade when her feelings of pity for Aidan evolve into something more.

As Aidan and Harley’s undeniable attraction comes in with the tide, suspicious friends and an interested ex make waves. Can the unlikely pair overcome a culture clash to find love’s perfect break?

Over the Falls is the first book in the Ryder Bay YA sports romance trilogy. If you like beach culture, hot guys, and youthful passions, then you’ll love Jordan Ford’s fun-drenched novel.

My Review

I received a free copy from the author and voluntarily reviewed it.

As soon as I heard about this series I was excited about it and looking forward to this new series by Jordan Ford. And that pretty cover made me even more curious. It didn’t take me long after I received my copy to start reading. Over the Falls is a great start to this new series and while it wraps up the romance plot line in this book, there are some open threads and characters that I hope to see in future books. It’s a great set up for the rest of the series and makes me curious about future books.

Over the Falls is told from dual point of view from Harley and Aiden. Aiden hasn’t had the best few months, he lost his enthusiasm for swimming, he used to be number 1 and now he’s falling further behind. And his girlfriend broke up with him and he’s in a bit of a slump altogether. Then he meets Harley who offer him surf lessons and things change for the better. I enjoyed seeing him change things up and find a new course for this life.

Harley is used to being on her own and that suits her just fine, but something about the rich boy Aidan gets her attention and her best friend comes up with the idea to offer him surf lessons. And maybe she is ready to let someone else in after all. I enjoyed getting to know Harley and seeing her get the courage to let Aidan in after guarding her heart so fiercely.

I liked both Harley and Aidan. They were great to read about and likable characters. Aidan is used to having success and now that he losing he is feeling lost. His passion for water and swimming turned into something with pressure on it and the surf lessons help him regain that passion. Which was great to see. And over the course of the book he figures out a possible new direction for his life. It was great to see him get out of his slump and how he grew to love both surfing and Harley. I am still a bit annoyed at something he did later in the book, but he does apologize for it.

Harley has this fierce and tough personality. She is used to being alone. Her mother is away a lot, smokes and drinks and doesn’t seem to care much about her. Her previous relationship ended in disaster, although we never get the full details about that, it is clear it shook her faith in people even more. She seem to be doing great and is independent and knows what she can rely on, namely herself. She finds her escape in the water. And then when she realizes maybe her existence is a bit lonely and she decides to let Aidan in, that moment was great.

I really liked Harley and Aidan together. It was fun to get to know them and seeing them slowly begin to care for each other and then fall in love. And you really feel Harley’s love and passion for the water and surfing. It’s awesome how the author brought that across. I also liked seeing the carefree and comfortable way those interacted both in and out the water. I enjoyed seeing them fall for each other and slowly work through their issues.

Besides Aidan and Harley, there’s a fun cast of side characters and other events going on. I actually started guessing possible couples for future books and from the note at the end of the book I guessed one right at least. There’s a plot line surrounding Skylar that doesn’t get resolved, but will probably continue in later books, which already sets this series up to have some nice continuity throughout the series. I also like how the author didn’t turn Aidan’s ex into a villain, but instead made her real and relatable. They just weren’t right for each other. I didn’t like Savannah at first, but by the end I was curious about her story.

There also was a short hint to the short story The Christmas Gift which sort of served as a prequel and introduced the Rydar bay setting. You don’t miss anything if you haven’t read that story, but it’s a nice touch for those who did.

To summarize: I really enjoyed this book, it’s a great start of this series. I liked both Aidan and Harley and how they had their own struggles and were so different, but perfect for each other. A chance encounter brings them on each other’s path and Harley offer Aidan surf lesson and slowly they grow closer. Harley’s love for the ocean and surfing really comes across. I also liked how both of them found their way and overcame some things. There are some interesting side character too and I am already excited for the next book. I am glad the author didn’t turn Aidan’s ex into a villain and instead made her a real and interesting character. I had fun reading this book and am eager for the next one.

Links:
– Goodreads
– Amazon

You can also read my review on Goodreads and Amazon.

Do you like beach town settings for books?