Be Good Be Real Be Crazy by Chelsey Philpot

Be Good Be Real Be Crazy by Chelsey Philpot
Release Date - October 11, 2016

Publisher Website - Harper Collins
Publisher Social Media - Twitter/Facebook/SavvyReader/Frenzy
Pages - 272 pages
My Rating - 3/5
**received from publisher for an honest review**

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

Three teenagers. One road trip. Countless detours. From the author of Even in Paradise comes a compelling story of self-discovery that is perfect for fans of Paper Towns and Mosquitoland.

When Mia first waltzed into Homer’s small corner of Florida, her bold approach to life changed Homer’s entire world. It wasn’t long before he was hopelessly in love.

Now Mia is moving away—and Homer and his younger brother, Einstein, are helping her drive hundreds of miles to her new home. This is Homer’s last chance to tell Mia how he really feels. And with so many detours in front of them, anything could happen.

In the tradition of Let's Get Lost and Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, Be Good Be Real Be Crazy is a story about love, friendship, and finding yourself.

I loved Chelsey Philpot's debut novel, Even In Paradise, a lot. In particular I loved the beautiful writing within the pages. I was, naturally, excited to read her second novel the minute I heard about it. While I did not fall into this story the same way I did with Even In Paradise, there are plenty of delightful moments to found within these pages.

Be Good, Be Real, Be Crazy is a quirky road trip novel that is filled with plenty of whimsical elements. It is one of those novels that relishes in the fantastical and part of its charm is the over-the-top feel to the story. From the unconventional car they drive, to the characters and sights they experience along the way, this is a road trip that is unforgettable. The secondary characters are just as outlandish as you would expect, and many of them steal the spotlight from the moment they enter the orbit of our main characters. This part of the story was charming and the writing is a natural fit for this style of story.

The characters are right at home within the world they have created, and this is both a blessing and a curse. Homer and Einstein come to life through they world they are exploring. Mia, however, never reached her full potential for me. There is not much to her character other than her off beat personality and whimsical, magical ways. There is a hint of manic pixie dream girl about her that is only waved away by Chelsey's writing and some stronger character development towards the end of the novel. Homer seems Mia as almost this mythical creature, instead of the girl she actually is. We get just a glimpse of that girl and I wanted more. I wanted to get to know all of the characters better. I wanted them to leap off the page in ways that just did not happen for me.

A novel that is filled with beautiful writing, but doesn't quite come together the way I hoped it would. The characters never pop off the page in the way that ensured I connected with them or the story. It is overall a fun, quirky read that I predict many will enjoy, I just wished I had gotten a little more from it to push it from an okay read to a fantastic one. Chelsey Philpot's writing ensures I'll read whatever she writes next, and hopefully I'll connect a little more with the characters of her next novel.