Read All About the Hype Online
Authors: Paige Toon
‘One of the most captivating authors I’ve ever read; totally draws you in to the story and you feel like you’re right there with the characters! Love them
all!’
Emma Bailey
‘Hilariously funny, but totally realistic. Each of her books is just as gripping as the next.’
Katie Collins
‘BEWARE, you will not be able to put her books back down again until you’ve devoured every single word! Paige creates a world you fall into, with characters you just
can’t help but root for.’
Lo Marie
‘She’s the author I’d been waiting for. Her books inspire me. The male characters are charismatic and flawed but so easy to fall in love with. I devour her
books in one sitting.’
Stacey Lavender
‘Her books make me forget about the real world, and I feel like I’ve jumped inside the stories with the characters. Completely captivating and amazingly
written.’
Laura Thompson
‘Perfect to snuggle up with and escape to another world. Such page-turners, they are always finished within a couple of days. By the end of a book I feel as if I know each
character personally.’
Abi Webster
‘There’s a reason Paige Toon is a
Sunday Times
bestselling author! I loved her writing style and I read the whole book within two days or so.’
Emily Underworld
‘
Yet again with the excitement, ultimate thrill of the chase, magnetic and charming characters and fantastic plot, Paige Toon has shown the YA world that,
yes, she is still a newbie, but she’s shit hot and they should all be scared.’
Natalie McCormack, NetGalley, five-star review
‘With all the pace and wit of a top teen-screen hit,
I Knew You Were Trouble
is an addictive read with strong rags to riches appeal. But alongside the entertaining
escapism, and with wit and insight, it also explores the big universal theme of finding yourself and being brave enough to become who you want to be.’
LoveReading4Kids
‘
Sunshine, rock gods and Hollywood heart-throbs!
Swoon
… Jessie’s voice is strong throughout the narrative, she takes us on a
rollercoaster journey and we witness her making some big life decisions, which is enough to make you want to keep turning the pages.’
The Girl in Glasses
‘Paige Toon delivers another stunning, thrilling YA novel that will knock your socks off… With a searing hot romance,
I Knew You Were Trouble
is fun, flirty
and deliciously addictive.’
Bookevin blog
‘Witty, upbeat and entertaining and just perfect to read over the summer holidays… I loved every single second of this book, and read it in a matter of hours, as I
couldn’t bring myself to put it down.’
Rachel’s Random Reads
‘I’m a huge fan of Paige Toon’s novels. They always feature an emotional rollercoaster, hot guys, and international locations and give me a compulsion to keep
reading until I reach the end.’
So Many Books, So Little Time
‘Full of ups and downs, hilarious moments and also sad parts, the perfect mixture and so entertaining. The writing is really gripping, I couldn’t put the book down
(only when I really had to), such a FABULOUS read!!!’
Sky’s Book Corner
‘Paige has proven for the second time that she can write Young Adult fiction just as brilliantly as she writes chick lit. Jessie’s voice remained strong throughout
the entire narrative, taking us with her on her rollercoaster journey and making some heavy life decisions.’
Emma Lou Book Blog
Other books by Paige Toon
The Accidental Life of Jessie Jefferson
I Knew You Were Trouble
Adult novels
Lucy in the Sky
Johnny Be Good
Chasing Daisy
Pictures of Lily
Baby Be Mine
One Perfect Summer
One Perfect Christmas (ebook short)
The Longest Holiday
Johnny’s Girl (ebook short)
Thirteen Weddings
The Sun in Her Eyes
The One We Fell in Love With
First published in Great Britain in 2016 by Simon & Schuster UK Ltd
A CBS COMPANY
Copyright © 2016 Paige Toon
This book is copyright under the Berne Convention.
No reproduction without permission.
All rights reserved.
The right of Paige Toon to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Design and Patents Act,
1988.
Simon & Schuster UK Ltd
1st Floor, 222 Gray’s Inn Road
London WC1X 8HB
Simon & Schuster Australia, Sydney
Simon & Schuster India, New Delhi
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
PB ISBN 978-1-4711-4610-7
eBook ISBN 978-1-4711-4611-4
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to
actual people living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Typeset in Goudy by M Rules
Printed and bound by CPI Group (UK) Ltd, Croydon, CR0 4YY
Simon & Schuster UK Ltd are committed to sourcing paper that is made from wood grown in sustainable forests and support the Forest Stewardship Council, the leading
international forest certification organisation. Our books displaying the FSC logo are printed on FSC certified paper.
For Pernille Meldgaard Pedersen
I thought it was about time your name made it into one of my books… Hope it makes you smile x
I lie on the sofa in front of the television with my head on her lap. Her fingers are cool as they brush across my temple and trail down the length of my light-blonde hair,
getting caught up in a knot. She abandons her soothing stroking and fixates on unpicking the knot instead.
‘Ow, that hurts!’ I complain.
‘Your hair is not getting the better of me, Jessie Pickerill,’ she warns, and I know that she won’t be defeated until I’m tangle free.
So I endure the pain because I love her and I know that she loves me.
That’s right, I remember. Her hands were always cold.
I squeeze my eyes shut and sob quietly, muffling the sound with my pillow.
Today is my sixteenth birthday and I woke up with the sickest feeling in the pit of my stomach. For the last hour, I’ve been racking my brain for the tiniest details, the seemingly
unimportant ones, the ones that I’m most likely to forget.
But I
don’t want
to forget her burning our dinner because she was distracted playing air guitar to Starship on the radio. I can’t bear to lose the memory of her jumping on
my bed and throwing shapes to my music while I resignedly got ready for school. I’m even clinging to the vision of her discarding another outfit on her bedroom floor and mischievously turning
her attention to my wardrobe.
She always woke me up gently, quietly calling my name and stroking my arm.
Unless it was my birthday and then she’d bound into my room, shouting ‘WAKEY-WAKEY!’ like a lunatic.
She clambers onto my bed and straddles me, squeezing the air out of my lungs and making me groan.
‘Happy birthday!’ She shakes me. ‘I got you PRESENTS!’ she exclaims, and I stare at her blearily as she beams down at me, her light-brown eyes shining with
excitement. ‘I got you this.’ She places one wrapped package on my chest. ‘And this.’ Another. ‘And this, and this, and this!’ She piles them up all over my
face. I laugh and try to sit up, but she’s still on top of me.
‘Get off!’ I grumble good-naturedly, shoving at her knees. She giggles and complies, then thrusts a present in my face.
‘I swear you get more enjoyment out of my birthdays than I do,’ I say wryly, taking it from her.
‘Open it!’ she urges.
That was a year ago. A year ago to the day. And, hours later, my mum was taken from me, never to be returned. My chest shakes violently as I sob.
I have no idea how much time passes, but a sense of responsibility begins to mingle with my grief at the realisation that my little brothers will be up soon. The thought of them seeing me like
this is enough to stem the flow of my tears. I push the damp pillow away from my face and reach for my phone. The digital display reads 06:30, so, if they’re not awake now, they will be soon.
I need to pull myself together.
My body feels like lead as I drag myself from bed and stumble through to the bathroom. I flick on the light switch, flinching at the brightness and then recoiling at the state of my reflection
in the mirror. I turn on the tap and reach for a flannel, hoping to cool down my splotchy, puffy face.
I can hardly believe how much my life has changed in the last twelve months. I thought my mum had taken the secret of my biological father’s identity with her to her grave and, after my
initial shock and grief had passed, I became angry. I hit out at the only parental figure left in my life: my stepdad, Stu.
But last summer he came clean. He’d known the truth all along, that my real dad is Johnny Jefferson, the legendary, infamous rock star. Suddenly I had a new dad and a stepmum, Meg, and the
cutest little half-brothers you could ever imagine in Barney and Phoenix. They’re British like me, but they live here in Los Angeles and last summer I came to stay with them, to meet them for
the first time. Since then I’ve been back and forth between America and the UK, but now I’m here to stay.