Book Talk: Missing Dixie

I have a confession to make: I broke an unspoken reading rule. I read a series out of order. Not accidentally, or because somebody told me the second book was the best, or for any other reason then because I WANTED TO.

After reading Leaving Amarillo earlier this year, I knew I had to find out what would happen to Dixie and Gavin. So when I realized that the second book in this series focused on Dallas, I decided to skip ahead to the final and most recently published book in the series - Missing Dixie.

I NEEDED ANSWERS, PEOPLE. And boy, did I get what I asked for.

I'm still wearing floaties and sticking my toes into the world of New Adult literature - Exhibit A - but I think the idea of exploring this particular demographic is really interesting. There's a lot to be said for addressing people in that weird transitional period of their twenties, where they are figuring out life and jobs and relationships and themselves.

In my limited experience with the genre, these issues are addressed in a brutally honest way, revealing the anxieties, confusions, and fledgling confidence of "new adults" as they live and learn. It's a more mature version of YA - in more ways than one. New Adult literature is typically pretty sexually explicit, which certainly goes with the more grown up vibe, but it's also something to be aware of if you've never read the genre.

That being said, I feel like Caisey Quinn does a great job of navigating this genre - and I certainly wasn't expecting the ending I got in Missing Dixie. It's difficult to talk about this novel without revealing details from Leaving Amarillo, so I'll simply say Quinn does a great job providing a sense of closure for the characters and storylines (without tying everything up in a neat - and unrealistic - bow). This series has made me think differently about the NA genre - and it's encouraged me to give it more of a chance. And, of course, I've still got one more book to read!

So tell me: do you read New Adult literature? What do you think of the genre? Leave me your thoughts down below!