Caleb + Kate by Cindy Martinusen-Coloma

Caleb + Kate is a re-telling of Romeo and Juliet and a reminder that true love still exists. Kate and Caleb couldn't be more different. Being the heiress of the Monrovi Inn, Kate is both rich and popular. But she's bored. She wants more meaning in her life and she discovers that when she meets Caleb. Caleb makes her feel like she's never felt before. This could be a love that lasts a lifetime. The only problem is Caleb clearly doesn't fit into the life she's grown up with. In fact, he works at the Monrovi Inn with his father doing maintenance. And to top it all off, Caleb and Kate's family have a deep-rooted history that hasn't been resolved. With all the odds against them will Caleb and Kate be able to save their love for each other? What will it take?

This novel was very sweet. This was a great read that I think all teenagers who have ever been or dream about falling in love should read. It explores faith and love and God in a way that I've never read about in young adult literature. And although this is considered a Christian religious novel, it's not preachy or overbearing. It's a genuine novel about two teens who test their faith and the limits or lack thereof of God's love.

But this is also a novel about the human experience of love. Will we fight so hard for someone that we love? Caleb and Kate tell us that we will. They cherish each other and do things for each other that made me evaluate my own relationships. Selfishness and doubt will get in the way but in the end they overcome the forces working against them for each other. I wish Caleb had fallen in love with me!

Something I also really enjoyed was the writing. The characters were realistic and the pacing was great. At the beginning of each chapter there was a quote from Shakespeare which was fun to fit in with the current conflict going on in the novel. Caleb + Kate also spoke a great deal about family and friendship. When normalcy gets turned upside down as it did with Caleb and Kate, everyone is affected. I think that Kate and Caleb's family, being sometimes supportive and sometimes stubborn as most families are, was a great portrait of families struggling to make ends meet. And Kate's friends, at first calling Caleb simply a "cabana boy", come to understand their love for what it really is and try to accept their new relationship.

Overall, this novel was fun, quick, and sweet. It makes you think about your own relationships and gives you insight into how other people fit love into the world. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and I think you will too!

Rating: 4.0

So I ask you all a question: do you think true love exists? Do you think people can stay in love even when everything is working against them? I'd love to hear what you think!