“One time a boy kissed me and I almost died…This tagline first drew me into Close Enough to Touch,” says Erin from the Napanee Branch of the County of L&A Libraries. Close Enough to Touch is a brand new contemporary romance novel by Colleen Oakley, author of Before I Go. 

Erin explains, “Jubilee Jenkins is afraid of people. Not only does she not like to have anyone around her because it makes her uncomfortable, but she is physically allergic to them. If she is touched by another person, she risks the chance of going into anaphylactic shock and possibly dying.  After one horrible event sent her to the hospital in high school, Jubilee spends the next nine years alone. Jubilee doesn’t plan on ever leaving her safe, comfortable home until she has no choice.”

“Eric Keegan is a divorced father with problems of his own. He has a fourteen year-old daughter who refuses to speak to him and a ten year-old adopted son who is both troubled and extremely intelligent. Eric’s life feels like it is falling apart and then he meets Jubilee. To him Jubilee is strange and mysterious; someone he cannot stop thinking about.”

The book does a good job of discussing what life is like when worries and fears that everyone has become extremes.

“I was drawn to this book from the beginning,” says Erin. “The subject matter discussed will appeal to a large audience and makes for an easy read. The book does a good job of discussing what life is like when worries and fears that everyone has become extremes”.

“If you’re a fan of books by Jodi Picoult, Jojo Moyes, Sophie Kinsella or Amy Hatvany, you might want to check this out,” she concludes.

You can reserve Close Enough to Touch from your branch of the County of Lennox & Addington Libraries or online here.