Diplomatic Immunity Hardcover – September 6, 2016

How much do we know about how a serious economic downturn or event has on kids? Unless it’s happened to you, I doubt you have given it much thought. As someone who experienced it in my early adolescent years, I can tell you the images and how I felt are as strong 50 years later as they were when it happened. This is one of two driving forces in Piper Baird’s life. Her dad lost almost everything in a failed tech startup and now does shift work for a power company. Even with Mom working nights at a bakery, finances are beyond tight. Her dream of a journalistic career and even a college education are dimming. When she gets a last minute scholarship to the exclusive Chiswick Academy which will give her a shot at the Bennington Scholarship (a full ride to a top journalism school), it’s exciting, but scary. Many of the students come from international diplomatic families and except for a very few scholarship kids like her, they’re rich and privileged. All these challenges have her both a bit defiant, pretty anxious and very determined to succeed. The first student she meets is Rafael Amador, son of the Spanish Ambassador. Sparks of various kinds fly at their first meeting which involves embarrassment a swatch of duct tape and her realization of just how huge a gap exists between her and the non-scholarship kids What follows includes budding attraction, foolish decisions, the possibility of family bankruptcy, disaster and a happy ending, all fun to follow. Read the book and find out what these all mean. Caveat: I read primarily for enjoyment and review to share my likes and insights with others. If a book is hard to put down (and this was) it’s a winner in my opinion.

I thought it was a fun read. It was a book that you can read thru in a short time and just enjoy it. I also like that it is a standalone so you get the whole story out in one book and not have to wait for another year or two for any kind of conclusion.Piper was a fun main character. She is thoroughly entertaining. I also really liked that it was set in Washington DC. There was some fun interaction between her and Rafa as well. This is very different from Brodi Ashton's previous Everneath series and it was fun to see a different side of her writing.

Charming book with great, easy to like characters. The author has a great sense of humor and it shows. Loved the ending.

Great

Diplomatic Immunity is a standalone YA contemporary.The narrator is high school senior Piper Baird. She comes from a lower middle class family. Her little brother is autistic (he is one of the highlights of the story).Piper is a journalist for her high school newspaper. She receives a scholarship to the exclusive Chiswick Academy in Washington, DC. This school is full of spoiled rich kids.Piper desperately wants to win the Bennington scholarship so she can go to college. But the competition is fierce.I really enjoyed the school newspaper and seeing how it was run. I also enjoyed seeing which stories Piper was assigned. And I loved how much she loved journalism.Piper finds a story that she thinks will help her win the Bennington scholarship. This part of the story was good. But I had a strong feeling what would happen.The title of the book refers to some of the kids at her new school who have diplomatic immunity (DI). I think the title was good. And it was quite interesting to read about this lifestyle. The main teen with DI is Rafael Amador, the son of the Spanish ambassador. This guy was fun to read about. I loved when Piper visited the embassy.I really enjoyed Piper's best friend Charlotte, some of the rich kids, Piper's grandmother and as I mentioned Piper's brother.There is some romance in this book, which I think definitely added to the story.I thought the ending was well done.Overall, the book is sweet and funny. Yes, some of it was predictable. But it is a cute YA story. The diplomatic immunity stuff was funny and interesting. And the journalism aspect was really good. If you want a light YA contemporary romance this is book is charming.Thanks to edelweiss and Balzer + Bray for allowing me to read this book.

I haven’t read a Brodi Ashton book in soooo long. When I picked this one up, I hadn’t realized how much I missed Brodi’s writing style. Diplomatic Immunity is a charismatic and fun adventure with a relatable protagonist.Okay, so Piper Baird isn’t the most relatable character ever. She is a little obsessed with journalism; however, her conversations had me cracking up. As someone who has my own in-my-head conversations and then forces my random thoughts on others, Piper’s voice was super relatable. Thankfully, though, Piper has much more amusing talks with more interesting people than I typically do. *cough* cute guys *cough*Now, something I didn’t like quite as much about Piper was her decision to write the exposé in the first place. I’m not sure what she really thought would happen if it ever got released into the public. I think any reader could see this as a Mean Girls Burn Book situation.Other than that little issue, this book was a surprise through and through. I was smiling so much throughout the entire read. It was just a fun, romantic story. Rafael was a sweet love interest, if a little troubled at times, and Piper’s friends and family were very supportive and present. I do, however, wish there was more with the family and friends towards the end. I just wanted more!All in all, this was a great read. I flipped through it so fast and kept giggling throughout, so if you’re looking for a fun, plot-driven YA contemporary romance, I’d highly suggest Diplomatic Immunity. It’s a perfect read for fans of Kasie West or Stephanie Perkins.4/5 stars*Note: I borrowed a copy of this book from my local library. This in no way affected my opinion/review.