Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite

Kathryn Berla's 12 Hours in Paradise is a young adult romance/coming of age novel. Neither Dorothy nor her ten-year-old brother, Chester, were looking forward to leaving Hawaii the next morning. They'd be returning to the cold and snow of winter in Nevada, and, as they weren't skiers, saw no real benefits to winter over the warm sands and ocean breezes of this island paradise. They were on their way back to the hotel for their last happy hour when Chester's eyes were drawn to the free cookie samples just waiting for him on the Honolulu Cookie Company’s shelves. Chester, as usual, made a point of being a huge embarrassment for his sixteen-year-old sister and began grabbing at the samples barehanded. As Dorothy tried to wrestle him away, she heard someone say "ouch" as she backed into a blond-haired, blue-eyed guy who left her feeling a bit speechless and definitely flustered. He scooped out a chocolatey sample for Chester, and Dorothy propelled her little brother out the door. Chester started teasing Dorothy about the boy who liked her, and she brushed off everything he said, but when he said the boy was following her, she was surprised when she turned and saw a dark-haired guy with glasses trying to catch up with them in order to return Chester's sunglasses. Chester insisted that that was the guy all along, and Dorothy and Arash started talking. He accompanied them to the happy hour, and, as they chatted, Dorothy began to realize Arash was not like any other boy she had ever known.

Kathryn Berla's young adult romance/coming of age novel, 12 Hours in Paradise, kept me enthralled throughout the entire twelve hours Dorothy and Arash spend answering questions and experiencing Honolulu after dark. The author's use of a newspaper questionnaire to start off their adventure is an original device that works marvelously, not only to help Dorothy and Arash get to know each other, but to keep the reader interactively involved as each thought-provoking question is posed and answered. I loved seeing Honolulu at night and especially enjoyed the walks the two of them share along the beaches. Berla's plot takes advantage of that special and all-too-rare circumstance where time seems to slow down and last forever, where each minute seems to hang in the air, waiting for the next to take its place. Her characters have depth, passion and courage as they confront their demons and dare to dream of their futures. Kathryn Berla's 12 Hours in Paradise is intelligent, heart-warming, and altogether a phenomenal read. It’s most highly recommended.