Less Than Nothing by R. E. Blake

Sage’s life as a teenage runaway in San Francisco is simple: Snatch a few hours of sleep on park benches and bus stops; dodge perverts, predators, and cops; and make enough as a street musician to eat. But her world flips upside down when she meets Derek – hot, tattooed, and charming, a singer from Seattle whose looks and talent take her breath away.
What begins as a reluctant partnership quickly develops into a cross-country race against time - and awakens a hunger in Sage that’s unfamiliar and exciting.
As they travel from coast to coast, Sage and Derek pursue their dream, only to discover that they can never run far enough to escape the demons from their pasts

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Raw and powerful New Adult genre story of the life of a homeless street musicians. True 'from rags to riches' storyline, part one of the trilogy, that ends with a cliffhanger. The story is told by Sage's point of view, in first person.
The life on the streets is described in detail, but somehow I felt it was a bit glorified, or the story didn't reflect to me the true terror, fear, and desperation people in that situation live with.
The story focuses on the homeless life, the road trip, and the competition. There isn't any great romance in the story, only possibility of one, maybe, coming in the future books.
Even though the story is emotional, with lots of drama both from Derek and Sage's past, and from the growing pains of these young people, I wish it would have gone a bit deeper. I felt many of the scenes were rushed.
In general I don't read much YA/NA genre, but this was the second one, of the six I've read in recent years, that has the homeless street musician making it big, so the storyline for me wasn't that original. The second installment for the series is out, as well. And the third one will be out in the end of the November.
~ Three big spoons with a teaspoon on the side.