Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
First off, I loved this book. I thought it was beautiful and gritty in all the right ways. The dynamic of the father with a dark past and the teen daughter coming of age was achingly good. The tale covers several years of Loo's life with her father Samuel, and also years before. Samuel's goal is to prepare Loo for a future that may not be perfect, sort of street survivalist education. Hot wiring cars, firing guns... it's all in there.
I think my favorite part of the book was the ease of the heart-filled writing. Tinti has a practiced style that draws you in to her imagery and world with all of your senses. And more than that, her structure of this story is intriguing as well in that she has built it around Samuel's many scars.
"The marks on her father’s body had always been there. He did not show them off to Loo but he did not hide them, either. They reminded her of the craters on the moon that she studied at night with her telescope. Circles made from comets and asteroids that slammed into the cold, hard rock because it had no protective atmosphere. Like those craters, Hawley’s scars were signs of previous damage, that had impacted his life long before she was born. And like the moon, Hawley was always circling between Loo and the rest of the universe."
Through each of their moments together, you can feel the love between them. This book is one dripping with respect, a binding sort of unbreakable love, pain, regret, swelling bittersweetness... it is bound to move you in some way. And though I feel like I have read several books where the protagonist's return to the hometown of the mother that is no longer in the picture (either because she is wayward, deceased or otherwise), it still felt fresh and explored in new ways that I hadn't quite seen yet.
Highly recommended read. Take your time with it, let it build, and enjoy.
This is a contemporary/thriller adult lit book, but it also features a female teen protagonist so it has elements of a coming-of-age story as well. I see how it can have crossover potential for mature older teens.
Note: Thank you to NetGalley and Dial Press for a copy of this ARC in exchange for a review. This in no way impact my opinion of the book.
I think my favorite part of the book was the ease of the heart-filled writing. Tinti has a practiced style that draws you in to her imagery and world with all of your senses. And more than that, her structure of this story is intriguing as well in that she has built it around Samuel's many scars.
"The marks on her father’s body had always been there. He did not show them off to Loo but he did not hide them, either. They reminded her of the craters on the moon that she studied at night with her telescope. Circles made from comets and asteroids that slammed into the cold, hard rock because it had no protective atmosphere. Like those craters, Hawley’s scars were signs of previous damage, that had impacted his life long before she was born. And like the moon, Hawley was always circling between Loo and the rest of the universe."
Through each of their moments together, you can feel the love between them. This book is one dripping with respect, a binding sort of unbreakable love, pain, regret, swelling bittersweetness... it is bound to move you in some way. And though I feel like I have read several books where the protagonist's return to the hometown of the mother that is no longer in the picture (either because she is wayward, deceased or otherwise), it still felt fresh and explored in new ways that I hadn't quite seen yet.
Highly recommended read. Take your time with it, let it build, and enjoy.
This is a contemporary/thriller adult lit book, but it also features a female teen protagonist so it has elements of a coming-of-age story as well. I see how it can have crossover potential for mature older teens.
Note: Thank you to NetGalley and Dial Press for a copy of this ARC in exchange for a review. This in no way impact my opinion of the book.
Stopped reading and Libby returned it
This was a fantastic book from start to finish! It is part coming of age story/part crime drama (almost like a Tarantino film).
This is about Samuel Hawley, but most call him Hawley, and his daughter Loo (short for Louise). It tells the backstory of how Hawley ended up in a life of crime, falling for Loo's mother Lily, how he turned away from criminal activity all to be sucked back into it time and time again. Loo we see grow up and experience first love in Massachusetts, but we also see how she handles when she finally finds out the truth about her father and her mother. I adored the flashbacks and felt like this entire book should become a movie. It has so many edge of your seat elements to it.
Overall, a highly recommended novel that has been on my to read list for far too long. Don't hesitate with this one, especially if you like a gritty novel mixed with a coming of age story. You will not be disappointed.
This is about Samuel Hawley, but most call him Hawley, and his daughter Loo (short for Louise). It tells the backstory of how Hawley ended up in a life of crime, falling for Loo's mother Lily, how he turned away from criminal activity all to be sucked back into it time and time again. Loo we see grow up and experience first love in Massachusetts, but we also see how she handles when she finally finds out the truth about her father and her mother. I adored the flashbacks and felt like this entire book should become a movie. It has so many edge of your seat elements to it.
Overall, a highly recommended novel that has been on my to read list for far too long. Don't hesitate with this one, especially if you like a gritty novel mixed with a coming of age story. You will not be disappointed.
I waffled on this review, it was fun to read, loved the characters, the imagery and setting. What I found difficult to reconcile was the violence; the assaults, even murders seeming so part of Hawley's lifestyle. Getting shot all those times didn't seem to matter, he just kept going. Loo learns survival in a mean world, I just didn't see it ever coming to justice
This one was too much for me... too violent, too dark--although I loved the opening and many of the scenes.
I won this book in a Goodreads First Reads contest.
I loved this book. It was so much more than I thought it would be. I thought it would be your typical "coming of age with shady parent" story but it was so much more. Loo and her father were well written characters. All the characters seemed very real. I loved how each bullet scar was told in story form, in flashback. I liked that Loo had no idea about her dad until near the end of the book. This book is now a favorite of mine.
I loved this book. It was so much more than I thought it would be. I thought it would be your typical "coming of age with shady parent" story but it was so much more. Loo and her father were well written characters. All the characters seemed very real. I loved how each bullet scar was told in story form, in flashback. I liked that Loo had no idea about her dad until near the end of the book. This book is now a favorite of mine.
The book definitely started off slow, as I tried to get used to the format of the writing. After I got a little farther into it, the book and storyline really intrigued me and pulled me in. I really enjoyed learning things along the way, and seeing how Loo and Hawley's story continued. I loved the parallels of Hawley's past and his/Loo's present, all culminating to how that past intertwined into Loo's life.
I couldn’t get into this one despite good pace in the plot from the jump. The hollow characters remained at an emotional distance. As in Tinti’s “The Good Thief”, a vulnerable, wily kid is the protagonist. I was unmoved and uninspired to find out more about her. Dnf
adventurous
emotional
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Part coming-of-age story, part outlaw on the run adventure.
I loved the structure of the book, where the chapters of Loo’s childhood are interspersed with flashbacks of Hawley’s 12 bullet wounds, and the timelines draw together at the close of the book.
If there had been just a hair more resolution at the end of the book, I would have given it 5 stars.
I loved the structure of the book, where the chapters of Loo’s childhood are interspersed with flashbacks of Hawley’s 12 bullet wounds, and the timelines draw together at the close of the book.
If there had been just a hair more resolution at the end of the book, I would have given it 5 stars.