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smartinez9's review against another edition
1.0
This was absolutely nonsensical? Emma’s sole reason for putting up with acute verbal and physical abuse was so her cousins wouldn’t be taken away from their abusive parents. So instead, she’s leaving them to grow up with a clearly unbalanced, violent mother who could turn on them at any time? Her lack of self-awareness and inability to come to obvious conclusions (a 4.0 student can’t figure out that she could just move in with her wealthy friend whose father is a judge and threaten to report her aunt if she tries to stop her?) did nothing to redeem the book’s additional poor treatment of sexual assault or mental health. Brushing off attempted rape because “he was just drunk” is not a good precedent to set. No one in the novel suggests reporting the incident or holding the culprit responsible in any way. As for mental health, while there is brief mention of Emma’s aunt taking medication, her absurd behavior is otherwise unexplained and doesn’t seem to affect other areas of her life like her marriage or relationship with her children, which feels incredibly unrealistic. The rationale for the aunt’s behavior seems to be that she’s a jealous bitch and therefore crazy. Rather than getting any closure, the book ends without any sort of justice being served. I would understand if the sequel picked up right where Emma was left unconscious, but instead six months are skipped over and the reader is robbed of any resolution. Not a fan.
smiilefry's review against another edition
5.0
This is truly one of those books that you just cannot put down because you need to know what happens next. I've read this book before when I was the same age as Emma, and at the time totally understood her reason behind not reporting Carol. However, reading it now 10 years later as an adult I just kept thinking "Tell an adult!!" "Your best friend's father is the towns judge TELL HIM! HE CAN HELP!!!" It's infuriating reading her saying that she "knows how much she can handle." because as a 16 year old CHILD she shouldn't have to HANDLE anything like this.
The romance between Emma and Evan has always been one of my favorites, I'm a sap for dynamics like this. I found myself grinning like a little school girl reading the scenes where their relationship was blooming.
Overall I truly do love this book, the abuse scenes were very hard for me but I think the book is amazing.
The romance between Emma and Evan has always been one of my favorites, I'm a sap for dynamics like this. I found myself grinning like a little school girl reading the scenes where their relationship was blooming.
Overall I truly do love this book, the abuse scenes were very hard for me but I think the book is amazing.
abbyreads2's review against another edition
5.0
OMG!!!! WOW! That ending had me shook. I liked the little twist now and there but I think this might be one of my favorite books. I have no complaints. It was so sad and I felt like crying but damn.
elias_b's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
niholealbod's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
tense
5.0
Uncovering of abuse by first love.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Physical abuse
anyalillyb's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kstouden's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
life_full_ofbooks's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This has been sitting on my TBR for about 12 years and I finally got around to listening to it. I’m still not sure what to think. It’s a very tough subject matter and one those matters in which you can say what you would do if in it, but you truly don’t know unless you actually experience it.
Emma is a junior in high school and appears to lead a very quiet life. At school, she’s always trying to blend in to the background even though she’s a superior athlete (playing on three varsity teams), the editor of the school newspaper, and best friends with the most popular girl in school. Her life at home, where she lives with her aunt and uncle, is a very different story though and she’s trying to make it through to graduation without anyone knowing what goes on behind closed doors.
This book was a page turner from the get go. I listened to it and couldn’t stop listening! There were quite a few things that didn’t sit well with me, though. I really hated the way Emma refused help from those who knew her situation; I felt her reasoning for not wanting help wasn’t justified. Additionally, while the ending had me on the edge of my seat and I immediately downloaded the next one in the trilogy, I wish it had a better closing. I listened to the first 5 minutes of the second to find out what happened after the ending and called it a day.
I think Rebecca Donovan did a fabulous job at conveying emotion and tension. I wish she would have included how she did research for this book because the vast majority of it felt very cliche.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse
readfrenzy's review against another edition
5.0
I loved everything about this book. It's a more sophisticated tale of friendship than many other young adults books I've read. It explores the boundaries of true friendship and takes the necessary time to build believable relationships between characters. With its unflinching details of domestic violence it can be difficult to read at times, but I believe that's the author's intent. I devoured this book, anxious to see how the story would end and then I was when it did. The ending leaves you hanging but that's what you'd expect in the first book of a trilogy. I feel the writing is so superb and the plot so important that I'm having my teenagers read it next. I'm looking forward to reading Book 2.