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rezelazny's review against another edition
3.0
Six friends who decide on their last night of college to create a time capsule to open in 20 years. They also decide to always be friends-to be a six pointed star. The story then jumps ahead 20 years. The 6 friends are no longer friends, in fact they no longer speak to each other. The one friend who wanted them to remain 'family' has since died and on her 40th birthday the remaining 5 gather at their old college haunt to fix their friendship. The story starts out really strong, you are rooting for these 5 friends to find themselves and rediscover what made them friends. They are all broken in some way. It then gets long, slow, and sad. The ending isn't quite a happy ending and the reader doesn't get a clear answer on all 5 of the character's futures. Still a pretty decent reunion type story.
Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.
Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.
life_full_ofbooks's review
2.0
This was so promising. The premise sounded wonderful, but the story was lacking something. I felt it ended abruptly with really no closure.
alysonbookishthoughts's review
5.0
I absolutely loved this book, it is a perfect summer read! I had never read anything before by AllisonWin Scotch, but the description of the book was intriguing enough that I wanted to read it. Now I'm adding the rest of Scotch's books to my to be read list. The characters in the story were fleshed out so well that I was rooting for all of them to find the happiness they were seeking. I could not put the book down because I needed to know what happened in the end.
suspensethrill's review
3.0
Find all my reviews on my blog: https://thesuspenseisthrillingme.com
Date Read:
Pub Date: 07/01/16
4 STARS
Twenty years ago, six Penn students shared a house, naively certain that their friendships would endure—until the death of their ringleader and dear friend Bea splintered the group for good. Now, mostly estranged from one another, the remaining five reluctantly gather at that same house on the eve of what would have been Bea’s fortieth birthday.
But along with the return of the friends come old grudges, unrequited feelings, and buried secrets. Catherine, the CEO of a domestic empire, and Owen, a stay-at-home dad, were picture-perfect college sweethearts—but now teeter on the brink of disaster. Lindy, a well-known musician, is pushing middle age in an industry that’s all about youth and slowly self-destructing as she grapples with her own identity. Behind his smile, handsome plastic surgeon Colin harbors the heartbreaking truth about his own history with Bea. And Annie carefully curates her life on Instagram and Facebook, keeping up appearances so she doesn’t have to face the truth about her own empty reality.
Reunited in the place where so many dreams began, and bolstered by the hope of healing, each of them is forced to confront the past.
College is a milestone most wish they could relive from time to time. Personally, I didn’t finish college (never say never!) and didn’t have the typical experience that most did as I was married at a very young age (19 to be exact). Throw 2 kids into the mix and going back to school became a distant thought. This book brought all those feelings and dreams back to my forethought and felt somehow comforting as I read it. These friends, who seemed to live completely different lives than they expected as their younger selves, were interesting to watch grow throughout the story.
My favorite character ended up being Owen; I felt as a fellow stay at home parent I could relate to some of his struggles and lifestyle. Lindy was probably the most trendy character as a famous musician and I enjoyed reading about her lifestyle struggles as well. I think as women we all to some degree fear the aging process, as our society celebrates youth and tends to throw women away once that tiny aspect of our being is dried up completely. This is such a scary reality and I could really feel all the emotion Lindy experienced during her part of the story. The rest of the characters were also well developed and relatable, the previous two were just my personal favorites. I loved how this makeshift “family” seemed to be “stuck like glue” no matter how they tried to live separate lives. The years had passed, and this time capsule plucked everyone from their new lives to come together and relive old memories, learn from each other, and grow into a maturity they hadn’t realized quite yet they were missing. I’ve enjoyed Allison Winn Scotch’s novels before and was thrilled to read this one!
*I received my copy via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Date Read:
Pub Date: 07/01/16
4 STARS
Twenty years ago, six Penn students shared a house, naively certain that their friendships would endure—until the death of their ringleader and dear friend Bea splintered the group for good. Now, mostly estranged from one another, the remaining five reluctantly gather at that same house on the eve of what would have been Bea’s fortieth birthday.
But along with the return of the friends come old grudges, unrequited feelings, and buried secrets. Catherine, the CEO of a domestic empire, and Owen, a stay-at-home dad, were picture-perfect college sweethearts—but now teeter on the brink of disaster. Lindy, a well-known musician, is pushing middle age in an industry that’s all about youth and slowly self-destructing as she grapples with her own identity. Behind his smile, handsome plastic surgeon Colin harbors the heartbreaking truth about his own history with Bea. And Annie carefully curates her life on Instagram and Facebook, keeping up appearances so she doesn’t have to face the truth about her own empty reality.
Reunited in the place where so many dreams began, and bolstered by the hope of healing, each of them is forced to confront the past.
College is a milestone most wish they could relive from time to time. Personally, I didn’t finish college (never say never!) and didn’t have the typical experience that most did as I was married at a very young age (19 to be exact). Throw 2 kids into the mix and going back to school became a distant thought. This book brought all those feelings and dreams back to my forethought and felt somehow comforting as I read it. These friends, who seemed to live completely different lives than they expected as their younger selves, were interesting to watch grow throughout the story.
My favorite character ended up being Owen; I felt as a fellow stay at home parent I could relate to some of his struggles and lifestyle. Lindy was probably the most trendy character as a famous musician and I enjoyed reading about her lifestyle struggles as well. I think as women we all to some degree fear the aging process, as our society celebrates youth and tends to throw women away once that tiny aspect of our being is dried up completely. This is such a scary reality and I could really feel all the emotion Lindy experienced during her part of the story. The rest of the characters were also well developed and relatable, the previous two were just my personal favorites. I loved how this makeshift “family” seemed to be “stuck like glue” no matter how they tried to live separate lives. The years had passed, and this time capsule plucked everyone from their new lives to come together and relive old memories, learn from each other, and grow into a maturity they hadn’t realized quite yet they were missing. I’ve enjoyed Allison Winn Scotch’s novels before and was thrilled to read this one!
*I received my copy via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.
hellalibrary's review
4.0
Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing in an exchange for an unbiased review.
Have you ever seen The Big Chill? It’s one of my favorite 80’s movies. A group of seven former college best friends reunite for a weekend after the funeral of one of them. Glenn Close, Jeff Goldblum, Kevin Kline. Killer soundtrack.
Anyway, In Twenty Years is very, very similar.
Six friends: Catherine and Owen, the perfect couple; Colin, the heartbreaker; Lindy, the wild one; Annie, the quiet one; and Bea, the glue that keeps them all together, their moral compass.
Best friends, living under one roof in 1998, Penn State.
Skip ahead twenty years later, one of them has passed away and they all reunite for a weekend together in memoriam.
Unhappy, lonely, depressed, they all find themselves a little lost trying to recreate the time when they all felt so alive.
Told from the point of view from all six characters, this story was heartfelt and funny and heartbreaking all in one.
I love reunion stories and I love stories that make us all a little nostalgic for “past lives” but somehow remind us that we don’t have to let our old selves go! We can still be those dreamy 20-year olds and we may not all have it all together like we imagined we would, but it’s still ok.
I’m really emotional right now, but go read this book! And then go listen to The Big Chill soundtrack.
abookishaffair's review
4.0
"In Twenty Years" is about a group of college friend brought back together after their friend, Bea, who passed away tragically declares in her will that they must come back to the house that they shared in college for one weekend twenty years after graduating college. By this time, most of their friendships have fallen apart. They are no longer the inseparable group they once were. Will this one weekend change anything?
I really was looking forward to this book! The idea of meeting up with people from your past is so intriguing to me. Relationships change but you always have the memories of the good times with people you were close with at some point in your life. The group in the book is absolutely wracked with memories of each other. Some have become very successful since college. Some are struggling to keep up the image of a perfect life. All are suddenly haunted by Bea's memory, which casts a presence over the entire book. I loved how the author explored all of the different thoughts and feelings of the different characters in the book. Each of the characters feels well-rounded and real.
This is the kind of book that makes you wonder "what if." It is easy enough to live in the past and to worry about things that happened oh-so long ago. These characters have both love and grudges in the forefront of their brains throughout the weekend. This is a great book with memorable characters and I enjoyed it! It would be a perfect read for those who like a little bit of drama with well-rounded characters!
I really was looking forward to this book! The idea of meeting up with people from your past is so intriguing to me. Relationships change but you always have the memories of the good times with people you were close with at some point in your life. The group in the book is absolutely wracked with memories of each other. Some have become very successful since college. Some are struggling to keep up the image of a perfect life. All are suddenly haunted by Bea's memory, which casts a presence over the entire book. I loved how the author explored all of the different thoughts and feelings of the different characters in the book. Each of the characters feels well-rounded and real.
This is the kind of book that makes you wonder "what if." It is easy enough to live in the past and to worry about things that happened oh-so long ago. These characters have both love and grudges in the forefront of their brains throughout the weekend. This is a great book with memorable characters and I enjoyed it! It would be a perfect read for those who like a little bit of drama with well-rounded characters!
booksinthefreezersteph's review
2.0
Like a 1.5? It didn't infuriate me. I didn't want to throw it across the room or anything. It was a let down. The premise seemed really interesting. The book dragged. The characters were all super unrealistically successful, cliched and thus boring. I didn't care about any of them. It was all inner monologues and whining . I skimmed the last half.
I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley for review.
I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley for review.
paperbackrooms's review
1.0
The idea for the book - revisiting a group of friends two decades on from when they were spending all their time together - was a good idea but the execution was not well executed in this. The writing occasionally has time jumps and these are not signposted for the reader and leave without a given date so in some instances I had no idea when parts were occurring. For example, for the majority of the book I did not manage to figure out when Colin had visited Bea in relation to the wedding in the years before. The wedding was between Catherine and Owen was apparently the event that changed everything between the group but excluding the overall fact that Lindy and Colin slept together we don't get to know anything else about the day. There are veiled references to how the others in the group reacted to this but with very little explanation.
The character of Lindy and her story were hugely infuriating, almost to the point of it seeming like the author forgets people can fall for members of different genders. However, I don't feel she was truly in love with Annie, it was all some twisted way in which she was the pivotal member of the group and to control them all. The situation she finds herself in with sleeping with multiple people also feels like lazy writing of a bisexual character who sleeps around with anyone.
Catherine and Owen had hallmarks of a couple I could enjoy reading about and I did but I don't understand her logic behind not telling him the truth about the business, or how the apology her publicist released was damaging to their relationship. A lot of this book seems to build to moments which are supposed to create drama but actually just made me dislike the characters more than I did to begin with. I don't understand any of their motives even after finishing the book.
The character of Lindy and her story were hugely infuriating, almost to the point of it seeming like the author forgets people can fall for members of different genders. However, I don't feel she was truly in love with Annie, it was all some twisted way in which she was the pivotal member of the group and to control them all. The situation she finds herself in with sleeping with multiple people also feels like lazy writing of a bisexual character who sleeps around with anyone.
Catherine and Owen had hallmarks of a couple I could enjoy reading about and I did but I don't understand her logic behind not telling him the truth about the business, or how the apology her publicist released was damaging to their relationship. A lot of this book seems to build to moments which are supposed to create drama but actually just made me dislike the characters more than I did to begin with. I don't understand any of their motives even after finishing the book.
worldswirl's review
4.0
Great book to read on a day I was sick in bed. I love a good reunion story :)
familywithbooks's review
4.0
In twenty years, a lot can change. Twenty years ago, six friends in college graduated and went their separate ways promising to be friends forever. After the death of Bea, the glue that held them all together, they are all summoned back to the house they used to live in to celebrate what would have been Bea's 40th birthday. It's there that the secrets and misunderstandings begin to unravel and no one can hide anymore.
I really enjoyed reading this book and found it difficult to put down. Every time I found out a new secret, I wanted to know more, more, more! I felt the ending was wrapped up a little too nicely and too quickly, but still enjoyed the journey with these friends. Highly recommend, and I will be looking for more of Allison Winn Scotch's books!
I received this e-book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I really enjoyed reading this book and found it difficult to put down. Every time I found out a new secret, I wanted to know more, more, more! I felt the ending was wrapped up a little too nicely and too quickly, but still enjoyed the journey with these friends. Highly recommend, and I will be looking for more of Allison Winn Scotch's books!
I received this e-book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.