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4.08 AVERAGE
4.08 AVERAGE
a combination of the seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones and the six. decklee and mickenlee are literally Evelyn and Celia but like 20 years later
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
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
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
lighthearted
slow-paced
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a lot of fun! The road trip/scavenger hunt element of the story had a nice pace and was interesting, the romance was really cute (cute enough that the end of the book lowkey ripped my heart out—wasn't expecting that), and there was some really good, interesting commentary on small towns and what it means to both love them and long to escape them. I liked that Darren's all-encompassing desire to leave Mayberry was both called out—specifically for the way it was often dismissive of people who genuinely love living in a small town (like Kendall, who is Best Dude)—and the way she wasn't expected to grow out of it by the end of the book. The twist near the end was also very good and not one I personally saw coming!
The parts of the book that really shone for me, though, were the snippets of the past we got—Decklee Cassel's rise to fame from 1963 onward felt in many ways reminiscent of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo or Daisy Jones and the Six. I like that Decklee was such an unlikable woman, willing to betray the people in her life in pretty massive ways because of her single-minded desire for stardom—and the way her journey slowly reveals to us someone who maybe wasn't all that worth idolizing in the first place. I do wish there'd been more of an acknowledgement of race, such as when Decklee and her gay bff, Markell, are arguing about living openly as queer people—Decklee's argument seemed glaringly dismissive of the fact that she, as a wealthy white woman, has less to lose than Markell as a gay Black man in the midst of the AIDS crisis. But this didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the novel. I wasn't sure if I was getting into something good, as a non-country fan (except Dolly Parton, but, duh—she's Dolly Parton), but I'm so glad I took a chance on this book!
The parts of the book that really shone for me, though, were the snippets of the past we got—Decklee Cassel's rise to fame from 1963 onward felt in many ways reminiscent of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo or Daisy Jones and the Six. I like that Decklee was such an unlikable woman, willing to betray the people in her life in pretty massive ways because of her single-minded desire for stardom—and the way her journey slowly reveals to us someone who maybe wasn't all that worth idolizing in the first place. I do wish there'd been more of an acknowledgement of race, such as when Decklee and her gay bff, Markell, are arguing about living openly as queer people—Decklee's argument seemed glaringly dismissive of the fact that she, as a wealthy white woman, has less to lose than Markell as a gay Black man in the midst of the AIDS crisis. But this didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the novel. I wasn't sure if I was getting into something good, as a non-country fan (except Dolly Parton, but, duh—she's Dolly Parton), but I'm so glad I took a chance on this book!