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emiliemae's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
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
liebegehtdurchallezeilen's review against another edition
3.0
Leider bin ich mit der Protagonistin nicht wirklich warm geworden und alles ging ziemlich schnell, die Lovestory war aber trotzdem ganz süß. Alles in allem fand ich es nett für zwischendurch...
gaymoonreader's review against another edition
4.5
This book was the one that I needed to read. The representation was absolutely amazing for bisexuality. There were a lot of conversations about it that I really related to because it actually can be hard for people to grasp the idea that you actually can be attracted to both men and women. For example, my brother made this comment once that when I’m with a girl, I’m a lesbian and when I’m with a guy, I’m straight. Which is so not true. I am bisexual in any relationship. But it’s a concept that can seem foreign to lots of people and this book expressed that really well without sounding demeaning.
I also loved the character growth in this book because it was just so great. This book was about self-discovery and accepting yourself and loving yourself as much as loving someone else. You have to love yourself before you can love someone else and I relate to that on a deep level.
THE DIVERSITY. THE DIVERSITY. I absolutely loved that Eva was biracial. That was a touchstone to talk about racism from both sides, something people don’t even talk about all that much. There were a few discussions about getting racism from both sides. I cannot personally speak to that, but it seemed to be done really well.
This is a small thing, but it made me so happy that Eva and Grace actually had diverse hobbies compared to a lot of books. I am so sick of reading books about characters who are just super into reading. I get why. The author is super into books, but it just isn’t realistic. There is a small percentage of people who actually read for pleasure on the regular. There are people from all walks of life who are interested in things other than books, so it was nice to see some diversity in the hobbies.
I also just adored the love story between Eva and Grace. They both just work and are living the philosophy that you can’t love others until you love yourself and accept yourself, which I absolutely love. They just were so cute together, and I have resolved I need to find a girl to spend nights at the top of a lighthouse with. Iconic.
Overall, I just absolutely adored this book and it is mostly definitely one of my favorite reads of the whole year. I just cannot wait to read more from Ashley Herring Blake because this was so phenomenal.
I also loved the character growth in this book because it was just so great. This book was about self-discovery and accepting yourself and loving yourself as much as loving someone else. You have to love yourself before you can love someone else and I relate to that on a deep level.
THE DIVERSITY. THE DIVERSITY. I absolutely loved that Eva was biracial. That was a touchstone to talk about racism from both sides, something people don’t even talk about all that much. There were a few discussions about getting racism from both sides. I cannot personally speak to that, but it seemed to be done really well.
This is a small thing, but it made me so happy that Eva and Grace actually had diverse hobbies compared to a lot of books. I am so sick of reading books about characters who are just super into reading. I get why. The author is super into books, but it just isn’t realistic. There is a small percentage of people who actually read for pleasure on the regular. There are people from all walks of life who are interested in things other than books, so it was nice to see some diversity in the hobbies.
I also just adored the love story between Eva and Grace. They both just work and are living the philosophy that you can’t love others until you love yourself and accept yourself, which I absolutely love. They just were so cute together, and I have resolved I need to find a girl to spend nights at the top of a lighthouse with. Iconic.
Overall, I just absolutely adored this book and it is mostly definitely one of my favorite reads of the whole year. I just cannot wait to read more from Ashley Herring Blake because this was so phenomenal.
paginasdealex's review against another edition
5.0
Grace es una chica talentosa. Estudiante de piano acaba de regresar de un programa de verano en Boston donde se preparaba para una audición para la Academia de Música de Nueva York. Grace está lista para alcanzar sus sueños. Sin embargo la situación en su hogar es todo menos ideal, su madre le ha mudado con otro más de sus novios, empacado todas sus cosas e incluso vendido su amado piano.
La vida de Grace ha sido siempre así. Siendo arrastrada de lugar en lugar por su madre, rescatandola de bares y noches de bebida, e incluso pagando las cuentas a momentos. En una relación donde los roles se han revertido, Grace ha tomado el lugar del adulto y ha decidido cuidar a su madre.
Dinero perdido, habitaciones de hoteles y cumpleaños olvidados. Grace le ha perdonado todo a su madre.
Hasta que conoce a Eva.
Llegada de Nueva York, Eva es una bailarina de ballet cuya madre acaba de fallecer. Ambas forman una relación que les llevará a conocerse mejor y ayudarse la una a la otra, pero cuando la madre de Grace entre en la ecuación tanto Grace como Eva deberán tomar decisiones.
En este libro de sacrificio, amor, dolor y esperanza, la vida de estas tres personas se entrelazará para formar una de las historias más conmovedoras que he leído en mucho tiempo.
La vida de Grace ha sido siempre así. Siendo arrastrada de lugar en lugar por su madre, rescatandola de bares y noches de bebida, e incluso pagando las cuentas a momentos. En una relación donde los roles se han revertido, Grace ha tomado el lugar del adulto y ha decidido cuidar a su madre.
Dinero perdido, habitaciones de hoteles y cumpleaños olvidados. Grace le ha perdonado todo a su madre.
Hasta que conoce a Eva.
Llegada de Nueva York, Eva es una bailarina de ballet cuya madre acaba de fallecer. Ambas forman una relación que les llevará a conocerse mejor y ayudarse la una a la otra, pero cuando la madre de Grace entre en la ecuación tanto Grace como Eva deberán tomar decisiones.
En este libro de sacrificio, amor, dolor y esperanza, la vida de estas tres personas se entrelazará para formar una de las historias más conmovedoras que he leído en mucho tiempo.
caffeineaddict980's review against another edition
5.0
All Grace wants is her own life. Emotionally trapped by her unreliable mother, Maggie, she focuses on her best friend and her upcoming audition for a top music school. Not to mention, avoiding her mum's new boyfriend who is the father of her ex-boyfriend.
When she meets Eva, she makes her feel things she never expected or was prepared for.
This was a brilliant novel with some important themes of love and family in particular, along with finding stability too. I enjoyed the relationship between Eva and Grace, finding them to be quite similar which is part of the reason that it works so well.
5 stars!
When she meets Eva, she makes her feel things she never expected or was prepared for.
This was a brilliant novel with some important themes of love and family in particular, along with finding stability too. I enjoyed the relationship between Eva and Grace, finding them to be quite similar which is part of the reason that it works so well.
5 stars!
cissarego's review against another edition
5.0
After reading the Bright Falls series, I decided to look into more of Ashley's works. I did not expect to have my heart shattered in a million pieces reading this, but here we are. Fantastic read but approach with caution.
owlyreadsalot's review against another edition
4.0
There was much I liked about How To Make A Wish, especially the depth of most of the characters. I found that I got taken right in by their ever-growing personalities and how great of a best friend and second mother figure Grace had in Emmy, because the mother that gave birth to her was just the worst.
The best parts were the relationships, not being afraid to venture forward in life, getting to know those who seemed to be more than what their outer exterior showed. It was a great novel about becoming and not being afraid of what lay ahead, what life held for the future. Their experiences are those of many, not always easy to go through, but honest and life changing.
"Still, I wasn't unhappy. A weird thing I'm learning about grief--grief in all its forms --is that you can feel almost everything once. You'd think all those tears, all that laughter, all that deep sadness and even deeper hope would still the lungs and stop the heart. But no. It's sort of the opposite. And that's the funny thing about wishes--only when one comes true do you realize the full scope of that wish. What you really wanted. The beauty of it. The complexity. The cost."
It's a harsh reality for Grace though, even though she finds love it isn't in the easiest of terms. Her mother makes everything in her life a struggle and that much harder to be able to love freely and be open about what she wants or deserves to have. That is where my blood boiled. Her mother is a whole different something. She caused so many feels and none of them happy ones, especially when I think about how those things happen to many children and youth in real life.
Grace, Eva, Luca, Emmy, even Jay all end up helping each other be free of those painful things and moments that plague their life. They find solace in each other and help each other gain closure from past relationships, choices, and family woes. They're all very complex characters, with many facets to them. Their lives are not an easy thing to live with, and their circumstances even harder, showing all of us the importance of having loved ones by your side.
"Emmy answers the door dressed in a tank top and a pair of blue-and-yellow-plaid pajama bottoms, her hair a sleep-tossed mess. She takes one look at my tear-ruined face and the suitcase in my hand before she releases a long sigh, like she's been holding that breath for years. Maybe she has. Maybe we all have. Then she smiles a sad smile--part relief, part heartbreak--and pulls me into her arms."
It's a novel that had it all the feels, but too many painful ones to be able to fully give this all the stars I'm able to give. Even though I struggled to get past a few sections in this novel, it was all meant to bring the story to full circle. Doesn't make any of it easier, but genuine and leaving the reader with hope for happy endings even when it seems like the storm will never fade.
***I received this copy from HMH Teen. All opinions are my own.***
The best parts were the relationships, not being afraid to venture forward in life, getting to know those who seemed to be more than what their outer exterior showed. It was a great novel about becoming and not being afraid of what lay ahead, what life held for the future. Their experiences are those of many, not always easy to go through, but honest and life changing.
"Still, I wasn't unhappy. A weird thing I'm learning about grief--grief in all its forms --is that you can feel almost everything once. You'd think all those tears, all that laughter, all that deep sadness and even deeper hope would still the lungs and stop the heart. But no. It's sort of the opposite. And that's the funny thing about wishes--only when one comes true do you realize the full scope of that wish. What you really wanted. The beauty of it. The complexity. The cost."
It's a harsh reality for Grace though, even though she finds love it isn't in the easiest of terms. Her mother makes everything in her life a struggle and that much harder to be able to love freely and be open about what she wants or deserves to have. That is where my blood boiled. Her mother is a whole different something. She caused so many feels and none of them happy ones, especially when I think about how those things happen to many children and youth in real life.
Grace, Eva, Luca, Emmy, even Jay all end up helping each other be free of those painful things and moments that plague their life. They find solace in each other and help each other gain closure from past relationships, choices, and family woes. They're all very complex characters, with many facets to them. Their lives are not an easy thing to live with, and their circumstances even harder, showing all of us the importance of having loved ones by your side.
"Emmy answers the door dressed in a tank top and a pair of blue-and-yellow-plaid pajama bottoms, her hair a sleep-tossed mess. She takes one look at my tear-ruined face and the suitcase in my hand before she releases a long sigh, like she's been holding that breath for years. Maybe she has. Maybe we all have. Then she smiles a sad smile--part relief, part heartbreak--and pulls me into her arms."
It's a novel that had it all the feels, but too many painful ones to be able to fully give this all the stars I'm able to give. Even though I struggled to get past a few sections in this novel, it was all meant to bring the story to full circle. Doesn't make any of it easier, but genuine and leaving the reader with hope for happy endings even when it seems like the storm will never fade.
***I received this copy from HMH Teen. All opinions are my own.***
chandlerainsley's review
4.0
break my fucking neck
now that i have your attention, this book was good. fun back story time: i have way too many books but i was craving something new so i finally got a library card and grabbed 5 books that i knew little about and went home and immediately started this one.
i knew that this had a f/f relationship but pretty much nothing else. and it took me by surprise. it's about a girl named grace with an irresponsible & alcoholic mother who is just trying to get through her senior year. a new girl comes to town, they fall in love, bad shit happens.
i genuinely enjoyed how this was written. it was musical and lyrical without being too purple. the emotions that blake describes are ones that i've actually experienced.. especially in relation to romantic feelings. too often, i feel like authors try and make things pretty and in doing so they make a character's emotions and physical feelings way too difficult to connect with. not this one.
i also appreciated the way that side characters came into place. it felt very slice of life. no one was there to provide big life lessons or help grace figure her shit out, she had to do that on her own.
the only thing i didn't like about this book was how grace handled her mother. i have never been in a situation where my parent is codependent on me and also emotionally manipulative. so i can't say that i think grace made stupid decisions. but it was really painful to watch grace put up with so much bullshit, especially near the end of the book when she had a support system, outside of just her mom, to turn to
overall, this book was sincerely beautiful. i think this is the first FF i've read in at LEAST 2 years and i'm so glad this one was the first book i picked up from my stack. give it a try, it's a nice quiet read and even though it's set in the summer it's perfect for fall.
now that i have your attention, this book was good. fun back story time: i have way too many books but i was craving something new so i finally got a library card and grabbed 5 books that i knew little about and went home and immediately started this one.
i knew that this had a f/f relationship but pretty much nothing else. and it took me by surprise. it's about a girl named grace with an irresponsible & alcoholic mother who is just trying to get through her senior year. a new girl comes to town, they fall in love, bad shit happens.
i genuinely enjoyed how this was written. it was musical and lyrical without being too purple. the emotions that blake describes are ones that i've actually experienced.. especially in relation to romantic feelings. too often, i feel like authors try and make things pretty and in doing so they make a character's emotions and physical feelings way too difficult to connect with. not this one.
i also appreciated the way that side characters came into place. it felt very slice of life. no one was there to provide big life lessons or help grace figure her shit out, she had to do that on her own.
the only thing i didn't like about this book was how grace handled her mother. i have never been in a situation where my parent is codependent on me and also emotionally manipulative. so i can't say that i think grace made stupid decisions. but it was really painful to watch grace put up with so much bullshit, especially near the end of the book when she had a support system, outside of just her mom, to turn to
overall, this book was sincerely beautiful. i think this is the first FF i've read in at LEAST 2 years and i'm so glad this one was the first book i picked up from my stack. give it a try, it's a nice quiet read and even though it's set in the summer it's perfect for fall.
mckinlay's review against another edition
5.0
*I received a copy of this book from netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*
This book hit so many things that I love as a reader. Fantastic bi rep. Wonderful portrayal of a male/female friendship because yes, they do exist. It definitely had its sadder parts that tugged on my heart strings, but the romance remained extremely swoony. All in all, it was an amazing book. One of my all time favorite f/f romances for sure!
Bullet points!
Characters: there was only one character I didn't like and that was the MC's mom. And i'm pretty sure that's the point.
Romance: SWOOOOON! healthy. slow build. realistic!
Diversity: queer romance, biracial love interest.
This book hit so many things that I love as a reader. Fantastic bi rep. Wonderful portrayal of a male/female friendship because yes, they do exist. It definitely had its sadder parts that tugged on my heart strings, but the romance remained extremely swoony. All in all, it was an amazing book. One of my all time favorite f/f romances for sure!
Bullet points!
Characters: there was only one character I didn't like and that was the MC's mom. And i'm pretty sure that's the point.
Romance: SWOOOOON! healthy. slow build. realistic!
Diversity: queer romance, biracial love interest.
lesbrary's review against another edition
5.0
Here's an embarrassing admission: I have only heard amazing things about this book, but I have been reluctant to pick it up because I don't like the cover. That's completely silly, but there it is!
This was just as good as everyone says it is. I loved Grace as a character. She is in an awful situation (she acts more like a parent to her mother than the other way around), and she feels it. Sometimes she gets frustrated or angry and lashes out in ways that are very believable. But she is also loving and caring and wants to reach out, even as she feels that making connections is meaningless, that she is trapped in this situation. There are a lot of complex emotions playing out among all the characters, and there's a lot of nuance in how they play out. My only annoyance was that I thought Jay got off the hook too easily for what he did to Grace, but what he did was unforgivable, in my opinion.
This was just as good as everyone says it is. I loved Grace as a character. She is in an awful situation (she acts more like a parent to her mother than the other way around), and she feels it. Sometimes she gets frustrated or angry and lashes out in ways that are very believable. But she is also loving and caring and wants to reach out, even as she feels that making connections is meaningless, that she is trapped in this situation. There are a lot of complex emotions playing out among all the characters, and there's a lot of nuance in how they play out. My only annoyance was that I thought Jay got off the hook too easily for what he did to Grace, but what he did was unforgivable, in my opinion.