Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - You'd Be Home Now

When I finished this book I cried for nearly twenty minutes. I’d already been crying for a long time before that. This book hits incredibly close to home and managed to smack you right in the face with such incredible realism and emotion. Almost everything Joey and Emmy said and thought - throughout the book, yes, but particularly right at the very end - struck such a note with me. I fell in love with Joey almost instantly because he was like me. He was messed up and unsure of how to help himself, and this was shown in such a real and honest way that I couldn’t help but love him. Emmy, too; the way she’s desperate to help her brother despite the fact that there’s really nothing she can do is so raw and painful. Absolutely incredible, and a book I will be pushing onto as many people as I physically can.

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booksofautumn's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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danaaliyalevinson's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

So, I admittedly went into this one not realizing it's YA, which is not my genre. That said, considering this as a YA book, I think it's an important read about teenage addiction and its impact on families that many teenagers are going to feel seen in.

I was also heartened by its brave ending that refused to give easy answers, and even further heartened by the author's note explaining her own addiction and sobriety journey, which is most certainly a big part of why, for me, as someone who also has a history of addiction and several years sober at this point, the narrative felt so honest.

Sometimes it did feel like that YA thing where an adult author is imagining what kids these days are like and it's not quite right.

But overall, a good read and I think an important YA entry.

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junzoin's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional reflective 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

Holy shit man, this book was amazing and honestly hits really hard as someone who goes through similar things as Joey and the rest of his family. However, I think that the ending was dragged out a bit too long, but nonetheless I was still very content with it. It's been so long since I've read this book so I definitely don't have much to say but I will reread it!! All I vividly remember was reading this in one day LOL

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hellb_nny's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I think I expected more after really enjoying Girl in Pieces. it's a good book don't get me wrong but I did expect to enjoy it more

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arianne7's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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wishyouweresober's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book broke my heart in so many ways. Justice for Emory and Joey...they just deserve to be happy.

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livlosiewicz's review against another edition

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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? Yes

5.0

Pros:

·This was a really engaging book. I was immediately drawn into Emmy and her world, and felt her love and pain for Joey. Emmy and Joey are both imperfect and lovable characters, and I was rooting for them the whole time. I also liked watching the growth of the supporting characters, like Emmy’s dad.

·The topic is so important, and I appreciated the book challenging the public perception of what addiction looks like, who gets addicted.

·And a bonus, of course, for the power of theater!! :)

Cons:

·I wish that more time had been given to some of the plots- like the things going on at school. I guess the point was that despite how awful the school rumors should have been, they were nothing compared to the hurt that Emmy felt about Joey

The ending being Emmy’s essay that evaded her true assignment and reflected on her life bummed me out a bit. It seems unrealistic that someone would write those personal things to a teacher. Like why turn in the essay at all? Could she not have just mused about those things to us on her own? It felt a little cliche and disappointing to me.

Recommendation: I recommend if you’re looking for a fast-paced, meaningful book and are okay with some heavy topics. Content warnings for substance use/addiction- make sure you’re in an okay place to read that. This is a YA book technically, but one of those that to me transcends the genre and tells an important story about life and love.

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