Scan barcode
carlaabra's review
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Second chances contemporary romance. They threw in every trauma trope possible for the funsies. Low rating because it felt very tropey, the writing was bland (almost YA-ish in simplicity, tell-not-show, no nuance, mostly dialogue of FeELiNgS and angst because the two MCs can’t have a frank discussion to save their lives), and the characters, despite their extensive backstories and families, don’t have much personality imo. However we do give points for (some!) proper representations of grief/depression, a good panic attack scene, and some touching moments between MCs (when you ignore how hilariously tropey their storyline is).
Cass, Terrance, and Wylie were best friends all through school; Terrance is the golden child in love with Cass, Wylie is the poor white boy/outsider and he and Cass secretly fall in love. Once they grow up, Wylie White Fangs himself and leaves to join the military because “he loves Terrance too much to steal Cass from him” (I guess who cares what Cass wants, right boys). A decade later, Wylie is still gone and pining for Cass, Cass is now (unhappily) married to Terrance and lives a banal life until a school shooting kills Terrance, plus wounding Cass and killing her unborn baby. Cass is traumatized and depressed for a year — Wylie comes back to town and carriers her off to his home to bring her back to life with love. Or whatever. Which he successfully does, transforming our can’t-get-out-of-bed, near-suicidal shell of a heroine into a mostly functional woman in like two weeks. Hell, he NSFWfingers her to orgasm at the end of the first week… who cares that they haven’t seen eachother in ten years amirite. At the two month mark they’re engaged and she’s pregnant . So remember kids, if you ever find yourself with PTSD from severe trauma, just go find your long-lost high school sweetheart to whisk you away to Martha’s Vineyard and fuck your sadness away.
It also weirded me out that race wasn’t addressed, and class only was passingly. Cass and Terrance are black (which I only put together by page 100 or so, it’s not apparent) from highly educated upper-middle-class families (literally doctors and lawyers lol); Wylie is ‘white trash’, not very book smart, had a drunk mom that abandoned him and a dad that dies when he’s a kid, so he’s taken in by Terrance’s parents (and then subsequently treated like a second-class citizen). Wylie has a total chip on his shoulder from the class thing, that’s made clear, but the interracial thing is literally just never spoken about. Idk.
Cass, Terrance, and Wylie were best friends all through school; Terrance is the golden child in love with Cass, Wylie is the poor white boy/outsider and he and Cass secretly fall in love. Once they grow up, Wylie White Fangs himself and leaves to join the military because “he loves Terrance too much to steal Cass from him” (I guess who cares what Cass wants, right boys). A decade later, Wylie is still gone and pining for Cass, Cass is now (unhappily) married to Terrance and lives a banal life until a school shooting kills Terrance, plus wounding Cass and killing her unborn baby. Cass is traumatized and depressed for a year — Wylie comes back to town and carriers her off to his home to bring her back to life with love. Or whatever. Which he successfully does, transforming our can’t-get-out-of-bed, near-suicidal shell of a heroine into a mostly functional woman in like two weeks. Hell, he NSFW
It also weirded me out that race wasn’t addressed, and class only was passingly. Cass and Terrance are black (which I only put together by page 100 or so, it’s not apparent) from highly educated upper-middle-class families (literally doctors and lawyers lol); Wylie is ‘white trash’, not very book smart, had a drunk mom that abandoned him and a dad that dies when he’s a kid, so he’s taken in by Terrance’s parents (and then subsequently treated like a second-class citizen). Wylie has a total chip on his shoulder from the class thing, that’s made clear, but the interracial thing is literally just never spoken about. Idk.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mass/school shootings and Sexual content
Moderate: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Emotional abuse, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, and Pregnancy
Minor: Child abuse and Classism
The book starts with a school shooting that kills Terrance (some others too), Cass is also shot and this causes her to lose her pregnancy.
More...