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nickieandremus's review against another edition
5.0
*** I received an advanced e-copy from Net Galley in exchange for my honest review
Mia and Michael Slate have a wonderful life, with their son Finn. Then one night, it all goes wrong. They find out their best friend and Michael's business partner has cheated them out of millions, and at the same time Finn goes to a party at a friend's house and a series of tragic events change Finn's life forever.
I loved this book. It had characters you want to root for and ones you want to hate. There are lots of surprises along the way, and an excellent storyline that keeps you captivated. I highly recommend this book!
Mia and Michael Slate have a wonderful life, with their son Finn. Then one night, it all goes wrong. They find out their best friend and Michael's business partner has cheated them out of millions, and at the same time Finn goes to a party at a friend's house and a series of tragic events change Finn's life forever.
I loved this book. It had characters you want to root for and ones you want to hate. There are lots of surprises along the way, and an excellent storyline that keeps you captivated. I highly recommend this book!
booksuperpower's review against another edition
4.0
We all Love the Beautiful Girls by Joanne Proulx is a 2018 Grand Central publication.
This is an incredibly absorbing tale, set in Canada, which weaves around Mia and Michael, an affluent couple with a teenage son, named Finn.
In a very short span of time, this couple, who feel so very blessed and sure of their worthiness of such bliss, will see their world come crashing down around them. As their heartbroken son, Finn, lays out in the elements, barely surviving his ordeal, lucky that he only lost a hand to frostbite, Michael learns his best friend and business partner, Peter, has been embezzling funds and robbed him of his partnership in their company, leaving him flailing in the wind.
Finn will relate his teenage saga in a first- person narrative, which brings the angst, drama, and pecking order of the teenage fiefdoms into sharp focus. Finn is in love with his former babysitter, who also has a relationship with Eric, Finn’s best friend Eli’s older brother. This is not the only love triangle, as ironically enough, Peter’s daughter, Frankie, is in love with Finn, While Eli is in love with Frankie. Whew! Got all that? It was a little hard to keep up with it all. It also reminded me of that old song, “Love Stinks”.
After Finn suffers the loss of his hand, Mia is left holding the bag in the care and nursing department, while her husband strikes up an odd relationship with a baseball obsessed street kid. As Mia grows weary of Michael’s absences, she begins playing a dangerous game, flirting with a full -fledged affair.
All the while Mia and Michael are so busy feeling sorry for themselves and acting out in peculiar, immature ways, pointing fingers and rationalizing their behavior, they fail their son in every way imaginable. It seemed like everything was about them. These parents were totally clueless about what was going on with Finn, leaving him to muddle through without their full emotional support.
Nope, not too many likeable characters in this one. I really couldn’t summon up much empathy for the adults in this novel at all. But, I did feel that powerful mixture of teenage confusion and pain. Most of us lived through some version of this and then saw our own children through it. It’s a period most of us would never chose to live through again, and if we were being honest, we all still carry the scars from those years, as those experiences shaped us more than perhaps any other, even the formative years. Yet, we make it through, bloodied and bruised, maybe a little less naïve, a little battle fatigued, more prepared for the full -fledged assault adulthood will present. Finn’s situation, of course, makes his journey out much more of a challenge, and while teenagers are often the cruelest of creatures, this was the part of the story that made me feel something.
But, the writing is interesting, with a switch between first -and third person narratives, and the author’s obvious homage to Canada was mesmerizing. Proulx allowed her home country to become a centerpiece of the story, almost playing as large of a role as the characters.
The story barrels along towards what looks like an inevitable train wreck, and all the reader can do is hope there won’t be too many casualties. The story is, however, realistic and messy, like real life, when things suddenly to hell in a handbasket. It’s turbulent, dark, moody, and yes, a little depressing.
The conclusion is not all that pat or cheerful and did not end like one may have hoped. Yet, there is some light at the end of the dark tunnel. Eventually a little character growth develops, a new appreciation for what really matters in this world, and the realization that we can never take anything for granted, that life can turn on a dime, and we should be aware every second of every day, especially with those closest to us- and that goes double for your children.
3.5 stars
This is an incredibly absorbing tale, set in Canada, which weaves around Mia and Michael, an affluent couple with a teenage son, named Finn.
In a very short span of time, this couple, who feel so very blessed and sure of their worthiness of such bliss, will see their world come crashing down around them. As their heartbroken son, Finn, lays out in the elements, barely surviving his ordeal, lucky that he only lost a hand to frostbite, Michael learns his best friend and business partner, Peter, has been embezzling funds and robbed him of his partnership in their company, leaving him flailing in the wind.
Finn will relate his teenage saga in a first- person narrative, which brings the angst, drama, and pecking order of the teenage fiefdoms into sharp focus. Finn is in love with his former babysitter, who also has a relationship with Eric, Finn’s best friend Eli’s older brother. This is not the only love triangle, as ironically enough, Peter’s daughter, Frankie, is in love with Finn, While Eli is in love with Frankie. Whew! Got all that? It was a little hard to keep up with it all. It also reminded me of that old song, “Love Stinks”.
After Finn suffers the loss of his hand, Mia is left holding the bag in the care and nursing department, while her husband strikes up an odd relationship with a baseball obsessed street kid. As Mia grows weary of Michael’s absences, she begins playing a dangerous game, flirting with a full -fledged affair.
All the while Mia and Michael are so busy feeling sorry for themselves and acting out in peculiar, immature ways, pointing fingers and rationalizing their behavior, they fail their son in every way imaginable. It seemed like everything was about them. These parents were totally clueless about what was going on with Finn, leaving him to muddle through without their full emotional support.
Nope, not too many likeable characters in this one. I really couldn’t summon up much empathy for the adults in this novel at all. But, I did feel that powerful mixture of teenage confusion and pain. Most of us lived through some version of this and then saw our own children through it. It’s a period most of us would never chose to live through again, and if we were being honest, we all still carry the scars from those years, as those experiences shaped us more than perhaps any other, even the formative years. Yet, we make it through, bloodied and bruised, maybe a little less naïve, a little battle fatigued, more prepared for the full -fledged assault adulthood will present. Finn’s situation, of course, makes his journey out much more of a challenge, and while teenagers are often the cruelest of creatures, this was the part of the story that made me feel something.
But, the writing is interesting, with a switch between first -and third person narratives, and the author’s obvious homage to Canada was mesmerizing. Proulx allowed her home country to become a centerpiece of the story, almost playing as large of a role as the characters.
The story barrels along towards what looks like an inevitable train wreck, and all the reader can do is hope there won’t be too many casualties. The story is, however, realistic and messy, like real life, when things suddenly to hell in a handbasket. It’s turbulent, dark, moody, and yes, a little depressing.
The conclusion is not all that pat or cheerful and did not end like one may have hoped. Yet, there is some light at the end of the dark tunnel. Eventually a little character growth develops, a new appreciation for what really matters in this world, and the realization that we can never take anything for granted, that life can turn on a dime, and we should be aware every second of every day, especially with those closest to us- and that goes double for your children.
3.5 stars
steviaplath's review against another edition
1.0
DNF
Long, meandering tale about privileged white folks doing privileged white things. I could not have cared less about Michael and truly did not need paragraph upon paragraph dedicated to him just walking to the baseball field. A lot of tell not show all about the beautiful landscapes of Canada, but if I wanted that I would have read a travel guide.
Mia and Finn could have both had compelling stories individually but this book is attempting to do way too much at one time. Author should have picked one plot line and stuck to that, it was next to impossible to care about any of the characters because of how the book is structured.
Long, meandering tale about privileged white folks doing privileged white things. I could not have cared less about Michael and truly did not need paragraph upon paragraph dedicated to him just walking to the baseball field. A lot of tell not show all about the beautiful landscapes of Canada, but if I wanted that I would have read a travel guide.
Mia and Finn could have both had compelling stories individually but this book is attempting to do way too much at one time. Author should have picked one plot line and stuck to that, it was next to impossible to care about any of the characters because of how the book is structured.
duhnae's review against another edition
3.0
I have mixed feelings. The first part of the book is very clunky and the choice to switch tenses for one character is questionable. It took awhile to warm up to all the main characters, and eventually I began to enjoy the story. Again, the choices towards the end are confusing, and I feel the author began communicating a message far too late in the story that she never did quite get across.
pmejia's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
pretty good, solid plot
ahpotts's review against another edition
4.0
Complex, moving portrayal of love and the inextricable ties of relationships. This one will stick with me.
rynkem's review against another edition
4.0
Such a Gripping tale of adolescence, adulthood, love and relationships... Of things spiralling out of control ...
Very hard to put this one down.
Very hard to put this one down.
murrellk's review
2.0
This book was tedious at best. The characters are all self-involved, horrible people. There was no actual plot or point to this entire story and I really wish I hadn’t bother to read it at all.
I’d recommend some consistent punctuation in any future novels that the author may write. The haphazard quotation marks we’re truly infuriating.
Two very generous stars from a reader who normally gives too many in the first place.
I’d recommend some consistent punctuation in any future novels that the author may write. The haphazard quotation marks we’re truly infuriating.
Two very generous stars from a reader who normally gives too many in the first place.
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