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mjenae's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Not as good as her others. I loved the beginning, and if it would've ended a bit differently—with a full turn-around on Gordy's part—this might be a five-star. But while it landed on a happy note (for Gordy, at least), it never provided solid proof that he would ever turn his back on the old life. He said once, in the narration, "No matter what I did, that anger would always be there, ticking away in my head like a bomb." And that seemed to be the theme of his thoughts throughout the entire book: "I'm a worthless delinquent, and no matter how hard I try, I'll always turn out like my father." It almost entirely erased the hope the second book offered.
On top of that, Gordy is two years older in this book than in the first one, and all he ever thinks about is girls. The chapters are full of the cliché "she was pretty and I wanted to kiss her/ask her on a date/be her boyfriend" nonsense. I know, I know it's probably realistic, but it bothered me that Gordy never cared much about getting to know the girls any better.Maggie was so kind to him, whereas Liz was an absolute brat, but Gordy fell in love with Liz at first sight just because she was flawlessly beautiful. And on the subject of Maggie—I thought she was the most mature and probably had the best story to tell, and yet the author practically ignored her for the entire book. It felt slightly unjust.
So, while this book would have been great as a stand-alone, it was a little disappointing as the last book of a series. The second book would've offered a much better closure to Gordy's story, in my opinion.
On top of that, Gordy is two years older in this book than in the first one, and all he ever thinks about is girls. The chapters are full of the cliché "she was pretty and I wanted to kiss her/ask her on a date/be her boyfriend" nonsense. I know, I know it's probably realistic, but it bothered me that Gordy never cared much about getting to know the girls any better.
So, while this book would have been great as a stand-alone, it was a little disappointing as the last book of a series. The second book would've offered a much better closure to Gordy's story, in my opinion.
literallykaren's review against another edition
4.0
The sequel to "Following My Own Footsteps." I don't remember this book as well as the two that come before it, but I do know that I adore the Gordy sequels to Stepping on the Cracks. Some of this author's best work.
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