A review by roxy324
The Rest of the Story by Sarah Dessen

3.0

Dessen has a special spot in my YA heart. While the novel remained lighter fare, there were darker elements that remind us that family, especially parents, are flawed and complex. Saylor's mom was a drug addict who ended up dying of an overdose. She had it all, the handsome husband, great daughter, beautiful home, but underneath all of that she had intense demons that beat her even after many rehab attempts.

I appreciate that Saylor didn't shy away from her mother's complexities. She remembered her as she was, a human that had a problem, which is difficult for kids to do without resentment or anger. Throughout the novel she has to push her father to give her her own history, which he refuses to do out of grief.

While reading the interactions with between Saylor and her father, I couldn't help but find it difficult to believe how rational a 17 year was regarding her father's completely irrational actions. She was too level headed to be believed. A young adult can very well be mature but there were plenty of moments where Saylor's actions weren't convincing for someone her age. That aside, I enjoyed the family dynamics between the cousins.