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A review by orchids
The Someday Daughter by Ellen O'Clover
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for the Advanced Reader Copy!
OOF. This book hits hard (in all the right places!). This Contemporary YA novel follows Audrey St. Vrain, daughter of Camilla St. Vrain who is a famous self-help author, during the summer before her freshman year of college. Audrey had big plans to have a super productive summer by attending a prestigious summer premed program which would set her up for success in college, but she ends up getting roped into joining a summer book tour to promote the 25th anniversary of her mother's book, "Letters to My Someday Daughter," and confront her strained relationship with her. After having to endure the stresses of being in the spotlight and answering questions about her and her mother despite not having the picture-perfect relationship that her mother always boasts about, Audrey finds herself having to acknowledge difficult truths about herself and her family.
While this book was slow to start, it got me in the second half, and that twist shocked me to my core! I audibly gasped! At times Audrey's stubbornness was eye-roll worry and occasionally got on my nerves, but I'm also a 25-year-old who has gone through a lot of therapy! And to be fair, I very much acted like Audrey when I was her age. All the other characters were lovely! Except for Silas, Sadie, and Camilla, the side characters did feel a tad one-noted, but they were still a joy to read and provided a nice comic relief. There is a small bit of romance in this book, BUT "The Someday Daughter" is far beyond a standard YA romance novel. At its core, this novel is about Audrey and her mental health struggles and navigating her relationship with her mother. It's incredibly written and is so beautiful in a raw and vulnerable way. It is worth a read if you are looking for something fresh in the YA world!
OOF. This book hits hard (in all the right places!). This Contemporary YA novel follows Audrey St. Vrain, daughter of Camilla St. Vrain who is a famous self-help author, during the summer before her freshman year of college. Audrey had big plans to have a super productive summer by attending a prestigious summer premed program which would set her up for success in college, but she ends up getting roped into joining a summer book tour to promote the 25th anniversary of her mother's book, "Letters to My Someday Daughter," and confront her strained relationship with her. After having to endure the stresses of being in the spotlight and answering questions about her and her mother despite not having the picture-perfect relationship that her mother always boasts about, Audrey finds herself having to acknowledge difficult truths about herself and her family.
While this book was slow to start, it got me in the second half, and that twist shocked me to my core! I audibly gasped! At times Audrey's stubbornness was eye-roll worry and occasionally got on my nerves, but I'm also a 25-year-old who has gone through a lot of therapy! And to be fair, I very much acted like Audrey when I was her age. All the other characters were lovely! Except for Silas, Sadie, and Camilla, the side characters did feel a tad one-noted, but they were still a joy to read and provided a nice comic relief. There is a small bit of romance in this book, BUT "The Someday Daughter" is far beyond a standard YA romance novel. At its core, this novel is about Audrey and her mental health struggles and navigating her relationship with her mother. It's incredibly written and is so beautiful in a raw and vulnerable way. It is worth a read if you are looking for something fresh in the YA world!