I am really struggling on how to rate this book as there were parts I felt were remarkable well handled and others I didn’t feel that comfortable with.
The author didn’t shy away from tough topics as this book covers mature content like sexual assault and abortion. Trust me, this book isn’t full of roses and sunshine. It’s dark, raw, hard, and gritty and yet handled with tact. But not for the faint of heart. This book exhausted me emotionally; it was a literal roller coaster of ups and downs.
I didn’t agree with everything that happened, but it definitely made me think. Sara paints a painfully accurate picture of teenager romance/relationships. The story highlights the dangers of refusing to see reg flags in relationships, the danger of not listening to wise counsel, and thinking you can “change” the other person in a relationship. Plot wise, I’ve never had much patience for high school romance and drama and teenage dating and love triangles, but that’s just me personally.
The ending made me sad. I truly wish things had ended differently. I get it; life isn’t a fairytale, but when you invest feelings for these characters for the entire book only to have everything blasted to smithereens. Yeah, my heart can’t take that.
Molly was a girl I wanted to shake some sense into for most of the book; Jason was a creep; and Tyler…bless me, he was a sweetheart.
I’m not rating the story because I simply don’t know how to, but these were my honest thoughts.
Content: mentions of premarital sex and birth control; mention of sex-ed, unprotected sex, and condoms; girl is raped, the scene is not explicit but it is clear what is happening; girl shares a bed with her best guy friend but nothing happens; Lord’s name used as a swear word; some language; girl moves in with her boyfriend and sleeps with him