Scan barcode
mollywetta's review
5.0
I devoured this book on a beautiful Sunday afternoon. It had everything I look for in a story—gripping characters and a beautiful, lyrical style of prose. I read all sorts of books across all genres, but this is definitely my favorite kind, the kind I will reread over and over again.
April & Oliver is so much more than a love story. it's about family. It's about friendship. It's about life. Each character, even the minor ones, are rendered with painstaking detail that makes them come alive. They feel like people you know.
The story isn't a straight, linear plot, but a story told in the present with frequent flashbacks that don't slow down the story, as flashbacks have a tendency to do. They add a rich, deep texture to the narrative.
I wouldn't recommend this story to those who favor light, plot driven chick-lit with happy endings. But if you appreciate deep characterization and that ache of an uncertain, unresolved ending that will echo for several days after reading, this book is for you.
April & Oliver is so much more than a love story. it's about family. It's about friendship. It's about life. Each character, even the minor ones, are rendered with painstaking detail that makes them come alive. They feel like people you know.
The story isn't a straight, linear plot, but a story told in the present with frequent flashbacks that don't slow down the story, as flashbacks have a tendency to do. They add a rich, deep texture to the narrative.
I wouldn't recommend this story to those who favor light, plot driven chick-lit with happy endings. But if you appreciate deep characterization and that ache of an uncertain, unresolved ending that will echo for several days after reading, this book is for you.
amym84's review
5.0
I was a little apprehensive about this book. It seems like all the citics like the book a lot. A lot of praise. When I look at the reviews on goodreads there seems to be a mixed bag. Personally, I'm tired of books that just seem the drag the characters down and by the end I'm down too. I was really hoping this book wouldn't be like that.
I abosolutely loved this book. All my apprehensions were unfounded. Don't get me wrong the book is not completely full of happiness. Our characters go through a lot in the course of the book but Tess Callahan does a great job of ending on an upswing.
April and Oliver were childhood friends who ended up growing apart after high school. Oliver goes to school across the country, but returns to New York (fiance in tow) to go to graduate school. April and Oliver are sadly reunited at April's young brother's funeral. As soon as these two begin their interactions the reader quickly knows there's a strong connection there that not even time or separation can take that away.
At first,I'll admit, I was unsure of April. I couldn't get a handle on her personality. But soon through her actions and when other speak of her I find that she's very kind and caring. Sometimes this is not to her advantage. April, now in her late twenties, grew up with many complications in her life. She was both physically and mentally abused by a few adults in her life. She sort of took it upon herself to raise her little brother. The complete details of what happened to her mother is never specifically given, but April definitely took on the motherly role with Buddy (her little brother). The abuse that April received in adolecense follows her into adulthood. There were times that I really wanted her to take control and turn her life around, but the she would take two steps back. Evenutally, April does make progress and she continues on and on. It was refreshing to see her progression from the beginning of the book until the end. She didn't let herself stay stuck she was able to pull herself out. I will say that I loved the interactions between April and her grandmother, Nana. It was these interactions that fully solidified my opinion of April's kind heartedness.
Oliver seems like the opposite of April. He moves back to New York from California, with his fiance Bernadette, to go to Law School. He has always seems like he has it all together. He grew up with a great family even though he lost his mother to cancer about ten years ago. Upon returning to New York and reuniting with friends and family he finds out that maybe the life he always thought was good had hidden secrets. Besides learning new things about his family, he learns there's some unacknowledged feelings of his own. Whereas April starts at the bottom and is working her way up, Oliver starts at the top and begins to tumble down.
Both April and Oliver need to go through everything in order to figure out ultimately who they are and what they want out of life.
It's so clear from the beginning that April and Oliver have chemistry. As the reader you want to be on the side of true love and romance and believe that these two should be together, but the thing is that sometimes people shouldn't be together. The whole book I was rooting for April and Oliver to finally get to that place, but then the book would turn and I would think that maybe they need more time. There were so many other complications that if they moved too quickly they wouldn't last and they would lose their friendship as well. So at what point do you just try to remain friends?
This book is a beautiful read. I'm really glad I dove in and didn't listen to some of the negative reviews. It's been one of those books that I can't get out of my head. I wish their story would continue, but I like filling in the blanks on my own. This will definitely be a book that I will read again many times in the future.
I abosolutely loved this book. All my apprehensions were unfounded. Don't get me wrong the book is not completely full of happiness. Our characters go through a lot in the course of the book but Tess Callahan does a great job of ending on an upswing.
April and Oliver were childhood friends who ended up growing apart after high school. Oliver goes to school across the country, but returns to New York (fiance in tow) to go to graduate school. April and Oliver are sadly reunited at April's young brother's funeral. As soon as these two begin their interactions the reader quickly knows there's a strong connection there that not even time or separation can take that away.
At first,I'll admit, I was unsure of April. I couldn't get a handle on her personality. But soon through her actions and when other speak of her I find that she's very kind and caring. Sometimes this is not to her advantage. April, now in her late twenties, grew up with many complications in her life. She was both physically and mentally abused by a few adults in her life. She sort of took it upon herself to raise her little brother. The complete details of what happened to her mother is never specifically given, but April definitely took on the motherly role with Buddy (her little brother). The abuse that April received in adolecense follows her into adulthood. There were times that I really wanted her to take control and turn her life around, but the she would take two steps back. Evenutally, April does make progress and she continues on and on. It was refreshing to see her progression from the beginning of the book until the end. She didn't let herself stay stuck she was able to pull herself out. I will say that I loved the interactions between April and her grandmother, Nana. It was these interactions that fully solidified my opinion of April's kind heartedness.
Oliver seems like the opposite of April. He moves back to New York from California, with his fiance Bernadette, to go to Law School. He has always seems like he has it all together. He grew up with a great family even though he lost his mother to cancer about ten years ago. Upon returning to New York and reuniting with friends and family he finds out that maybe the life he always thought was good had hidden secrets. Besides learning new things about his family, he learns there's some unacknowledged feelings of his own. Whereas April starts at the bottom and is working her way up, Oliver starts at the top and begins to tumble down.
Both April and Oliver need to go through everything in order to figure out ultimately who they are and what they want out of life.
It's so clear from the beginning that April and Oliver have chemistry. As the reader you want to be on the side of true love and romance and believe that these two should be together, but the thing is that sometimes people shouldn't be together. The whole book I was rooting for April and Oliver to finally get to that place, but then the book would turn and I would think that maybe they need more time. There were so many other complications that if they moved too quickly they wouldn't last and they would lose their friendship as well. So at what point do you just try to remain friends?
This book is a beautiful read. I'm really glad I dove in and didn't listen to some of the negative reviews. It's been one of those books that I can't get out of my head. I wish their story would continue, but I like filling in the blanks on my own. This will definitely be a book that I will read again many times in the future.
amysbrittain's review
4.0
The premise sounds like one that could've driven me crazy, but really I was dying to get back to this book whenever I wasn't reading it. Hard to say whether the two main characters were cursed or destined to keep circling back to each other, and I couldn't tell which way things were going until the end. It's dialogue-driven and yet April and Oliver and other supporting characters were developed fully. Really enjoyed this.
dianametzger's review
3.0
An engaging read, to be sure. Both the main characters, from the title, are both wholly unlikeable, but I don't think that's the intention. This is a problem bc by the end, I wasn't rooting for their success. There's also all this family backstory and a bit of a thriller side storyline that feel totally muddled and too neatly tied up.
primahattie2's review
3.0
This book has been on my TBR for a while now. I listened to it on Audible. I enjoyed listening to it, I thought the narrator did a good job.
I want to first say that this is not a romance, it is a tragedy. It is heartbreaking and heart wrenching. April and Oliver are step cousins (their dads are stepbrothers) and were best friends growing up. There was some sexual tension between them but nothing came of it. April lived a sad life. I don't want to go into that, but she broke my heart. Oliver is the golden child; he never got into any trouble, went to law school, yada yada. After living in California for a while, Oliver moves back to NY with his fiancé. After not seeing or speaking to April in so long, now he sees her everywhere. April's brother, Buddy, passes away suddenly and it devastates April. Oliver and April slowly become friends again. However, Oliver is so in love with April. It's sad, really. I'm going to leave my synopsis with that.
Overall, it's a 3 star book for me. I was expecting a love story.
I want to first say that this is not a romance, it is a tragedy. It is heartbreaking and heart wrenching. April and Oliver are step cousins (their dads are stepbrothers) and were best friends growing up. There was some sexual tension between them but nothing came of it. April lived a sad life. I don't want to go into that, but she broke my heart. Oliver is the golden child; he never got into any trouble, went to law school, yada yada. After living in California for a while, Oliver moves back to NY with his fiancé. After not seeing or speaking to April in so long, now he sees her everywhere. April's brother, Buddy, passes away suddenly and it devastates April. Oliver and April slowly become friends again. However, Oliver is so in love with April. It's sad, really. I'm going to leave my synopsis with that.
Overall, it's a 3 star book for me. I was expecting a love story.
meggreadsxo's review
5.0
A dreamy, romantic novel written intelligently. Beautiful characterization, with an airy, relaxed plot. All around an enjoyable read. This is a cozy book to enjoy while sitting by the water.
annneilson's review
4.0
I loved this book. It kept me up WAY too late two nights in a row! I'll be looking forward to another book by this author.
yarnreader's review
3.0
To start off, this is a very well written novel. The writing had me immersed in the story every time I picked up the book. It was a refreshing read after all of the young adults' novels/series I had been reading. (Sometimes you need a change of pace before you get burned out with a genre.)
Now, my only gripe I have with this novel is that the summery in the book jacket and here on Goodreads is kind of misleading. To me, it gives the impression that it's going to be this romance novel about two people who have a history of being best friends since being teenagers with a hint of deeper feelings underneath that come out while one character is about to get married and the other deals with abusive relationships. Then, possibly, in the end, they get together and live happily ever after. This isn't necessarily the case. There is a lot of tension, some romantic tension but mostly tension from unresolved issues from some tough topics from the past. And the ending leaves a bit of a melancholy feeling to into, not the happily ever after you expect from novels listed in the romance genre. It wasn't what I expected but not in a bad way.
This is one that will be sticking around on my bookshelf for a while longer and we'll see how I feel about in the future whenever I re-read it.
Now, my only gripe I have with this novel is that the summery in the book jacket and here on Goodreads is kind of misleading. To me, it gives the impression that it's going to be this romance novel about two people who have a history of being best friends since being teenagers with a hint of deeper feelings underneath that come out while one character is about to get married and the other deals with abusive relationships. Then, possibly, in the end, they get together and live happily ever after. This isn't necessarily the case. There is a lot of tension, some romantic tension but mostly tension from unresolved issues from some tough topics from the past. And the ending leaves a bit of a melancholy feeling to into, not the happily ever after you expect from novels listed in the romance genre. It wasn't what I expected but not in a bad way.
This is one that will be sticking around on my bookshelf for a while longer and we'll see how I feel about in the future whenever I re-read it.
sophilozophy's review
1.0
I don't know how to rate this book. I think Tess Callahan is a talented writer. I went through the emotions April was going through from feeling numb to what I saw as self hatred, which to me is why she's in a abusive relationship, if you want to call it a relationship. I wouldn't put this book in the romance genre, which is where a lot of people put it. I guess I just like my romance novels with romance in it. They were always on the verge of something happening, but nothing ever did, which gets frustrating. This book ends on a higher note than it started on, but seeing that the book starts with a funeral, that's not hard to accomplish. I didn't like the ending. Unless it's a series that will continue, I like my endings to be as definite as possible.
More...