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readingwithmeredith's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Addiction, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Medical content, and Pregnancy
emilyacv's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Okay wow. This is womanhood!! This is female friendship! A story told through alternating perspectives of two best friends spanning decades. You see them fall in love, fight, thrive, struggle, learn hard lessons, and discover what truly matters at the end of the day: love. But love can take different forms and mean different things! That’s what I love about this book… it shows how two people can want different things and fill their cup in different ways, and yet the grass always seems greener on the other side. In the end, there isn’t one “right” choice. We see each best friend look at the other’s life and wonder if they made a mistake in their own. But at the end, Kate tells us that she’s satisfied. Looking back on her life, she remembers only love. The hard moments will never cancel out the love she shared with her friends and family. Thank you to this book for a reminder of what really matters <3 and a reminder to hug your besties
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer and Sexual assault
Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, and Death of parent
mary_xx's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Rape, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Drug use
leahfitts18's review
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
One of the best general fiction books I’ve read in a very very long time. I laughed with Tully & Kate, cried with them, gasped with them, and rooted for them. Not only did I sob for the last 10% of the book, I felt anger alongside Kate, loneliness alongside Tully, and joy with the both of them. What a beautiful exploration of female friendships, of chosen family, of the messy & hard nature of being a human. Kate living as a stay-at-home mom vs. Tully as rich and famous and yet both women feeling as though something is missing is such an enlightening juxtaposition and commentary on the fact that, in the world we live in, nothing is ever quite going to feel like enough. Both women think the other has it all, while simultaneously believing they are missing out. And yet, at the end of the day, they are the each other’s tether in the storm. I found Kate a bit more likable than Tully, and I suppose that was the point, but I cannot urge you to read this enough. A journey through the decades of two friends who have seen heartbreak, jealousy, betrayal, anger, teenage angst, young adulthood confusion, and everything in between- and yet they still find their way back to one another. Always.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault
randeerebecca's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Drug abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Miscarriage, Sexual content, Pregnancy, and Abandonment
Minor: Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, and War
brooke_harrison's review against another edition
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- 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
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, and Abandonment
Minor: Addiction, Drug use, and Toxic friendship
skylarlove's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This became one of my favorite books early into reading it. It’s messy, it’s emotional, it’s raw, it’s real. I tore through it and am still thinking about it days later. Girlhood and female friendships are so important and powerful. This made miss my elementary and middle school friends and long for platonic love. Even though I didn’t always agree with the characters’ choices and I was screaming internally, there is not a thing I would change. I’d recommend this book to any woman of any age. Be prepared to cry for a multitude of reasons.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault
meeklovestoread's review against another edition
A quote I liked:
"They were lovers, who didn't love each other, and that made talking easier" (118).
This is the second book of hers that I've dnfed. I really wanted to like this! The storyline seemed right up my alley but it just didn't hit for me. For one, if the author was trying to convince me that these two had a friendship that would stretch through every lifetime, she did an extremely poor job of showcasing that. I feel like the author did a lot of telling the reader that these girls are "best friends" and not a lot of showing it. I was not convinced that these two were best friends at all. Even how they met didn't seem significant or life-altering in any way. And when they did meet you could already feel a power imbalance between them. Kate was so desperate for a friend that she literally had no agency when it came to Tully. It's like she could never say "no" to her and the same pattern trickles on throughout all the pages that I read. Like one of their first encounters is Tully forcing Kate into a makeover and Kate being the obedient sidekick that she is, just goes along with it to make Tully happy. Or when Tully's upset that her grandmother died so she convinces Kate to go to this party with her even though Kate and her both know that going isn't a good idea, but does Kate say anything nope and as a result, they literally get arrested!
Another instance: Kate decides she wants to be a reporter just because Tully wants to. And this stretches out for sooooo long that she literally ends up going to college to study broadcast & journalism and even gets a job where Tully works even though she literally isn't passionate about any of it. I didn't even mind that these two were cliches of one another, but at least make them likable. At least make me root for their friendship!
I did like Tully at first. I really felt for her in terms of her upbringing and the things she had to go through. Weirdly enough I think it's her backstory that made her tolerable for me, but with Kate, I just found her super annoying from the get-go. She lives in this perfect little bubble where she's never had to face a single tragedy in her life and seems clueless about the struggles of the real world (which I understand is a part of her cliche, but I still found it annoying). She's so disrespectful to her mom in the beginning and I just don't get why. She's so desperate for friendship that she befriends the first person who gives her a little bit of attention. I just found her so pathetic. A prime example is when she has a crush on her boss (for what?! i don't know; he literally pays her no mind and isn't all that nice to her, but I digress), but he's obviously into Tully and instead of moving on like a reasonable person she just continues to PINE and PINE and PINE after him even after seeing him kiss Tully. She buys him lunch. She offers emotional support for him. She even accepts him when he shows up drunk on her doorstep looking for TULLY!
Her thoughts: "Maybe she could get him to forget Tully or change his mind, maybe tonight she didn't care if she would be his second choice, or if it would be because of the booze. Love could grow from drunken passion, couldn't it" (157)? Like HOW PATHETIC CAN YOU BE?!🥴
This is also another quote from the book where Kate even admits that she plays second fiddle to Tully:
"If only she were like her friend—confident and sexy and willing to make a grab at whatever—and whomever—she wanted. Then she might have a chance, but the thought of Johnny's rejection, of a blank-eyed, Huh? kept her standing in the shadow. Tully's shadow to be precise. As always, Kate was the backup singer who never stepped into the spotlight........... Kate knew she should say no. The last thing she wanted to do was sit at the table and watch Johnny watch Tully—but what choice did she have? She was the sidekick. Rhoda Morgenstern. And wherever Mary went, Rhoda had to follow, even if it hurt like hell" (152-153).
And I'm supposed to believe their "best friends"?! Get real!
It was so hard to even feel bad for her because she legit puts herself in these situations!
Back to their "friendship". To me, it seemed like a thing of convenience because both of them were desperate for companionship when they were teenagers and it just stretched out for years because they've tricked themselves into believing that their friendship will transcend time or something. In real life, these girls would not be friends. Of course for the obvious reasons I've listed above, but also because Kate seems to hide herself from Tully and seems lowkey afraid of her. Like she's afraid of how Tully would view her. I know I mentioned this before but I find it ridiculous that it's clear Kate doesn't have any interest in being a reporter but she's scared of how Tully will perceive her. Which is so stupid because if they were really best friends it wouldn't matter. This book is full of cliches but the cliche I can't get behind is the assumption that just because two people are best friends that means they should be attached to the hip and do everything under the sun together.
Oh, and when Katie does get some agency and tells Tully how she feels (about Tully having an affair with her professor) it's this whole fight. Tully just can't handle Katie's truth. And I don't think that's sold ground for a friendship. I know hiked on Kate a lot in this review, but honestly, Tully is no better. She usually isn't interested in the things Kate likes and is too self-absorbed to take Kate's opinions seriously. Their friendship is just so forced and you can't convince me otherwise. I just can't understand how little agency someone would have to go above and beyond to impress something that's supposed to be their friend.
Overall this isn't a bad book, but it also wasn't anything phenomenal so I don't see any reason to continue if I wasn't enjoying it. If I had to give it a rating based on the portion that I did read, I'd give it a 3-star ⭐⭐⭐/5. (also, I thought the Firefly Lane Street would've served more significance and maybe it does later in the book, but if not the title it really does render the title of this book redundant)
spice rating: 🌶️.5/5
"They were lovers, who didn't love each other, and that made talking easier" (118).
This is the second book of hers that I've dnfed. I really wanted to like this! The storyline seemed right up my alley but it just didn't hit for me. For one, if the author was trying to convince me that these two had a friendship that would stretch through every lifetime, she did an extremely poor job of showcasing that. I feel like the author did a lot of telling the reader that these girls are "best friends" and not a lot of showing it. I was not convinced that these two were best friends at all. Even how they met didn't seem significant or life-altering in any way. And when they did meet you could already feel a power imbalance between them. Kate was so desperate for a friend that she literally had no agency when it came to Tully. It's like she could never say "no" to her and the same pattern trickles on throughout all the pages that I read.
Another instance: Kate decides she wants to be a reporter just because Tully wants to. And this stretches out for sooooo long that she literally ends up going to college to study broadcast & journalism and even gets a job where Tully works even though she literally isn't passionate about any of it.
I did like Tully at first. I really felt for her in terms of her upbringing and the things she had to go through. Weirdly enough I think it's her backstory that made her tolerable for me, but with Kate, I just found her super annoying from the get-go. She lives in this perfect little bubble where she's never had to face a single tragedy in her life and seems clueless about the struggles of the real world (which I understand is a part of her cliche, but I still found it annoying). She's so disrespectful to her mom in the beginning and I just don't get why. She's so desperate for friendship that she befriends the first person who gives her a little bit of attention. I just found her so pathetic.
Her thoughts: "Maybe she could get him to forget Tully or change his mind, maybe tonight she didn't care if she would be his second choice, or if it would be because of the booze. Love could grow from drunken passion, couldn't it" (157)? Like HOW PATHETIC CAN YOU BE?!🥴
This is also another quote from the book where Kate even admits that she plays second fiddle to Tully:
"If only she were like her friend—confident and sexy and willing to make a grab at whatever—and whomever—she wanted. Then she might have a chance, but the thought of Johnny's rejection, of a blank-eyed, Huh? kept her standing in the shadow. Tully's shadow to be precise. As always, Kate was the backup singer who never stepped into the spotlight........... Kate knew she should say no. The last thing she wanted to do was sit at the table and watch Johnny watch Tully—but what choice did she have? She was the sidekick. Rhoda Morgenstern. And wherever Mary went, Rhoda had to follow, even if it hurt like hell" (152-153).
And I'm supposed to believe their "best friends"?! Get real!
Back to their "friendship". To me, it seemed like a thing of convenience because both of them were desperate for companionship when they were teenagers and it just stretched out for years because they've tricked themselves into believing that their friendship will transcend time or something. In real life, these girls would not be friends. Of course for the obvious reasons I've listed above, but also because Kate seems to hide herself from Tully and seems lowkey afraid of her. Like she's afraid of how Tully would view her.
Oh, and when Katie does get some agency and tells Tully how she feels (about Tully having an affair with her professor) it's this whole fight. Tully just can't handle Katie's truth. And I don't think that's sold ground for a friendship. I know hiked on Kate a lot in this review, but honestly, Tully is no better. She usually isn't interested in the things Kate likes and is too self-absorbed to take Kate's opinions seriously. Their friendship is just so forced and you can't convince me otherwise.
Overall this isn't a bad book, but it also wasn't anything phenomenal so I don't see any reason to continue if I wasn't enjoying it. If I had to give it a rating based on the portion that I did read, I'd give it a 3-star ⭐⭐⭐/5. (also, I thought the Firefly Lane Street would've served more significance and maybe it does later in the book, but if not the title it really does render the title of this book redundant)
spice rating: 🌶️.5/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Rape, Sexual assault, Grief, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual content, and Alcohol
Minor: War
elizabeth_juliet's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
One of the saddest books I have read, had me sobbing on the floor, but do read it, I promise it’s worth it.
A beautiful coming of age novel about two friends that couldn’t be more different, and yet mutually thrive when together. Beging when Kate and Tully are in eighth grade and following their lives for over three decades, this book features incredible character development and personal growth.
Desperate to be seen and heard after a childhood of neglect, Tully attempts to fill her life with success and romance, pulling Kate along for the ride. Tully dreams of being on television and becoming a star, while Kate secretly yearns for a quiet life filled with laughter and love. As these friends embark on wildly different life journeys, their friendship is tested many times, through jealousy, betrayals, and secrets, it prevails through all of the hardship. Tully and Kate have been faced with all of the challenges the world can dump on them, and yet get through it together.
Recommend for those who live a good coming of age friendship-centered tale, and a good cry.
A beautiful coming of age novel about two friends that couldn’t be more different, and yet mutually thrive when together. Beging when Kate and Tully are in eighth grade and following their lives for over three decades, this book features incredible character development and personal growth.
Desperate to be seen and heard after a childhood of neglect, Tully attempts to fill her life with success and romance, pulling Kate along for the ride. Tully dreams of being on television and becoming a star, while Kate secretly yearns for a quiet life filled with laughter and love. As these friends embark on wildly different life journeys, their friendship is tested many times, through jealousy, betrayals, and secrets, it prevails through all of the hardship. Tully and Kate have been faced with all of the challenges the world can dump on them, and yet get through it together.
Recommend for those who live a good coming of age friendship-centered tale, and a good cry.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
Minor: Alcoholism and Miscarriage
sarahfeller's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infertility, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Alcohol