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j_readsbooks's review against another edition
4.0
I’ve been looking forward to this book for so long, I just loved the idea of the story. This is probably actually 4.5 stars, so close to being 5 but I just can’t get over that tragedy. I just absolutely didn’t see it coming and I was like WHAT THE F*CK?! But the rest of the story was so good, I really love Thayer and Salem, they’re relationship was so great until it wasn’t. I’m also not a huge fan of that trope at the end so I’m not sure how I feel about it. But I am excited for the next book regardless.
kaitlyn_thebooktasting's review against another edition
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
kelsey_13's review against another edition
1.0
not sure why I read the entire book
This could possibly be the worst book I’ve ever read. It sounds like it was written by an 8th grader. I was so confused as to why it’s rated to highly, it deserves a much lowe rating
This could possibly be the worst book I’ve ever read. It sounds like it was written by an 8th grader. I was so confused as to why it’s rated to highly, it deserves a much lowe rating
icedviennalatte's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 ⭐️ i’m traumatized
update: writing a better review because I wrote that ^ right after finishing the book before falling asleep 2 seconds later
I have mixed feelings about this book. I love a good age-gap romance, although I prefer when the younger character is at least post-college age...it felt weird reading about an 18-year-old who is barely legal. Despite my feelings on this, the author wrote Thayer and Salem's relationship really well. It felt natural, sweet, and wasn't creepy or weird. The only thing I found strange was that Thayer would wake up at like 5 am every day and sit in his basement gym waiting for Salem in case she had a nightmare. The gesture is cute in theory, but I'm just picturing this man waking up at the crack of dawn every morning to go sit on a workout bench in his basement gym, staring at the wall, waiting for Salem to potentially come over.
ANYWAY, there are so many tragic/just plain shitty events that occur in this book that were, quite frankly, unnecessary. It feels like the author just tried to squeeze in as many awful things as possible to make the story deep and emotional. I am a very emotional person, and I wasn't affected by these upsetting events because the emotions were hardly explored. The only thing that truly made me feel something was the end of the book.
First of all, Salem has a traumatic history of being sexually abused by her father. She is frequently haunted by nightmares that force her to relive the experience. While I appreciate that such an (unfortunately) common traumatic experience is being discussed, it is never explored throughout the story. She just occasionally has bad dreams, and it seems to be thrown in there without any rhyme or reason.
The cheating...why? Caleb was the kindest soul, loving boyfriend, and dependable friend. It was hard to like Salem as a character for cheating on him. She literally could have just broken up with him before getting with Thayer. I just hate cheating in books, especially when it is extremely unnecessary (which is usually the case). I get that people make mistakes, cheating happens, and it doesn't make someone a terrible person, but Salem just cheated on Caleb and that was that. All this did was make me dislike her.
Salem's mom randomly being diagnosed with cancer. I guess this happened to bring Salem, her sister, and her mom closer together. And also to show how loving and supportive Thayer is? Thankfully she pulls through and is fine. It just felt super random and unneeded.
Finally, the worst part of the book is death. Forrest's death was so tragic that I actually was crying while reading it. Horrible things happen in real life, and they are going to happen in books too. I'm not mad that the author chose to kill off a character, but I am upset that a child's death is being used as a plot device to break Thayer and Salem up. It could have been anything else. All of this happened in the last 10% and it really ended the story on a depressing note. This was the part that traumatized me
Honestly, this book felt like one depressing thing after another. Don't trust the pretty flowers on the cover, this book is not happy and wholesome
update: writing a better review because I wrote that ^ right after finishing the book before falling asleep 2 seconds later
I have mixed feelings about this book. I love a good age-gap romance, although I prefer when the younger character is at least post-college age...it felt weird reading about an 18-year-old who is barely legal. Despite my feelings on this, the author wrote Thayer and Salem's relationship really well. It felt natural, sweet, and wasn't creepy or weird. The only thing I found strange was that Thayer would wake up at like 5 am every day and sit in his basement gym waiting for Salem in case she had a nightmare. The gesture is cute in theory, but I'm just picturing this man waking up at the crack of dawn every morning to go sit on a workout bench in his basement gym, staring at the wall, waiting for Salem to potentially come over.
ANYWAY, there are so many tragic/just plain shitty events that occur in this book that were, quite frankly, unnecessary. It feels like the author just tried to squeeze in as many awful things as possible to make the story deep and emotional. I am a very emotional person, and I wasn't affected by these upsetting events because the emotions were hardly explored. The only thing that truly made me feel something was the end of the book.
First of all, Salem has a traumatic history of being sexually abused by her father. She is frequently haunted by nightmares that force her to relive the experience. While I appreciate that such an (unfortunately) common traumatic experience is being discussed, it is never explored throughout the story. She just occasionally has bad dreams, and it seems to be thrown in there without any rhyme or reason.
The cheating...why? Caleb was the kindest soul, loving boyfriend, and dependable friend. It was hard to like Salem as a character for cheating on him. She literally could have just broken up with him before getting with Thayer. I just hate cheating in books, especially when it is extremely unnecessary (which is usually the case). I get that people make mistakes, cheating happens, and it doesn't make someone a terrible person, but Salem just cheated on Caleb and that was that. All this did was make me dislike her.
Salem's mom randomly being diagnosed with cancer. I guess this happened to bring Salem, her sister, and her mom closer together. And also to show how loving and supportive Thayer is? Thankfully she pulls through and is fine. It just felt super random and unneeded.
Finally, the worst part of the book is death. Forrest's death was so tragic that I actually was crying while reading it. Horrible things happen in real life, and they are going to happen in books too. I'm not mad that the author chose to kill off a character, but I am upset that a child's death is being used as a plot device to break Thayer and Salem up. It could have been anything else. All of this happened in the last 10% and it really ended the story on a depressing note. This was the part that traumatized me
Honestly, this book felt like one depressing thing after another. Don't trust the pretty flowers on the cover, this book is not happy and wholesome
isamara_x3's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
sarahsbookden's review against another edition
5.0
I was emotionally distraught after this book, not going to lie. I absolutely fell in love with Salem and Thayer. This story is brilliant and the heartbreak is devastating. Salem is our 18 year old who falls for her older neighbor Thayer. It's a beautiful age gap. I really don't want to give any more of the plot away. Read it, have tissues ready. I cannot wait for the second book
