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miffyf's review against another edition
4.0
Jacklin/ Jack is on the cusp of adulthood. At seventeen she still has a foot in both camps. Desperate to be independent, she is also incredibly naive, and desperately searching for love - in all the wrong places.
Set in the fictional yet familiar town of Mobius, Jack's claustrophobic life begins to unravel. She has been stuck in a rut since she left school and home, unable to move beyond the world of her work at the Bent Bowl Spoon roadhouse, her lust for aloof Luke, and the hero-worship of her older sister, Trudy. Jack is finding it hard to make any decision that doesn't hurt either herself or others, and although she can see the train wrecks coming, she seems to be powerless to stop herself and the hurt she leaves in her wake.
I really enjoyed Inbetween Days, evidenced by my finishing it in a day. All of the main characters are multi-dimensional: flawed, endearing, infuriating, and loveable. Some of the minor characters are a bit sketchy - Roly is your typical jilted friend and Jack's dad is probably the weakest of the main players - but no-one is really out of place; each has a part to play. This is a polished effort, exploring big themes with an authentic teenage voice.
A coming-of-age novel that REALLY speaks to that theme, in my opinion, Vikki's best yet. Highly recommended.
Set in the fictional yet familiar town of Mobius, Jack's claustrophobic life begins to unravel. She has been stuck in a rut since she left school and home, unable to move beyond the world of her work at the Bent Bowl Spoon roadhouse, her lust for aloof Luke, and the hero-worship of her older sister, Trudy. Jack is finding it hard to make any decision that doesn't hurt either herself or others, and although she can see the train wrecks coming, she seems to be powerless to stop herself and the hurt she leaves in her wake.
I really enjoyed Inbetween Days, evidenced by my finishing it in a day. All of the main characters are multi-dimensional: flawed, endearing, infuriating, and loveable. Some of the minor characters are a bit sketchy - Roly is your typical jilted friend and Jack's dad is probably the weakest of the main players - but no-one is really out of place; each has a part to play. This is a polished effort, exploring big themes with an authentic teenage voice.
A coming-of-age novel that REALLY speaks to that theme, in my opinion, Vikki's best yet. Highly recommended.
stories's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Surprisingly literary, with plenty metaphors, motifs and symbolism.
Dysfunctional families, aimless adult-teenager, and quandaries of love, family and responsibility.
No answers here, only the possibilities of hope and the reminder that community ties are stronger than one might think.
Definitely upper high school: 17 yo protag and plenty of barely off page sex.
Interesting range of non-explicit neurodivergent characters.
Dysfunctional families, aimless adult-teenager, and quandaries of love, family and responsibility.
No answers here, only the possibilities of hope and the reminder that community ties are stronger than one might think.
Definitely upper high school: 17 yo protag and plenty of barely off page sex.
Interesting range of non-explicit neurodivergent characters.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal death, Cursing, Mental illness, Suicide, Dementia, Grief, and Abandonment
debi_g's review against another edition
3.0
"It seemed to me that if people would just say what they meant, we'd all get back half our lives in wasted time" (47).
The mother-daughter conflict is too vague.
The "dying small town" trope works well.
The suicide forest is a stellar plot device and setting.
The relationships that are depicted are consistently unsettling.
The pace matches the character's trepidatious growth and reticence.
Jeremiah is a gem.
These simple sentences oversimplify the complexity of the novel.
The mother-daughter conflict is too vague.
The "dying small town" trope works well.
The suicide forest is a stellar plot device and setting.
The relationships that are depicted are consistently unsettling.
The pace matches the character's trepidatious growth and reticence.
Jeremiah is a gem.
These simple sentences oversimplify the complexity of the novel.
tiffyofthemonts's review against another edition
5.0
Do you ever read a book and feel the need to bow down at the author's feet? That's how I feel about Inbetween Days and Vikki Wakefield. I shall write more on this later...
textpublishing's review against another edition
5.0
Reading Age: 14+ Themes: Small-town coming-of-age story about friendship, escape and love.
Vikki Wakefield legions reassemble. There’s a new book to be read! This is another beautiful and poignant tale of rural adolescence from the author of CBCA Honour Book Friday Brown and All I Ever Wanted.
‘Wakefield has captured small-town life perfectly. There is the stifling sense of everyone knowing everyone, but also the boredom that comes from being a teenager with nowhere to go. In these claustrophobic conditions, she explores love, death and identity.’
Books+Publishing
‘A gritty, heartfelt read for teens and adult readers alike.’
Readings
‘Inbetween Days is Australian YA gothic. It’s at times bleak and tender, with touches of romance threaded with heartache, all playing out in a town that’s dead and dying. As anyone who has read a Vikki Wakefield novel knows, it’s near impossible to completely summarise her stories; save to say it’s another ‘must-read’ from one of Australia’s best young adult authors writing today.’
Alpha Reader
‘Intense and engaging…Highly recommended.’
Reading Time
‘Vikki Wakefield has done it again. She’s gone and taken my breath away with another exquisite book…This is the sort of writing everyone who doubts the power of YA should read. Without a doubt, Wakefield is one of Australia’s best writers.’
Unfinished Bookshelf
‘Vikki Wakefield writes stories that will break your heart.’
Readings
‘[Wakefield’s] characters are believable flawed and memorable and there are some good life lessons for young players.’
Otago Daily Times
‘Wakefield has never sounded more like Harper Lee, with poignant descriptions and on-point characterisations.’
Alpha Reader, Favourite Books of 2015
‘[Vikki Wakefield] proves again that she’s the mistress of YA twisted relationships and disturbed characters, all memorable, all sketched with compassion, wit and insight, the adults as well as teens.’
Ruth Starke, Australian Book Review, Books of the Year 2015
‘[Wakefield] gives her fictional landscape the same haunting quality that she achieved with her first novel, Friday Brown, and her writing is full of insight and feeling.’
Age/Sydney Morning Herald
‘An utterly gripping read with authentic, complicated and relatable characters.’
Age/Sydney Morning Herald, Best Children’s Books of 2015/b>
‘This tender story about the opportunities we are presented with, and what we do with them, is perfect reading for older teens and adults alike.’
Big Book Club
‘Memorable, intriguing, perceptive and often very funny, this is an unforgettable YA novel and a most unusual love story.’
Magpies
‘Wakefield’s writing is unflinchingly honest…readers who let themselves sink into Wakefield’s descriptions of small-town life, its constraints, and frustrations will enjoy following Jack as she searches for meaning, finding love and purpose in the unlikeliest people.’
Publisher’s Weekly
Vikki Wakefield legions reassemble. There’s a new book to be read! This is another beautiful and poignant tale of rural adolescence from the author of CBCA Honour Book Friday Brown and All I Ever Wanted.
‘Wakefield has captured small-town life perfectly. There is the stifling sense of everyone knowing everyone, but also the boredom that comes from being a teenager with nowhere to go. In these claustrophobic conditions, she explores love, death and identity.’
Books+Publishing
‘A gritty, heartfelt read for teens and adult readers alike.’
Readings
‘Inbetween Days is Australian YA gothic. It’s at times bleak and tender, with touches of romance threaded with heartache, all playing out in a town that’s dead and dying. As anyone who has read a Vikki Wakefield novel knows, it’s near impossible to completely summarise her stories; save to say it’s another ‘must-read’ from one of Australia’s best young adult authors writing today.’
Alpha Reader
‘Intense and engaging…Highly recommended.’
Reading Time
‘Vikki Wakefield has done it again. She’s gone and taken my breath away with another exquisite book…This is the sort of writing everyone who doubts the power of YA should read. Without a doubt, Wakefield is one of Australia’s best writers.’
Unfinished Bookshelf
‘Vikki Wakefield writes stories that will break your heart.’
Readings
‘[Wakefield’s] characters are believable flawed and memorable and there are some good life lessons for young players.’
Otago Daily Times
‘Wakefield has never sounded more like Harper Lee, with poignant descriptions and on-point characterisations.’
Alpha Reader, Favourite Books of 2015
‘[Vikki Wakefield] proves again that she’s the mistress of YA twisted relationships and disturbed characters, all memorable, all sketched with compassion, wit and insight, the adults as well as teens.’
Ruth Starke, Australian Book Review, Books of the Year 2015
‘[Wakefield] gives her fictional landscape the same haunting quality that she achieved with her first novel, Friday Brown, and her writing is full of insight and feeling.’
Age/Sydney Morning Herald
‘An utterly gripping read with authentic, complicated and relatable characters.’
Age/Sydney Morning Herald, Best Children’s Books of 2015/b>
‘This tender story about the opportunities we are presented with, and what we do with them, is perfect reading for older teens and adults alike.’
Big Book Club
‘Memorable, intriguing, perceptive and often very funny, this is an unforgettable YA novel and a most unusual love story.’
Magpies
‘Wakefield’s writing is unflinchingly honest…readers who let themselves sink into Wakefield’s descriptions of small-town life, its constraints, and frustrations will enjoy following Jack as she searches for meaning, finding love and purpose in the unlikeliest people.’
Publisher’s Weekly
sean67's review
2.0
Probably me, but I struggled to get a grip on this one, it never really grabbed me, I can see other s loved it, for me not so much.
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baancs's review
emotional
reflective
4.0
Love is a pie. It’s something you put your whole heart into. You stand on his doorstep and you offer him this pie that you have baked tenderly, and he picks at the crust, maybe takes a bite, then he gives you back the pie and says, “I don’t like this pie. I don’t want your pie.” And you’re left with a pie that will never be perfect again. The next time you offer your pie to someone, they know someone else has already taken a bite. Maybe all the filling is gone and you only have soggy pastry to offer. In return, all you get is someone else’s half-eaten pie because that’s all you deserve when that’s all you have to trade. Or you get someone else’s perfect pie but, by then, you’re partial to half-eaten pie, so you fuck up their pie and move on. First love is a show pie. Every love after it is a reheated delicatessen pie and it tastes like shit, because you remember what first pie tastes like and it’ll never be the same again. So, now you’ve learned to protect your pie and you’ll never make the mistake of holding it out with both hands again—now you’ll offer your half-eaten pie with one hand, while the other hand will stay behind your back, holding a fork.
A great coming-of-age story about finding hope in a world that's trapping you in, and how facing things instead of running away is what it means to truly escape.
nannagoat's review against another edition
3.0
There s a lot I lke about this YA book starting with the premise that 54 people from a miserable, godforsaken Australian small town (yes another one) have died in he forest. I like the forest setting and the sense of mystery and foreboding. And I do like the main characters with all their flaws. But in the end I got bored with the self centred teenage angst that goes on and on, the insistence on how complicated feelings are, and the moroseness of it all. Who would want to relive this aspect of teenagerhood if they are older, or if they are currently living it out just like this? Or maybe Im finally growing up. Not a patch on Friday Brown, wakefield's earlier novel.
missusb21's review against another edition
5.0
Vikki Wakefield’s third novel is just as intense and engaging as her previous two. Seventeen-year-old Jacklin Bates lives with her sister Trudy on the outskirts of their small country town, Mobius. She’s dropped out of high school, thinks she’s in love with a boy who is clearly using her, and is caught in between teen age and adulthood...
Read the rest of my review at Reading Time .
There's also a piece by Vikki about writing the book. It's eloquent and insightful.
Read the rest of my review at Reading Time .
There's also a piece by Vikki about writing the book. It's eloquent and insightful.