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A review by maryjayka
The Year We Fell Down by Sarina Bowen
4.0
This is a challenge to review...
There are a lot of things I like. I think Corey's struggle with adapting to her spinal cord injury (SCI) is well-written. There is a lot of anger, frustration, ambivalence, pain, loss that is very appropriate for the first year after an injury. She was an athlete and now has frustrating limitations and the struggle she is experiencing in revising her self-image is often present in ableist language (e.g. gimp). Her parents were overprotective and that likely slowed or impeded some of her coping, including how she was adjusting her life and expectations. That emotional process was well-conceived and well-executed.
I thought the scenes around consent were well-done and the discussion they had about sexuality after SCI was sensitive.
The other characters, the people that Corey gets to know through water polo, the hockey guys, her family - lots of interesting characters that set the scene for a promising series.
There was a lot to like in this book but the above-described issues with Alex were frustrating! I wish that was written differently. In the end, I only deducted one star for all that, because there was a lot that was good with this book.
There are a lot of things I like. I think Corey's struggle with adapting to her spinal cord injury (SCI) is well-written. There is a lot of anger, frustration, ambivalence, pain, loss that is very appropriate for the first year after an injury. She was an athlete and now has frustrating limitations and the struggle she is experiencing in revising her self-image is often present in ableist language (e.g. gimp). Her parents were overprotective and that likely slowed or impeded some of her coping, including how she was adjusting her life and expectations. That emotional process was well-conceived and well-executed.
I thought the scenes around consent were well-done and the discussion they had about sexuality after SCI was sensitive.
Spoiler
What I really struggle with is how Adam was dating someone else and being physically affectionate (passionate kisses) and verbally affectionate in front of Corey both before and after Stacia went to Europe. Before he got to know Corey that was understandable. But after? That's such a jerk move. Spending time with Corey while they were separated might have been understandable given that hehad agreed to an open relationship while Stacia was in Europe. However, his "experiment" crossed a line that should have made him think twice at that point and break up with Stacia when whe returned. The fact that he went back to having a physical relationship with Stacie IN FRONT OF COREY WITHIN HOURS is just a dick move. The fact that we had to read some of their physical interactions, while others were implied - yuck! No! I understand he had his own issues, but duuude! I really liked Alex in so many ways, but that kid needed someone to kick his butt a little harder than his mom was trying to do. And I get that he was 21, so maybe just a dumb kid. But then the turnaround from Stacia to Corey was equally fast! Maybe at least go get an STI test first and mention it because we know she was sleeping with other guys in Europe!! SighThe other characters, the people that Corey gets to know through water polo, the hockey guys, her family - lots of interesting characters that set the scene for a promising series.
There was a lot to like in this book but the above-described issues with Alex were frustrating! I wish that was written differently. In the end, I only deducted one star for all that, because there was a lot that was good with this book.