User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
whoever designs these covers needs a raise immediately.
Rating: really liked it
The cover is just...
WOW.
Rating: really liked it
[they’re in a coma (hide spoiler)]
Rating: really liked it
Because my old review for this was trash, we're just going to rewrite the whole review.
Kyle and Kimberly are the perfect high school couple. Quarterback and cheerleader. If that doesn't scream cliche I don't know what does. Then Kimberly decides she doesn't want to be with Kyle and breaks up with him on the night of their graduation party. To make matters worse, they get in a car accident right after she breaks the news. Kyle wakes up in a hospital only to find out that Kimberly is dead. He meets a girl named Marley and his life changes.
Spoilers will be marked by 🛑 emoji
CharactersKyle- he was pretty basic, but that's what I get for reading about a romance that was basic. At least at the beginning. Kyle grows to be his own character and I really enjoyed that he grew out of that standard ideal he built for himself.
Marley- I loved Marley. She was a perfect friend for Kyle. Through her own trauma, she could relate to Kyle and that's what I really really enjoyed. Through their relationship we see Kyle grow into a totally different person. I want a friend like Marley.
Kyle's mom- I didn't really like her. She was trying to help Kyle, but she was going about it the wrong way. She was very pushy and kept trying to make Kyle feel better about what happened. After a reread, I realized that Kyle's mom didn't really mean to push him that far. In the end, however, it was Marley who brought him out of his shell.
Sam- Sam was something else. I feel pretty neutral toward him. He didn't help Kyle's growth at all, but at the same time we learned so much about who Kyle used to be through Sam. He was kind of an asshole, but I understood why as I kept reading.
PlotThis plot was by far one of the best plots I have ever read. The plot twist was HUGE. I didn't see it coming. But I will wait until the spoilers to give that away. The plot basically begins when Marley and Kyle meet for the first time. Kyle for the first 1/8 of this book is moping around because Kimberly is gone and he doesn't know what to do with himself. When he finally gets his ass outside he meets Marley. Marley is special because she understands Kyle's pain and can relate to him.
WritingThe writing is beautiful. This is the kind of writing I really really can feel the emotion. I can rarely find books that give me some sort of raw emotion, especially coming from a male's perspective. The climax had me on the edge of my seat wanting more. I was DYING to know what was going to happen next.
🛑🛑🛑Spoilers🛑🛑🛑
I would like to know what drugs these authors are on. Seriously. That plot twist was one I couldn't have guessed in a million years. The plot twist happens halfway through the book. When I first read it I knew something was wrong because there's no way that half of this book would be about Marely and Kyle dating. I couldn't even have imagined a plot twist so big. Kimberly isn't dead and Kyle was in a coma. Wow. Just wow. When Kyle wakes up, he's confused and he tries to find Marley and many people are convinced he's crazy. When he does find her, he finds out that she hasn't spoken a word since her sister died (Marley had a twin sister who got run over in front of her. Marley could have saved her). He eventually finds out that the reason why he imagined being friends with her was because she was reading him a story that she made up. Kyle was Marley's way of trying to fall in love and Marley feared that Kyle wouldn't love her after he woke up. This part had me in tears. I was trying to keep it together, but I failed. Marley is such a relatable character to me and I love her so much for that. Her struggles were real and you could feel them. I will not be giving away the climax, but that too had me in tears. I am thoroughly addicted to this book and Five Feet Apart.
🛑🛑🛑Spoilers over🛑🛑🛑
Overall, I loved this book. I could feel the emotions pouring out from every page and I could feel how relatable the characters were. Truly an amazing, gut wrenching book. I hope this isn't the last we see of these authors because they really know how to write. Truly. And the fact I finished it in less than 24 hours proves that there needs to be more books written by this author.
And the cover is beautiful. I love these covers.
Edit 3/1/2021
All of the stars in the universe, but GR only lets me do five.
This was a million times better than Five Feet Apart.
RTC
Rating: really liked it
I’m sorry to say this story didn’t work for me on any level, so I’m going to keep my review short. I really enjoyed this author duo’s FIVE FEET APART, so I was eager to see another story from them. The cover is pretty and it felt like a style that fitted with their previous book.
This story takes the reader through death, loss, grief, healing, recovery and yet, does it really? From the first few pages, this story forced a seemingly emotional story on the reader. It felt too much, too soon. The protagonist Kyle was going through so much and yet I had a sneaking suspicion.
Honestly, the story didn’t relent, lurching from one emotional event to another, with Kyle, Sam and Kim then Kyle and Marley. I found the plot utterly ridiculous when at 65% what I suspected was coming, was realised. How I limped to the end, I’m unsure. This felt like an immature plot and read for me and I’m gutted to be saying that so plainly. I suspect this will work on a surface level for teen readers and for that I’m glad.
Thank you to Simon & Schuster for the early review copy.
This review can be found on A Take From Two Cities Blog.
Rating: really liked it
~ Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for providing me with an early copy in exchange for an honest review! RELEASE DATE: September 29 ~
'That's the first thing you said to me, remember? Once upon a time.'This book really put me through the wringer. It started out so strong, such a great depiction of grief and learning how to accept one's feelings and then... then it got really, really dumb.
I appreciated so much of what was going on, what Marley was providing for Kyle, and that's when I had the thought,
What if Marley isn't real? I thought that would be very fitting and a great way to symbolize Kyle's journey dealing with his grief. Unfortunately, this book simply took things too far.
As I kept reading, another thought crept into my mind,
What if Kyle is dreaming all of this and he'll wake up back where he started? Lol that would be so incredibly stupid.Little did I know that not only was this the case, but it got even worse and more over the top. More over the top than the whole thing being him in a coma? Yes. And no, I don't know how the authors managed to pull that off, let alone how it got past the editors.
Not only was he in a coma that whole time, BUT MARLEY WAS REAL AND WAS READING HIM THEIR ENTIRE STORY.
Yes. I did not make that up. Besides the obvious logistical problems this brings up (how did none of his family and friends- let alone the nurses!!- never see this random girl reading to him literally ALL THE TIME????), but it also just... rubs me the wrong way. Like. Why is it okay that this random girl chose an incapacitated boy to build an entire relationship with????? How was she even allowed in the room???? I just. No.
I thought the escalation would end there. It couldn't POSSIBLY get worse, right? Wrong.
Kyle buys her a dog. Yup, just buys it online and it shows up and he just gives it to her without consulting a single person for permission! Always good to give a dog to a person you just met without even telling them to get any supplies, let alone ask if they have the time and energy to devote to it. Anyway, as annoying as that is, it is NOTHING. I repeat, NOTHING compared to the what happens next.
Marley jumps in front of a car to save a child because she feels guilt about her sister dying in the same way. I'm not done yet. Then, when she's in the hospital, her injuries don't seem to be that bad, and the doctor says that she's simply
choosing to die. I'm not even going to mention how harmful that could be to someone dealing with terminal illness or grieving, but you know what, it gets even worse. So then, MARLEY DIES. Yup, she straight up flatlines. And then- and here's the kicker!- she simply chooses to come back to life!!! She just wanted to say bye to her dead sister!! Haha! Yes!! So good to completely discredit every good lesson about grief previously provided by this book by romanticizing death!!!!
And then the book just ends.
So... yeah, I think it's fair to assume I'm not too keen to read more from these authors, though I do like their writing style. If the synopsis of their next work piques my interest I'd be willing to give it a try, but so much of this just had me in disbelief of how bad it got.
I'm giving it that extra star, bumping it up to 2, because up until he woke up from the coma this was a solid 4 star book. Marley being real brought it down to a 2.5, and then the whole her dying and coming back to life randomly in the last like 20 pages solidly drove it down into a 2.
Honestly I'd highly recommend not reading this book, but it was easy to read, and the beginning held some merit.
Rating: really liked it
Like that one fish from that obscure Disney Channel show, Fish Hooks, once said, “Guuuuurrrllllllllllllllll...........”
Rating: really liked it
the way i felt every emotion possible
Rating: really liked it
THAT. COVER. THO.
Rating: really liked it
Before I start rambling about how amazing the story is, I would like to take a moment to appreciate the title and book cover of my new favorite book. The book cover instantly grabbed my attention the moment I laid my eyes on it. As it gave me all the Disney vibes which I am all up for.
As far as the book is concerned, I don’t have enough words to describe how breathtakingly beautiful it was. After reading the first line of the book I knew it won’t let me down.
The story starts with Kyle and Kimberly, the cliché couple of a footballer and a cheerleader, at their graduation party. But later on, Kyle, a hopeless romantic, somehow meets Marley, a storyteller. So a new love story begins, but this time it starts with once upon a time as every fairy tale starts with these four words.
The little things mentioned made the story stand out to me like feeding popcorns to the ducks; Marley giving flowers to Kyle, each holding a specific meaning; and the story of the pearls and the moon guy.
And my heart was doing a happy dance knowing that Kyle and Marley found comfort and peace in each other’s presence, although, both were grieving in their own ways.
Oh, and never in a million years did I see that plot twist coming.
Some sentences were written so beautifully that I had to stop for a while and reread that sentence again and again; afraid that I might forget it later. The mere words in this book created a magical love story that was able to make me shed some tears while reading, after a long time.
I hope everyone gets to experience this kind of magical love.
Rating: really liked it
WHAT THE HELL IS THIS ?????
The book does not hold any great plot for that matter. It is basically the main character blabbering about his life and his late, ex-girlfriend.
Even the mental health representation wasn't that great to be honest.
I am highly disappointed.
Rating: really liked it
Thank you sooooo much Goodreads and Simon Teen for providing an ARC for this book!
File this under books I have complicated feelings for.
TL:DR tropes:
- Mental illness
- Lost love and dealing with trauma
- YA Contemporary
- Friends to lovers
- Fluff
Kyle, a recently graduated high school student loses a lot in a short time. His football career due to an injury. He is broken up with by his lifelong girlfriend Kim. They get into a car accident and she doesn't make it. He is left with a traumatic brain injury.
Then he meets Marley, his perfect match, and the two of them begin to deal with their trauma and mutual loss together.
So, complicated feelings. Kyle felt like a very realistic portrayal of a young person to me in both good and bad ways. He's extremely flawed and obsessive, and can repeat that obsession far past the point of being responsible before and after his injury. He is a control freak, a hopeless romantic, and very emotionally needy and codependent.
All This Time is, at it's core, more about Kyle's ability to deal with loss and move on from the problems surrounding his injury, but more importantly, the problems he created before the car crash. The book dives into his relationship with his now dead girlfriend, as well as his best friend Sam, who he had an equally complicated relationship with.
Kyle and Kim also had what I would consider a very realistic teen relationship- full of sporadic breakups and meaningless fights, and the deconstruction of that relationship as idealized to flawed was very interesting.
Heres where it gets less good. this is a love story, not a character study- and boy, did I dislike the love story. Marley is a manic pixie dream girl. Kyle's perfect girl. The connect instantly, vaguely, and fall in love in the blink of an eye. His obsession with Kim begins to drift and turn into an obsession with Marley, and while it feels equally unhealthy, its not deconstructed in the same way. These two are paired off as epic lovers narratively, despite the obsession and codependency. I found it really off putting and it made it extremely hard for me to commit to the book.
That being said, the pace is quick, and this is a very, very easy read. The twists and turns were a little expected, but do turn out in a way that is probably ultimately satisfying for the reader.
I am not, as i've said before, a huge fan of YA contemporary, so maybe there is something here I was just missing- but when the love story fails, it's hard to really fall in love with a book marketed as a romance.
This is a good popcorn read, and if you are into sweetly sad YA romances, it could be a great fit.
Rating: really liked it
How am I supposed to wait another six months for this!! So excited for this to come out and to hold another wonderful novel by Rachael Lippincott with such a beautiful cover 😭🥰
Rating: really liked it
What the fish happened in the last 100 pages?
I mean before that it was a solid 4 star read!
Rating: really liked it
1/5 stars
I was looking forward to this having heard wonderful things about,Five Feet Apart. Unfortunately I found this wasn't for me. I did not find the characters enjoyable in anyway shape or form. I tried pushing through to see if I was going to get to a point where I loved it but it dragged for me. The twist itself honestly annoyed me and made it even harder for me to get invested into the story. It took me days to push through it and honestly I think this isn't worth the read.
Was sent an eARC from the publishers through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
