Book Talk Review; Until Friday Night
I've been seriously lacking in keeping up with Abbi Glines books. But I just read this and remembered why I love Abbi's books so much.
To everyone who knows him, West Ashby has always been that guy: the cocky, popular, too-handsome-for-his-own-good football god who led Lawton High to the state championships. But while West is Big Man on Campus on the outside, he's grief-stricken on the inside: for the past year, he has watched his father slowly die of cancer. And he hasn't told anyone because he can't face the truth.
Two years ago Maggie Carlton witnessed her father murder her mother. Afterword she tole the police what happened, and then never spoke again. Even after moving to Lawton, Alabama, to live with her uncle, Maggie kept her sorrow and her fractured heart hidden away.
Now, as his pain grows unbearable, West finally decides he needs to talk to someone about his dad. So in the dark shadows of a post-game party, he tells the one girl who doesn't speak all the things he can't tell anyone else. What West expected was relief, a flood of emotions- but what he didn't expect was for Maggie to reply. For her to reveal a pain even deeper than his own. For them to form a connection so strong that he couldn't ever let her go.
It's been a while since I've dived into the YA world. I've read a few books here and there, but nothing has really struck me as special. Nothing has hit the expectation I've formed after all this time. It's hard when you read as much as I do. You find yourself being more choosy with books. You find yourself recognizing the cliche and demanding more books that evoke feeling in you.
So there have been a lot of books that I haven't gotten around to reading, because I don't want to ruin them for myself. If that makes any sense.
I finally read Until Friday Night and I am so glad I did. I read this book in a day, it was just what I needed. It wasn't that long ago that I myself was in high school, so this hit close to home for me. Even though I wasn't into sports, and we didn't have field parties becasue we live in the middle of California.
I was able to connect to the characters easily, both West and Maggie are really good strong characters, in their own ways. West comes across as cocky, arrogant, and a downright jerk at times. But he's a really great guy, who is hurting.
Maggie has seen some shit. And I feel for her, I can't imagine what it would be like to see something so traumatic and hold onto sanity.
Abbi wrote these characters beautifully. She is a compelling storyteller and I hate myself for not reading this book sooner.
I've read all of Abbi's books and I've seen her writing take shape and evolve. This book is so different than the other books she's written. We're back in high school, as opposed to the country club life in Rosemary Beach, or the laid back atmosphere of Live Bait in Sea Breeze.
We're back to the roots. To what living in small town Alabama is all about. Field parties and Friday night football games.
Both West and Maggie have demons to deal with, and they find solitude in what the other can give them.
They may be young, but the connection they form is real and so full of hope.
I fell in love with all the characters in the Field Party series, I can't wait to read more of them.
As the book goes on and the need grows you feel more and more for both West and Maggie. They both deal with pain differently. They both need each other. It's hard to imagine going through anything remotely close to what happened in the book. And even though it's fiction, it felt so real.
Abbi Glines is one of my top authors. I reminded of why I love reading her books. She doesn't just write a story about one couple, but she gives them great friends who have stories of their own. And I can't wait to see what all the other characters have to say. It's going to hurt I know. But it will be worth it.
I cried a pretty good amount while I read this book. I cried, because the feelings were so raw, and so real. They made me feel so many things.
I read a hardcover of this book so I don't have an quotes to share. There are some nice ones in this book, but I don't have the heart to highlight in a physical copy, unless I have more than one. I know I'm weird, but that's me.
Just trust me, this might be YA, but is has such a strong romance, and so much shit, you wouldn't think the characters are still in high school.
For...
Abbi's Book Talk: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/08/book-talk-abbi-glines.html
Book Talks on...
Breathe: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/10/book-talk-review-breathe_25.html
Because Of Low: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/10/book-talk-review-because-of-low.html
While It Lasts: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/10/book-talk-review-while-it-lasts.html
Just For Now: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/11/book-talk-review-just-for-now.html
Sometimes It Lasts: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/11/book-talk-review-sometimes-it-lasts.html
Misbehaving: http://realtalkbooktal k.blogspot.com/2014/11/book-talk-review-misbehaving.html
More of Abbi's books to be read and reviewed soon.
-Abri
To everyone who knows him, West Ashby has always been that guy: the cocky, popular, too-handsome-for-his-own-good football god who led Lawton High to the state championships. But while West is Big Man on Campus on the outside, he's grief-stricken on the inside: for the past year, he has watched his father slowly die of cancer. And he hasn't told anyone because he can't face the truth.
Two years ago Maggie Carlton witnessed her father murder her mother. Afterword she tole the police what happened, and then never spoke again. Even after moving to Lawton, Alabama, to live with her uncle, Maggie kept her sorrow and her fractured heart hidden away.
Now, as his pain grows unbearable, West finally decides he needs to talk to someone about his dad. So in the dark shadows of a post-game party, he tells the one girl who doesn't speak all the things he can't tell anyone else. What West expected was relief, a flood of emotions- but what he didn't expect was for Maggie to reply. For her to reveal a pain even deeper than his own. For them to form a connection so strong that he couldn't ever let her go.
It's been a while since I've dived into the YA world. I've read a few books here and there, but nothing has really struck me as special. Nothing has hit the expectation I've formed after all this time. It's hard when you read as much as I do. You find yourself being more choosy with books. You find yourself recognizing the cliche and demanding more books that evoke feeling in you.
So there have been a lot of books that I haven't gotten around to reading, because I don't want to ruin them for myself. If that makes any sense.
I finally read Until Friday Night and I am so glad I did. I read this book in a day, it was just what I needed. It wasn't that long ago that I myself was in high school, so this hit close to home for me. Even though I wasn't into sports, and we didn't have field parties becasue we live in the middle of California.
I was able to connect to the characters easily, both West and Maggie are really good strong characters, in their own ways. West comes across as cocky, arrogant, and a downright jerk at times. But he's a really great guy, who is hurting.
Maggie has seen some shit. And I feel for her, I can't imagine what it would be like to see something so traumatic and hold onto sanity.
Abbi wrote these characters beautifully. She is a compelling storyteller and I hate myself for not reading this book sooner.
I've read all of Abbi's books and I've seen her writing take shape and evolve. This book is so different than the other books she's written. We're back in high school, as opposed to the country club life in Rosemary Beach, or the laid back atmosphere of Live Bait in Sea Breeze.
We're back to the roots. To what living in small town Alabama is all about. Field parties and Friday night football games.
Both West and Maggie have demons to deal with, and they find solitude in what the other can give them.
They may be young, but the connection they form is real and so full of hope.
I fell in love with all the characters in the Field Party series, I can't wait to read more of them.
As the book goes on and the need grows you feel more and more for both West and Maggie. They both deal with pain differently. They both need each other. It's hard to imagine going through anything remotely close to what happened in the book. And even though it's fiction, it felt so real.
Abbi Glines is one of my top authors. I reminded of why I love reading her books. She doesn't just write a story about one couple, but she gives them great friends who have stories of their own. And I can't wait to see what all the other characters have to say. It's going to hurt I know. But it will be worth it.
I cried a pretty good amount while I read this book. I cried, because the feelings were so raw, and so real. They made me feel so many things.
I read a hardcover of this book so I don't have an quotes to share. There are some nice ones in this book, but I don't have the heart to highlight in a physical copy, unless I have more than one. I know I'm weird, but that's me.
Just trust me, this might be YA, but is has such a strong romance, and so much shit, you wouldn't think the characters are still in high school.
For...
Abbi's Book Talk: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/08/book-talk-abbi-glines.html
Book Talks on...
Breathe: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/10/book-talk-review-breathe_25.html
Because Of Low: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/10/book-talk-review-because-of-low.html
While It Lasts: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/10/book-talk-review-while-it-lasts.html
Just For Now: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/11/book-talk-review-just-for-now.html
Sometimes It Lasts: http://realtalkbooktalk.blogspot.com/2014/11/book-talk-review-sometimes-it-lasts.html
Misbehaving: http://realtalkbooktal k.blogspot.com/2014/11/book-talk-review-misbehaving.html
More of Abbi's books to be read and reviewed soon.
-Abri
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