4.75 stars

Have you ever read a book that has sat collecting dust on your shelves for months, perhaps years, and get mad at yourself for all the shitty books you've read in the meantime all while something so much better was just sitting there, waiting for you?

Yeah, that's this book for me. I bought this over a year ago and just never picked it up, even when I was in the mood for something light and fluffy. Why? Why did I pass this over time and again? I honestly don't know.

I haven't read many YA contemporary books recently that have made me feel much of anything aside from disconnected, to the point that I was actually wondering if I was getting 'too old' for this type of story. I'm happy to say that the answer to that is an emphatic NO. Good stories are good stories, regardless of the age of the characters or the intended audience. And this story by Emma Mills is Good. I would even go so far to say that it's Great.

This is the third Emma Mills book I've read, and while Foolish Hearts is still my favorite of hers, this is a close second. I honestly can't think of a YA author who writes better group friendship dynamics. I am a sucker for a 'found family' and this is a great one. The platonic love they all have for each other feels so real, and I love the way they interact not only as a group, but also in one-on-one situations. Just like with a real group of friends who have known each other for years, this group has inside jokes and traditions, and they all care as deeply for one another as they do for their families.

I also think she writes really strong side characters in her books, and the ones in this book are no exception. They're flawed and fabulous.

The dialogue in this book is also great. I just love the banter among the friends and also Sloane's relationship with her family, specifically her father. Their bonding over fan fiction and a show about werewolves made my nerdy heart sing. I liked a lot of the discussion surrounding fandom and also the idea that some people seem to have that commercial works somehow aren't valid in the way that literary fiction is. I like that she challenges that by basically saying that there is a place for 'happily ever afters' and that just because something isn't an award-winner doesn't mean it isn't good.

The plot isn't exactly the most important part of this book, but I enjoyed the search Sloane goes on to find a painting her friend's mom painted before she passed away, mostly because of the way it affected her relationships with her friends. Because at the end of the day, this book is about the characters and their dynamic as a group.

I do think the book took a few chapters to really suck me in, because there were quite a few characters all introduced at once, but that's a very minor complaint that I don't think I'll have an issue with on re-read.

I am so thankful that I finally picked this book up and gave it a chance.