Short version:
This is another hit by Jennifer Weiner.

Long version:
Without even reading the description, I put my name on the hold list for this book as soon as my library acquired it. The list was long but I figured that as long as I got to read it before summer ended, I'd be happy. Then the pandemic happened.

I finally got my copy and was thrilled that it arrived before summer. I was really expecting a ton of summery experiences... I got a few but not as many as I expected. However the book ended up being 100x better than just a summer fun read that I expected.

Weiner went to a new dramatic high with the major huge surprise of the book (don't want to spoil it but it's truly huge!).

The begging was really slow for me but I liked the characters so I plodded on. Eventually things picked up and from the huge event on, I was riveted. The culprit was a surprise and at first I thought it was too far fetched but on further consideration, I could see the possibility. I was relieved that the other suspects were innocent.

People who like good stories about strong women, complicated relationships, and/or drama and suspense. It has some humor too.

Daphne, Darshi, Daphne's Parents, Nick and Emma's mom's characters.

Spoiler - don't read the rest of this section if you don't want the story partly spoiled.

I really liked that Drue had some redeeming qualities get uncovered during the hunt for the true perpetrator of evil.

All the bad people but that's the way it's supposed to be. I don't like the whole describe the five senses in each entry of a new scene. It'd be nicer to work it in naturally, even if there's less of it, like Janet Evanovich does. Keeps things moving a lot better. Jennifer Weiner's earlier work didn't do this sensory dump list and I liked that. But she is a major best-selling author so who am I to judge.

Hug all the good characters.

All the feels. Up, down, and sideways :) Like I was Daphne sometimes, like I was Darshi more rarely. Like I was part of the drama, but also part of the greatness.

From Amazon: "Jennifer Weiner is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of sixteen books, including Good in Bed, The Littlest Bigfoot, and her memoir Hungry Heart: Adventures in Life, Love, and Writing. A graduate of Princeton University and contributor to the New York Times Opinion section, Jennifer lives with her family in Philadelphia. Visit her online at JenniferWeiner.com"

It's a great story with real-feeling women finding their way to their better selves and with some surprising plot twists.

If you need fast-paced all the way through, this doesn't deliver. If you can be patient, it gets great.

I greatly enjoyed the action packed and happy parts of the book.

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Created Sep 05, 2020 at 2:43pm • Submit your own review...