A sweet young adult contemporary romance about life, love, and finding a safe place to land.
Hello, Everyone! I hope you all had a beautiful holiday weekend!
I’m so grateful to have received this advanced reader copy of debut author Jennie Wexlor’s ‘Where It All Lands‘, scheduled to be released this July 2021, thanks to Goodreads Giveaways and Wednesday Books!
These are absolutely my own unrestricted thoughts and opinions..
I chose this book because I’ve been trying to explore genres I wouldn’t normally choose this year and this sounded like a light, entertaining read about actions and consequences. It successfully met those expectations.. However, I also feel like this book is almost the definition of ‘It seemed like a good idea at the time..’
Let’s begin.. Heads? or Tails?
Where It All Lands by Jennie Wexler
Publication date: July 2021
Pages: 352
Genre: Novel, Fiction, Young adult, Contemporary romance,
Standalone
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A tale as old as time.
A pretty new girl.
Two best friends.
An instant connection that will change them all.
Stevie, perpetual new girl, has just moved to the latest stop in her dad’s attempt to live out his dreams by dragging their family across the country. His most recent coaching job for the Jets puts Stevie directly in the path of best friends Drew and Shane.. who are both swept away by this quiet girl.
So what do you do when there are no easy answers and these boys refuse to give her up?
You flip a coin.. and see where it all lands.
Three Stars
This one just wasn’t for me.
About the book:
This story has three parts. Part One: Heads. Part Two: Tails. Part Three: Conclusion. Epilogue.
In the first part we’re introduced to the timeline where Drew, supposed winner of the coin toss, gets his chance with Stevie. We’re shown how their lives unfold because of that choice.. that one pivotal moment.
The second part branches into a different timeline, where Shane wins, and the resulting circumstances that follow.
The third is a lot of back and forth, this is where the author switches us between the two timelines, showing us how one decision can alter the entire course of our lives. The question remains: In the grand scheme of things, do our choices matter, or is life merely an adventure to see where it all lands?
Overall:
They’re all so young.
Stevie: Has problems with her dad and his job. They’re constantly moving from one place to the next, making her forever the outsider, and feeling adrift. She’s a good girl who just wants to belong somewhere. Now there are Drew and Shane.
She’s sweet, but realistic, and has a hard time making new friends.. especially since she just believes they’re going to be moving again soon and there really is no point. But Drew is fun, Shane is kind, and they both end up quickly taking up residence in her thoughts and heart. She has a lot of anger and resentment towards her dad, and it really shows, but it stems mostly from wanting him to be more present.
Shane feels like freedom. With Shane.. it’s so easy. Is it all just a game to them?
Drew: Also had problems at home. His dad left them for a younger woman and it’s really messing him up.. but he has Shane and they look out for one another. They both want a chance with Stevie so.. Drew is the one who comes up with the idea to flip a coin to avoid fighting with one another.
Drew’s issues with his dad are beyond understandable. He’s a teenage boy, and he needs his dad, but to just dump them and run off with another woman is something he can’t forgive. He’s impulsive and(occasionally) reckless.. but he’s protective of Shane in a way that’s really touching.
Drew saw Stevie first. It was his plan to decide their fates with a coin toss.
Shane: His dad has passed away, leaving him with a different perspective towards Stevie and Drew’s relationship with their fathers, but he also sees how much they’re both hurting. He is helping Stevie work towards early acceptance into the All-State music program. They bond over their deep love of music.
Shane is my favorite character. He’s the more mature of the group and more reserved. He’s obviously talented in a way that most can’t understand and it sets him apart. He’s a deeply supportive and generous friend who keeps Drew out of trouble and gives Stevie a calm, stable place to land.
Shane made Stevie laugh first. But he went along with Drew’s plan.
Liked:
The characters are wonderfully fleshed out, you have full and distinct personalities, all of which compliment each other in some way. All of her characters seemingly have a purpose here, even the lesser side characters, there is something to be learned from each.
The relationships are beautifully scripted and I loved seeing how the author blended their experiences between two timelines. While some things remain fixed, other changes really highlight how our choices do make a difference and how, some things, are also meant to happen.
It was a very creative way of writing, and it made for interesting reading, but it does make some things slightly repetitive.. it can feel like you’ve read the story twice(you kind of do).
Disliked:
The characters are on the young side of young adult so.. be prepared for a lot of pent up emotion and bad decision making. I could not connect with this book or the people in it. It legitimately took me over three weeks of reading a chapter here, a few there, and I still just could not get in to it.
Do you read romance novels?
It’s not my favorite genre.
Me? I like romance in my books.. but I don’t want that to be all they’re about.
I don’t read much romance or YA, so this would be a definite pass for me. Sorry you had to struggle with it when you had been looking forward to it. Sounds like it had some good points mixed in with a fair amount of hiccups.
I’m not into romance or YA, so a YA romance wouldn’t be one I’d want to read. I applaud you for trying new genres, though.
I’d definitely pass on this book.
However, the many books which have always characters from broken families just reflect the reality.
I was thinking about that how messed up the family relationships seem to be. It gets a bit tiresome that not even once I have seen a character in a very long time who comes from a great family. Or there wouldn’t be a book if it was so?
It’s become routine that every character has some family history of bad stuff and parents are divorced or there are stepmothers and stepfathers, or the character is orphan, or has one parent in the best case.
Maybe it’s the reality now and this knowledge makes me even more happy to have enjoyed a great family, no insane issues ever, and I had both parents until I was 55, bot mom until I was 61. It seems that’s is an extremely rare family model.
The question arises: why to get married if you don’t think it’s right for you? We cannot always understand the other person and their motives, but still, there are red flags, signs, warnings and hints.
Have you red a book about a happy family recently? I’d love to hear about it! except, I wouldn’t read kids books or the ones for young audiences.
Thanks for a great review!
Growing up in a traditional family of mom, dad, and kids. Married until death do they part. Good relationships with one another.
These are all rare things. Almost everyone I knew in ‘high school’ ended up pregnant before marriage, aren’t with the childs father, have been divorced already. Broken homes are the norm, sadly, and I think that books with characters who have all these crazy family issues.. are meant to make you feel like your own family drama is maybe.. less crazy.
This book’s saving grace was that the idea of different paths branching from each choice they made and, still, they ended up right where they were meant to.
A lot of people get married too young, have too many expectations of what marriage is going to be, or marry for the wrong reasons. It’s sad how commonplace divorce has become. Almost like it doesn’t matter if it works out
A happy family? Let’s see.. Bridgerton? It’s a historical romance, though, I’m not sure if you read those? They’re a pretty close family with great relationships. Besides that, none come to mind.. but it’s late and my brain is fried.
My pleasure! Thank you for your comments!
It’s very interesting that most of my friends and relatives back in Latvia have good and full families, for instance, my sister’s marriage going on for 30 years now, I cannot recall, maybe it’s more than that. I am exception because 2 of my spouses passed away. My daughter has a very good family, and lots of people have not gotten married, yes, that’s also a norm.
It’s hard to say whether it’s better to get divorced many times or never get married, but either model is affecting kids abnormally.
You are right, historical romances are not the type I enjoy, they’re usually very plain and way too sweet.
Society is lacking serious attitude towards such an important decision, that’s for sure.
Have a good weekend and thanks!
Wow, that’s impressive, 30 years? See.. that’s how it should be. Don’t get me wrong, there are always exceptions, but marriage should last.
I can say that some people shouldn’t be married and, when they’re destructive together, it effects everyone(especially any children involved) poorly.
I don’t usually enjoy historical romance, I agree they’re too sweet.. unrealistically so.
What authors do you enjoy?
I have to get off this thing. My eyes are crossing so, thank you, I hope you had a good weekend.. Goodnight!