Release Date: May 1, 2016
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Pages: 304
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
*I received this book as a NetGalley ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Summary
The summer before Ivy’s senior year is going to be golden; all bonfires, barbeques, and spending time with her best friends. For once, she will just get to be. No summer classes, none of Granddad’s intense expectations to live up to the family name. For generations, the Milbourn women have lead extraordinary lives—and died young and tragically. Granddad calls it a legacy, but Ivy considers it a curse. Why else would her mother have run off and abandoned her as a child?
But when her mother unexpectedly returns home with two young daughters in tow, all of the stories Ivy wove to protect her heart start to unravel. The very people she once trusted now speak in lies. And all of Ivy’s ambition and determination cannot defend her against the secrets of the Milbourn past…. -Goodreads Description
The Rundown
Ivy has a good life. Loyal best friends. A beautiful home. A grandfather who dotes on her. The summer before senior year is supposed to be nothing but fun with parties at the cove, swimming, and enjoying her friends. And all it takes is a phone call to have all of those plans for the perfect summer come crashing down.
The reason why she's close to her grandfather is that he's all she has after her mom ran away and left Ivy with him when she was two. Now her estranged mother is coming home...with Ivy's two younger half sisters. This might be just another warped family reunion if the family name wasn't Milbourn.
Ivy is fifth generation Milbourn, a family that produces talented and tragically flawed women. Most in their small town believe it is a curse, and so does Ivy. She actually feels lucky that she doesn't have a gift. She's smart and a good swimmer, but not the valedictorian and not someone headed to the Olympics. Still, she struggles with the fear that she'll never be enough. She wasn't enough for her mother to stay. She isn't enough for her grandfather to be proud of her, to not expect more. Though it takes her a while to realize it, that feeling is strangling her.
One of the things I really liked in this story was that there were so many supporting characters encouraging Ivy to use her voice, something I think we need more of in YA literature. I loved her friend Claire, who speaks openly and honestly about sexuality, gender identity (their other best friend has a young brother who identifies as female), and consent. Connor, Ivy's very likable love interest, tells Ivy that it's by no means selfish to want to figure out who you are away from your family and to not be so worried about pleasing everyone all of the time. Another prop to Connor's character is their dialogue during a pretty intense make out scene where he asks Ivy if what they're doing is okay. I think it's important for teens to see healthy conversations between partners engaging in sexual behavior. Again, just something I like seeing more of: it's okay to say no without feeling guilt, and it's also okay to say yes with enthusiasm and not feel ashamed.
I also appreciated how illnesses like depression, eating disorders, and alcoholism are portrayed. Ivy's mom, Erica, suffers from all three, and it's likely that some, if not all, of their extraordinary mothers before them suffered from depression too. As Ivy points out to Erica in one gripping scene, her lack of acknowledging and getting help for her problems will catch up to her in how her other daughters view her and live their lives.
On a lighter note, this story is very much about Ivy coming into her own as she nears the end of high school and begins to think about a new chapter in her life. As much as she's attached to and feels comfortable in her small town, she admits that home isn't without flaws and by the end, begins to explore the idea of life away from what she has known with the freedom to be whoever she chooses.
Readers will take away a great message: families are often flawed, but one truly can make their own path in the world. Your family's legacy doesn't have to be your own. Or you can put your own spin on it. Or do something totally different. And it's absolutely okay to do so! They'll love how things end with Ivy and Connor, the peace she finds with the conflicting views of her grandfather and mother and the roles each have and may yet to play in her life, and most importantly, that Ivy realizes she is enough to be loved.
Rating: 4 Stars! A great book and enjoyable read!
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