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Back to You by Priscilla Glenn
Published by CreateSpace Independent
Publishing Platform
Released: October 20th 2012
Paperback, 328 pages
Reviewed by Lilyan
Rating: 5 Stars
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Or that it would end so painfully.
Eight years later, when Lauren begins her new job at Learn and Grow Day Care, Michael is the last person she expects to see. Refusing to revisit the hurt and confusion of their past, Lauren vows to keep her distance from him. But staying away from Michael proves to be more difficult than she thought, despite her lingering grief and her instincts for self-preservation.
As Lauren and Michael recall the friendship that changed them forever and the events that tore them apart, will they finally be able to heal? Or will the ghosts of Michael’s past prove to be too much to overcome?
Summery from Goodreads
Review:
Since spring break just started for me, I have WAYYY more free time. So I started reading books in one sitting again. It feels goooood.
This book was an emotional whirlwind. It made me cry, which is not surprising, but it's probably the most I've cried for a book ever. Even more than 'memoirs of an imaginary friend'. I was crying for 70% of the book, just endless tears. At some points I started crying so hard I couldn't catch my breath.
My mom just walked in on me and was like: Are you crying about fictional people again?
Me: *sobs*
my mom: *sighs* you should read your sister's old chemistry books. They won't make you cry. -leaves the room-
me: *continues crying* reading chemistry books would be so boring, I would cry either way.
Anyway, yeah. I'm overly emotional. Whenever I read I invest myself into the characters so much that I feel exactly how they felt, even if I haven't gone through it myself. Books on heartbreak and dysfunctional families always get to me right in the feels. When I feel my heart clench in pain, I almost kinda revel in it because that's how I know the writing is pretty darn exceptional.
This book guys. It made my heart feel like it was getting broken, piece by piece. and it was great. (that sounded really weird) I LIVE FOR THE ANGST AND ANGUISH. I love reading sad stories with generally peaceful endings.
So this book was perfect. I like how it goes from past to present. It really creates suspense and tons of dramatic irony. Michael is perfect, and his interactions with his daughter are so heart warming. It gave me the warm-and-fuzzy-feeling.
When it got to the part about the pennett squares-I knew it. I knew it was going to happen. With each sentence my throat was just constricting and then BOOM. TEARS.
"And suddenly he knew why the man he thought was his father left him when he was five, and why he never wanted to see Michael again. Just like that, after all the years spent wondering, it was suddenly crystal clear why his family had fallen apart.
It was his fault"
And then the neglect from his mother, and the death of his brother. And the whole blaming himself thing. It really got to me. The guilt and the burden you would feel if you truly thought you were the reason why your brother died. And I could see way Michael thought that way. With everyone ignoring you, it's natural to blame yourself when the only person who cared, died.
The novel starts out in the present where Lauren is working at a daycare center. It has been eight years since she's seen Michael, who moved to New York right when she thought their relationship was secure.
Then, guess who comes in walking through the door with his 3 year old daughter? yep. Michael. Things get awkward and they both can't help wanting to become friends again... or more than just friends.
The flashbacks with Lauren and Michael were beautiful. Their relationship was amazing. He would call her Red and she would call him by his first name, even though everyone called him by his last name. Their interactions were so beautiful and endearing. bffls yo.
""I like how you act around me"
"How do I act around you?"
He shrugged. "Normal""
Then when things slow started falling apart. cue tears.
"she told him she understood, when she looked up at him with that smile. But this time, it didn't reach her eyes."
The story might seem a tad bit slow to you, but trust me, it all comes together in the end, and they finally clear up their miss understandings. AND IT'S THE BEST FEELING IN THE WORLD.
side note -Out of everyone in the whole story, I liked Dean the best. I really want to know how his life turned out and I wanted to know more about Jenn.-
But the ending was perfect.
Read this if you like the good ol' heart wrenching stuff.
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