Another excellent book from Fredrik Backman! This is a sequel to Beartown, picking up shortly after that story ended. Backman writes with such depth and perception about the little things that make a man, emotions and intent, and the things that can change your life in an instant. Beartown is struggling to save their hockey team, and the residents of Beartown all have their own battles as well - to save their marriage, their families, their town, to be a man, to survive. Each story is compelling in it's own right, and together they weave together to tell the story of their town, with hockey at it's center. Foreshadowing is a little heavy in this one, and the pace is rather slow at times, particularly at the beginning, but I loved it anyway - these characters are all so real, and the story is so compelling. It's just another heartbreak waiting to happen, written as no one but Fredrik Backman could write it. Many thanks to Atria Books and Netgalley for the e-arc. 4.5 stars!

Thanks to Simon & Schuster and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. I discovered Fredrik Backman last year when I recommended his book My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry to my book club and quickly devoured all he had written! His insight into the human condition is uncanny and Us Against You is no exception. This is a follow up to last year’s, Beartown and you definitely must read that one to be able to understand and appreciate this wonderful book of grief, secrets, and redemption. Following closely on the heels of Beartown, a town is left reeling after what happened in the winter. But this hits just keep coming, The local hockey team is to be disbanded and what’s a town to do? Enter, seedy politicians, mysterious supporter, a new hockey coach. But can Beartown and Hed survive the mounting tensions, the not so innocent pranks and all that goes with it? But more importantly, can the families we cared so much for in Beartown survive? If you’re looking for something to make you feel deeply I highly recommended this book!

** spoiler alert ** I really loved Beartown, and it was one of my favorite books of 2017. Beartown was a great stand alone novel, and I was a little anxious about the sequel. Although I enjoyed "Us Against You" and returning to Beartown to some of my favorite characters, this book seemed a little disjointed and anti-climatic to me. It felt very much like a dashed together "middle book" of a trilogy. Finishing the book left me with many questions about where the characters are going, and why they are making the choices they are - Benji especially. After building up to the Hed versus Beartown rematch - you don't find out the final score, and Benji opts not to show. I did not get it. Interesting writing style of Backman to kind of give you a bit, and then explore more within the chapter. Absolutely hated the career politician Richard Theo, and thought that both parents (Peter and Kira) totally ignored their son Leo, despite warnings that he had issues dealing with Maya's rape and his inability to protect her. Disappointed in the manipulative emotional impact and the lack of growth in Peter's character. If there is a third installment, I will read it just to find out what happens to Benji. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced reader copy.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed Beartown, the precursor to this book and also surprised how little I liked this novel. I felt it didn’t add much to my understanding of the characters and was far too preachy throughout. I just did not care for the narrative perspective and was impatient with the storyline. You really could see how it would all play out. I think Backman should have left those story where it ended in Beartown.

Backman’s characters dig themselves into my heart. It feels so good to love them. He writes the tender moments of love in ordinary lives. There is also pain. The way Kira and Peter grow apart in their grief. The devastating violence and heartbreak the kids suffer. Maya, Ana, Benji, Bobo and Leo. The depth of feeling. Hockey is central to the story but it is the people I will not forget. Bang. Bang. Bang. #usagainstyou #fredrikbackman#netgalley

Old characters reappear and new characters are introduced in this book, the follow-up to last year's phenomenal hit, Beartown. There's drama, marital difficulties, bullying, rivalries, political machinations, and heartbreak. This book may not have the impact of Beartown but fans will have much to enjoy with this new novel. Backman excels at insights into human nature and writing characters that are easy to care for.

The writing is beautiful with excellent character development. Many passages made me pause to savor his words. I didn't really care about the political maneuverings, which slowed the story down for me a bit, and I have a lot of difficulty understanding sports culture/rivalries. Even so, Backman delivers a poignant read that will satisfy his many fans.

* review will post on Amazon on June 5, 2018

The magic continues, as Fredrik Backman pens the second book in the "Beartown" trilogy, "Us Against You." Hockey, the product that brought everyone together in the last book, tears them apart in this one. As a new politician enters the town promising to save the club, the team, even the factory and jobs, his words sound hollow.
"Some people think violence came to Beartown that summer. But they didn't realize the violence was already there." (paraphrasing mine)
Benji thinks he's found love but only to be betrayed by a confused friend. Peter and Kira's marriage is tested beyond the strains of what love and loyalty can hold. Ana and Maya's friendship fall under the same stress. Old characters play bigger roles and new characters emerge to find their fit in this small but volatile town.
All the emotion and wonder Beartown brought us last year is compounded and magnified in "Us Against You."
This is a must read!

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books; and most of all to Fredrik Backman

Thank you NetGalley and to the publisher for an ARC of this sequel to one of my most favorite books of 2017. This is a 4.5 star read. The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars is I felt the story really didn’t get going until 30 percent in. I was getting a little lost following Richard Theo’s political wheeling and dealing. Otherwise, I believe I enjoyed this book even more than Beartown. The author is masterful at multidimensional characters. Although I would say in this book, I had a harder time feeling engaged in Peter’s character. Overall, highly recommend and of course I can’t wait for the final installment in the trilogy.
30 📚✔️

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for allowing me to read Us Against You, by Fredrick Backman. When I first started reading, I thought it was just another hockey story. Boy, was I fooled and pleasantly surprised. I couldn’t put this book down. Besides the struggles Beartown faces with the possible downfall of their hockey team, the reader is involved with issues of small town life, prejudices, violence, love, family, and character development that will keep the reader pondering for a long time. We cheer the hockey players as they strive to develop character on and off the rink; the families as they start to fall apart, but come together again; and the town, as it is divided on different issues, but comes around to unite and grow strong again. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to Fredrik Backman’s next novel.

If you read Beartown, you will be compelled to read this one. I was not sure if I was ready to re-enter the small northern town of Beartown, to relive the heart-wrenching yet incredibly heroic tale of a culture that turned its back on a vulnerable girl and her family. Yet I also wanted to know...what next? This book picks up at the end of a tragic loss for the Beartown hockey team after a young girl's story of rape sidelines the star, and forces his friends to become heroes or villains. Once again Backman is able to take our hearts and wrap them around his characters: the new female hockey coach who says she only cares about hockey but gives chances to kids who never had them before; the head thug who loves his brother and his hockey team with a purity that defies reason; the two best friends who must re-find how friendship should be defined; the star who is outed, and must find his place in the hockey stadium and the world at large; the mother and father whose life ambitions pull them apart; the politician who is willing to sacrifice them all for power; and the crusty old bartender who holds the town together. As I turned the final page, I felt bereft, as if I had lost a town of friends, people I cheered for, yelled at, shook til their teeth rattled, and ultimately drew into my heart. Yep, I loved this book; I loved it because Backman reminds us that humans are complicated, not perfect, just complicated.

Many thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of Us Against You. This is the follow up to Fredrik Backman 's Beartown, something I have been waiting for since reading the last page of Beartown The story begins three months after the end of Beartown following many of the same characters.
Backman begins by saying
We’ll end up saying that violence came to Beartown this summer, but that will be a lie, the violence was already here.
It is a story of love and hate, of who belongs and who is the stranger--who is worthy of love and who is different from us and so can be worthy of our hate.
Backman has an incredible ability to point out how people make choices and how these choices determine the person the character will become :
At some point almost everyone makes a choice. Some of us don’t even notice it happening, most don’t get to plan it in advance, but there’s always a moment when we take one path instead of another, which has consequences for the rest of our lives. It determines the people we will become, in other people’s eyes as well as our own.
Us Against You is the story of these choices. It is a story of hate at times but it is also a love story. There were many times that I cried and almost as many where I laughed out loud. It is a story most of all of family: The chant chosen by the Beartown supporters is '“We’ll stand tall if you stand tall!" And essentially the people of this town are those who are taught that they are 'not the type who let other people down'. In difficult emotional times this can lead to a real roller coaster ride of a story, but it's worth every minute!

I couldn’t wait to get back to these characters that I fell in love with in Beartown and Us Against You did not disappoint. Rarely do I highlight a novel as much as I highlight Backman’s novels. I love how real his characters are and how he can tell a page turning story while at the same time giving me so much to think about.

Where does one begin when it comes to describing an author whose books constantly amaze you to the point you cannot easily put them down for any reason other than an emergency? Fredrik Backman has struck gold with the second book in the Beartown series, Us Against You. After I survived a book daze last year with the series debut, I read another of his works which catapulted Backman into my top 5 of favorite authors. Once I learned he had written a second book in the Beartown series (they are all translated from Swedish) recently, I had to read this next one... and his publisher, Atria, contacted me to see if I was interested. How lucky can a guy get? When I finished it, Backman is now sitting pretty, completely unreachable for a good while, in my top 3 all-time favorite authors.

At first I was a little worried, I must admit. I'm not a big sports fan, and while I loved the first book, could I really become immersed in hockey again? I worked at Madison Square Garden for 10+ years and spent many a night with NY Rangers fans and players. Once I started reading the new book, I also realized the first 15% was a re-hash of the earlier book. It's extremely well-written, so it was easy and smooth, but what did that mean for the rest of the novel? Well that concern quickly disappeared because enter a smooth-talking politician playing games in the background to re-ignite the flames between Hed and Beartown all in the name of getting himself more power. All the earlier characters are back in action, fighting to save the Beartown hockey team, protect Maya AND Kevin (her rapist). What??? What's wrong with people is all I have to say. The words on the pages truly push readers to ask a simple question. Is the attack of one girl worth losing someone who could save an entire town from bankruptcy and possible dismay. Hopefully we all think FIRST about poor Maya, but then you wonder: Do you allow 1 person to keep suffering all in the name of saving the rest? Should the Anderssons just leave Beartown and start over, despite never having done anything wrong? It's questions like this that plague you as you read the book -- yet never ONCE does any character actually ask that. It's all subtle. And I'm not weighing in with my opinion as it's fiction... all meant to transport us to a world of torment and shock.

Enter my favorite character, Benji. He's tragic. He's powerful. He's weak. He's lost. He's yearning for something he can't control. He is trapped between right and wrong. The story focuses on him this time in the same respect as it did Maya last time. While he's not attacked in the same way as she was last time (as he'd kill anyone who tried to hurt him), Benji is abused on so many more levels. But don't worry, he gives back just as much as he gets, and that's why I adore him. He makes mistakes, but he fixes them. He hides, but he's got a plan to emerge more victorious. He loves his sisters and is an honorable man (boy? he's 17/18) we all should respect. But he's gay, and well, you know what that means: Beartown can't support him. Hed will do everything to hurt him. They constantly chant "Fags. Whores. Rapists." Yet deep down, you know they all want to support him. I'm not giving away any spoilers, as we learned he was gay in the first book. I just didn't expect the second to focus on him.

Yet Backman nearly killed me about 2/3 through when disaster happens and I thought for a moment, I can't finish this book. After what he's done to Benji, I'm just done. But I trudged on and I'm so glad I did. I can't think of another author right now who can let me down and build me up so many times in a book... to the point where they could be talking about hockey or pencils and I still feel a passion I rarely feel in life about most things outside of books. I want Beartown to win. I want Peter to get his dignity back. I want the new coach to prove women can be better than men at things. I want it all... and Backman delivers it all -- just never in the way I expect.

Someone loses. A few people actually. And it's harsh. You will cry. You will throw the book. But you will pick it up again because it's become part of you. This must become a movie. I will be the first in line to watch it, and I don't often go to the movies.

There's very little to dislike in this book. You may hate certain characters, but they make you love the story all that much more. You might disagree with a plot line, but it will lead you to the right ending. You may want to strangle a few teenagers, and honestly, it may be okay in this instance. I'm not advocating killing kids, but there are just some people who need to be punished for the things they say or do . (Don't quote me on that!!!)

I'm really left with... PLEASE give us a third book of equal power and humility. I will do anything.

As much as I loved the first one, I love this one better. Except Peter. I get that he is conflicted, but he is just so weak that it is hard to sympathize with him. Everyone else is so well written and characterized that I really think I will run into them while I'm running errands.

Us Against You is set right after Beartown. But you know, if you're a Backman fan, that not all of his timelines run consistently, which is something you probably about his writing as much as I do. So mostly, it is set after Beartown.
We meet a couple of new characters in this sequel and we get to know others better and more intimately. I loved Ramona in Beartown and I really love her here.

I cannot recommend this series enough, especially with Us Against You being even better than Beartown. When "they" say reading fiction helps increase empathy in people, Us Against You is what they had in mind

This sequel shows us what happens to a town in crisis. Beartown is a small town ripped apart, not only by the loss of its heart - the hockey team but also by its soul - the people who have left adrift with nothing to anchor to. Hockey was everything to Beartown, the whole reason people wake up in the morning and with the loss of the team to a neighboring rival town and most of the star players, Beartown just wants to pull up the covers and hide. A new female coach is brought in who just may be able to patch up the team using unconventional methods and a dangerous combination of volatile boys along with the support of the old coach and new management. After some "boys will be boys" pranks, not all committed by boys and other more dangerous events take place it is hard to see if this new team will make it. Marriages will falter, old friendships will be tested and childhood cut short for some. Backman once again seduces us with colorful, yet everyday characters blended with thoughtful phrasing all the while prying our eyes wide open to the effects of hate and stupidity that drives the human race. You don't have to read the first book to enjoy this one but you will be missing the finer points of what led up to these events and denying yourself one beautifully crafted read. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

Mr Backman has done it again. This return trip to a small hockey-loving town is absolutely as riveting as the first. The characters are so rich and well-drawn and there is such perfect world building that I can picture every scene effortlessly. This is a must-read for anyone, not just sports fans or fans of Backman’s previous novels.

Hockey in Beartown is everything. The townspeople revolve their whole lives around the hockey season and game schedule. After a devastating previous year the town is dealt another blow when they find out the local team will be disbanded. Most of the players decide to play for the rival team in Hed, but some players choose to stay and save Beartown hockey. Politicians become involved, an unconventional new coach is hired, and new players are brought in. Hed and Beartown play each other twice during the season. The first game was a disaster. Everything is leading up to the last game of the season when Beartown and Hed face each other for the second time. Friendships are once again put to the test as new relationships are formed and old ones are strengthened.

I loved Beartown. Loved. It was my favorite book I read last year. When people ask me what their next book should be that it what I suggest. I was hoping to love the sequel just as much but it didn't live up to my expectations. It became too political for me instead of focusing on the characters that I loved so much. I wasn't as emotionally invested and wanted more character development. When I was reading the Richard Theo parts I found myself bored. It took me longer to get into this book as a result. At times it felt like I was reading the news. I wanted more of Amat and Bobo in this book, they were my favorites. I still loved Backman's style of writing, however I did notice in this book a ton of one sentence foreshadowing. It became a bit much. Especially with Ana and Vidar. He must have mentioned how their love would be cut short at least 5-7 times before something actually happens. I would have preferred that to just happen at the end instead of expecting it the whole time.

Overall I would recommend it but it won't be my "go to" recommendation like Beartown was.

A huge thank you to both the publisher and NetGalley for gifting me with an ARC of this novel to read and review.

Beartown was one of my favorite reads last year and I have been singing its praises for months. I was surprised to learn Mr. Backman had intended to write a trilogy since I felt Beartown was perfect on its own. The sequel, Us Against You very much follows the same formula used in Beartown but somehow it felt forced and less authentic.

The story picks up where Beartown ended. Like book one, Backman takes a long time to set the scene and introduce his characters. We are treated to both old favorites and new residents and locals. I found the beginning to be drawn out and felt it took a long time to actually get to the heart of book two.

There are plenty of twists, heartbreaks, disappointments and surprises along the way but ultimately this book fell short for me. I'm still interested to see how this story wraps up and I always enjoy a visit to this special community.

I had a hard time rating this book. Not because it isn't well written, because it is. Maybe it is because it makes me think TOO much. I don’t want to believe there are so many people filled with hatred and prejudice, and I want happy ever after. I want Beartown to be this idyllic town, where everyone watches out for everyone else. And they do. Those people are there. But there is still so much sadness and bullying--and that just tore at my heart and made me angry. Kids leaving hate notes in lockers at school, people trying to force Anderrson to move away by sending moving vans to their house, kids walking around with guns in the woods, grown men chanting hate words at hockey games, and absent parents or kids having to take care of their parents because they can’t care for themselves--let alone their children. And that isn’t even the worst of what happens in this small town. It made me sad, angry and frustrated, and that my friend is what is supposed to happen when you read a good book. If the characters and the story are that compelling, you have to give it a five star. That is what makes this book so real, so believable and the characters so authentic.

This book picks up where Bear Town left off. It is just a few months later and the town is still trying to recover from the ramifications of what happened. Most of the same people are in the book, but the focus is on some different characters. You know something is going to happen, that someone is going to die, because he lets that be known pretty soon; but you don't know who and you don’t know how and you don’t know when. Backman drops hints in his books by making full out statements, such as he did in Beartown by letting us know that Maya will eventually become a songwriter and performer, and we continue to know the future of many of these characters. I don’t know if this story continues, but there certainly could be a third book and if so, I’m sure it will be just as good.

Fredrick Backman….you, sir, can write.