Focusing on current issues faced by teens and parents in a world of social media, instant photo sharing and peer pressure, I found this read both enlightening and interesting. Without spoiling any of the content, I will say that I think the author did a great job of capturing some of the challenges we often hear about. This would be a great book club read because it would lead to some interesting discussion.

In my opinion, Giffin really strayed from her lighter plots and characters to something much deeper and darker. Readers ponder life choices and their ramifications and when it becomes too late to make a change. The fear of parenting and the profound impacts we make as parents are explored: can we fix our mistakes? Can we protect our kids? Do we need to let our kids face the fire for the greater good (ugh this book sometimes made me physically ill thinking of all the bad that can happen as our kids age!)

Nina was an inspirational character, and I so enjoyed her story. I absolutely loved how honest she was about her reflections and her goals, her fears and her priorities. I actually loved all the character. I felt they were all necessary, and even if I didn’t approve of their person, I approved of their role. The plot drew me in, but the themes were profound. I highly recommend this book—I had a hard time putting it down.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!

James E. Faust once said, “All parents hope and pray that their children will make wise decisions. Children who are obedient and responsible bring to their parents unending pride and satisfaction.”
The underlying message of that quote sums up the content of Emily Griffin’s book, “all we ever wanted.”
Griffin’s book takes on themes of affluence, sexual assault, social media, harassment, racism and elitism in a story that will leave the reader asking, “what would I do in that situation?”
One bad decision will ultimately change the lives of two families forever and lead to collateral damage to others.
Griffin gives the reader a chance to see the point of view from all the main characters in real time giving us a chance to feel the highs and lows of every person involved.
I find myself still thinking about this book a week later and discussing it with friends and family.
A definite must read and should be on everyones book club list.
I received a copy of this book via Netgalley. It did effect my review of this book.
#netgalley #allweeverwanted #emilygriffin

Giffin's insightful writing and compelling prose go way beyond what one usually finds in a family drama. She masterfully addresses the influence of social media and exposure on teens, family, and community, class and economic influences on the interpretation and handling of moral indiscretions, and the ability to 'overlook' character flaws in the ones we are closest to when the price of noticing feels too high...what more thought provoking themes could a reader want? And yet, the beauty of this writing is that it is smooth, believable, and never heavy-handed.

The story is of a son accused of sending a sexually explicit photo of a fellow high school student passed out at a party, with a racist comment underneath. We see this events unfold through several points of view-- Nina, the mother who struggles to understand who her son and husband really are, and therefore who she has become, Lyla, the teenage girl whose sole desire is to fit in at a school where she is economically disadvantaged, and Tom, her brilliantly written working-class single father. For me, the class issues that this addresses could not be more timely. It is a story well told, and a perfect book club read.

Thank you to the author and publisher for allowing me to read this wonderful novel through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

If Emily Giffin ever wrote a book that I didn't thoroughly enjoy, I'd be shocked. All We Ever Wanted pretty much had me at hello. I love that the storyline was something current and relatable. The entire time I was reading this book, I was putting myself in the shoes of almost every main character. If I were a mother, could I do what Nina was trying to do? Very intense story, and so much of what we are seeing and hearing lately. A terrific subject/plot, Emily. Characters were well described; I could picture them. It didn't jump around and kept me wondering how it would end. I finished this title in 2 days.
I wasn't suprised that this was another Emily Giffin title that I loved. I'd definitely recommend this for parents and non-parents...teachers, students, ..... EVERYONE.

I have always enjoyed Emily Giffin's books, and this was no exception. This one was, however, a bit of a departure from her other frothier books, dealing with much more serious topics like race and sexual harassment rather than romance. The story follows Nina, a very wealthy mother in Nashville, her son Finch, Finch's classmate Lyla, and Lyla's father Tom. It starts off with Nina learning about an inappropriate photo Finch took of Lyla at a party and sent around to his friends with a racist caption, and the story that follows deals with how class, race, and privilege play into Finch's consequences and everyone else's perception of what really happened. As usual, Emily Giffin has written an incredibly readable breeze of a book, this time a bit more though-provoking and with a little more grit. I definitely recommend if you enjoy a domestic drama and/or have enjoyed Emily Giffin's previous novels.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely loved this book. Felt like I knew the characters. Count wait to get into bed at night to picking back up. Definitely going to be buying more books by this author.

Loved this book and finished in one day. It is captivating from the first page and deals with real world/life issues that kids face with phones and social media. Anyone with a teenager should read this and share the lessons learned with their kids. The characters are very well developed and not predictable. Loved every minute of this wonderful book.

All We Ever Wanted is the upcoming release from Emily Giffin. Y'all, this one was so much more than I was expecting. I've read nearly all of Emily Giffin's books, and she's usually good for a love story. This one went in a very different direction - in a good way. This story revolves around a picture taken at a high school party. Through the exploration of what really happened in a drunken moment, there is an exploration of privilege in a number of different and impactful ways. The moment becomes more and more complex as three different characters involved explain what happened before, during and after that moment. I always appreciate a plot that makes me gasp out loud, and this one did on multiple occasions as characters make their choices of how to react -in great and not so great ways. The topic of this one is complex and provides a strong story that will make you want to talk about what you just read, as there are so many intersecting issues. I'm really looking forward to this one being released just so I have other people able to discuss it with me.

Nashville is one of my favorite places to visit and Emily Griffin is an author I really like, so I knew I would like this book before I even read it. Bonus points for mentioning one of my favorite hotels in Dallas (not too far from where I live), The Mansion on Turtle Creek! This was a quick moving story line and it didn't take me long to get through reading this one, just two days. I find Nina to be so easy to like and feel empathy for and Tom and Lyla really drew me in as well. The story is told from 3 different view points and I love books that are written in this format because I think it always goes a long way in really setting the scene and getting the full impact of the story having several different view points. The only complaint I have is I wanted more in the epilogue. I liked the taste of their futures but I wanted to know even more. All We Ever Wanted tackles some tough subject matter, but it is done in a way that I think isn't too overbearing. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys contemporary fiction.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. This book is very relevant to today's world regarding sexual assault, the great lengths those with money will go to "make bad situations disappear", and how women are viewed. I really enjoyed reading this book. The characters for the most part were relatable and I felt like I had a connection with them.

All We Ever Wanted was an interesting, engaging, and timely read. It’s theme and topic is essentially about consent and the use of social media in today’s society, and you see the story develop through the perspective of three characters, Nina, Tom, and Lyla.

I don’t want to talk about too much of the plot because I don’t want this review to contain spoilers, but the story revolves around how Nina’s son Finch sends a revealing and racist Snapchat to some of his friends of a partially naked and passed out Lyla- who happens to be Tom’s daughter. The story focuses on the aftermath of these events and the impact this had on all the characters.

I’ve read most of Emily Giffins’ books, but I think this is my new favorite. I couldn’t put it down. There were times I would get quite frustrated at Lyla, the high school student, for how she was acting, but then remembered that it was honestly how a high schooler would probably respond to what she was dealing with.

Sometimes I felt like the book moved a little fast or was a little rushed - a lot happens in a short amount of time - but I did get resolution for the majority of characters in the book, and would be interested in another book following the future of these characters.

I’d recommend this book to anyone who has enjoyed this author’s writing before, but note it isn’t as light as her other books. I’d also recommend it to anyone interested in or supportive of the #MeToo movement. It may also be a good discussion for parents who want to have conversations about social media use, consent, and even racism with their high school or college aged children.

Overall, a great, quick summer read!

Read all my reviews at: https://brainfartsandbooks.wordpress.com

Ah, the problems of the rich. Things are not what they always seem in the story of who snapped the picture of the half-naked drunk girl at the party. In true Emily Giffin style, this book had fabulous character development and different points of view used throughout the book. Tom, Nina, and Lyla all narrate the book from their points of views which made the story flow really quickly and easily. It's the classic story of the poor girl who falls in love for the rich boy. Finch, said rich boy, seems like a pretty good kid overall despite the fact that he has unlimited funds and is completely spoiled. And Nina, his mother, who grew up on the poorer side of town actually has a conscience despite the fact that her husband, Kirk, is a complete jerk. She is really quite likable especially when she gets together with Tom to discuss the kids and the situation. Tom is also a very likable down-to-earth Dad who is just trying to do his best raising Lyla as a single Dad. Clearly he loves his daughter and does his best by working two jobs and still keeping tabs on Lyla. The story has a few twists and turns in it and leaves the reader wondering who is telling the truth. I really enjoyed this book.

Thank you to Netgalley, Emily Giffin, and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit, but wasn't completely satisfied with the ending. I've read almost all of Emily Giffin's other books, but haven't enjoyed any of them as much as the first one I ever read, which was Something Borrowed. This story grabbed me from the start and I liked each of the main characters. I admired how Giffin made each of the character's voices so distinctively different from each other. The story itself was compelling, but the climax wasn't as affecting as it could have been. It centered around a secondary character that the reader didn't know enough about to care about. Had we had even a few more scenes with this character it would have been a more intense scenario. I can see this book being a good choice for book clubs because there are several timely issues for discussion.

[Spoiler alert]
Emily Giffin’s novel All We Ever Wanted displays the author’s deep and finely-tuned ability to dissect human tendencies and thinking when a “sticky” situation arises as she delves into the difference, angles, and degrees of privilege and entitlement.
The story is set in Nashville, a city that has an “other side of the tracks,” versus the uppity neighborhood. Kirk is “old” money, but boosted his income even more when he sold his company (giving a pittance of severance to his “right-hand” man, we learn). Kirk continues to work on his own in part because he just ‘doesn’t want to share the wealth.’ Nina, Kirk’s wife, is from a small community and from a more modest background, but she seems to enjoy their wealth and position in the community even though she says it ‘kind of embarrasses’ her. [She recalls that best friend Melanie said Kirk had “elitist tendencies.”]
We meet their only child, Finch, a Windsor Academy senior honor student. He has been accepted to three universities, the plum being Princeton. Kirk and Nina are almost on “auto-pilot” in their lives until an “unfortunate incident” brings Finch’s value system to the fore at the expense of Lyla, a sophomore at the same school as Finch. She is the bi-racial daughter of single dad, Tom, who works as a carpenter.
In this day of technology, it isn’t surprising to hear that Finch’s cellphone photo of Lyla at a party has gone all but viral on Snap-chat. Of course, the photo shows more than it should, but only because Lyla, passed out on a bed, is obviously unaware that she is the subject. To make things even worse, Lyla holds a green Uno card in her hand, and the caption reads “Looks like she got her green card.”
When Nina views the photo, she is in disbelief thinking that there was no way Finch would ever demean a girl, if only because that was how to get thrown out of Windsor Academy. But this thought is Nina's first one.
Upon learning of the photo, Kirk says he thinks it’s a ‘dumb inside joke,’ to which Nina responds, “An inside racist joke?” Kirk contends it “…isn’t really racist per se…” But Nina is disappointed in her son and his lack of empathy, whereas Kirk is upset because Finch has put his academic future on the line, and yes, could even be sued.
Finch contends that “these sort of things happen all the time,” to which Kirk responds that it did show a “lack of judgment,” but there will be home penalties. Nina, on the other hand, is far more concerned that her son, and even her husband, seem to be glossing over the episode. She becomes more enraged when Kirk continues to say it’s no big deal, and Finch reiterates. And the situation deteriorates further.
The elephant in the room becomes not only did the incident occur and the photo is from Finch’s phone, but also that, when asked if he has anything further to say, Finch says ‘no’--- no apology other than that he is ‘sorry,’ a perfunctory comment at best. (Nina questions: Is he ‘sorry’ because he did it, or because he got caught?)
Nina begins to realize that her son follows his father’s vein of thinking and speaking, only to make himself appear to be blameless and incapable of anything “wrong,” and that his actions and response to a situation is based on his false and skewed sense of self suggesting that he IS better. Therein lies Privilege versus Entitlement. Indeed, I find Finch faces three P’s, if you will: principle, popularity, prosperity (colored, perhaps by a fourth, the Princeton element.)
ch’s cellphone photo of Lyla at a party has gone all but viral on Snapchat. Of course, the photo shows more than it should, but only because Lyla, passed out on a bed, is obviously unaware that she is the subject. To make things even worse, Lyla holds a green Uno card in her hand, and the caption reads “Looks like she got her green card.”
When she views the photo, Nina is in disbelief thinking that there was no way Finch would ever demean a girl, if only because that was how to get thrown out of Windsor Academy.
Upon learning of the photo, Kirk says he thinks it’s a ‘dumb inside joke,’ to which Nina responds, “An inside racist joke?” Kirk contends it “…isn’t really racist per se…” But Nina is disappointed in her son and his lack of empathy, whereas Kirk is upset because Finch has put his academic future on the line, and yes, could even be sued.
Finch contends that “these sort of things happen all the time,” to which Kirk responds that it did show a “lack of judgment,” but there will be home penalties. Nina, on the other hand, is far more concerned that her son, and even her husband, seem to be glossing over the episode. She becomes more enraged when Kirk continues to say it’s no big deal, and Finch reiterates. And the situation deteriorates further from there.
The elephant in the room becomes not only did the incident occur and the photo is from Finch’s phone, but also that, when asked if he has anything further to say, Finch says ‘no’--- no apology other than that he is ‘sorry,’ a perfunctory comment at best. (Nina questions: Is he ‘sorry’ because he did it, or because he got caught?)
Nina begins to realize that her son follows his father’s vein of thinking and speaking, only to make himself appear to be blameless and incapable of anything “wrong,” and that his actions and response to a situation is based on his false and skewed sense of self suggesting that he IS better. Therein lies Privilege versus Entitlement. Indeed, I find Finch faces three P’s, if you will: principle, popularity, prosperity (colored, perhaps by a fourth P in Finch’s case: Princeton).
This book reads quickly not only because Giffin is adept at characterization and dialog, but because she presents the reader with a contemporary take on an age old theme that brings questions the reader must look at fully and completely. I highly recommend All We Ever Wanted.

Good morning readers!!! This should be the last week of school for most of y’all and I know everyone is ready for some great summer reading!!! I got the new Emily Giffin as an advance reader copy and just finished it up. I should preface this by saying I’ve read everything she has ever written despite the fact that I really don’t love her books simply because they make me nervous. Someone is always about to get busted cheating on their spouse and they just make me sweat! This one was refreshing and I highly enjoyed it. I wish the end had been more developed but I found this subject matter (social media scandal) to be really relevant to kids today. Moral of the story is give this one a try even if you aren’t typically a Giffin fan!! Publication date is June 26th and I’ll post a reminder.!

I really enjoyed this novel by Emily Giffin, it was probably one of the best that I have read by her in a while. I feel like the story was very relevant in society today. This was a thrilling story of two families that are impacted by one picture. As the story develops the characters need to decide how to handle the changes in their world as a result of the picture. I liked how the story was told and different perspectives as well as the development of the characters. This was a really good story about the choices we make and how difficult it can be to truly know someone. This is a quick read and I'm thankful to netgalley for an arc in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for an ARC of this book!

I have mixed feelings about this book. There were definitely good things that I liked about it, but I have some complaints as well.

First, the good. I think this storyline is needed in the world today, showing that social media and teenage parties can have long-lasting consequences. That something that seems innocent in the moment can actually be very serious. I also thought the characters were mostly likable, including the three main perspectives, Nina, Tom, and Lyla. It was a quick read that kept me engaged throughout, and there were some twists along the way that did surprise me.

However, I feel like the author wanted to make a point about too many topics, social media, materialism, privilege, suicide, drinking, marriage/divorce, morals. This made the storyline somewhat disjointed, and I think if it would have been slimmed down a little to a few issues, specifically the main ones of social media and these privileged kids, it would have been a more enjoyable story. Specifically I wish the Kirk and Nina storyline had been left out completely, because I feel like the audience this book should be for is teenagers, to see that actions have consequences, and yet that storyline makes a more adult book. So I'm really not sure what audience this book was aimed at, because I feel like adults are less likely to connect with the social media/teenage drinking storyline, but teenagers won't really connect with Nina and Kirk's storyline.

I also felt like most of the characters, especially side characters, were kind of cliche. No one is that one-dimensional, and I especially felt this way about Kirk's character. It never showed his side of the story, and Kirk was always portrayed as a shallow rich guy that no one truly liked. I feel like exploring more of his personality and his good side, even if his general persona was the same, would just have given more depth to the story. Kirk is the main one that had this cliche problem, but I even feel that Tom's anger, Lyla's teenage dialogue, Beau and Finch's actions, Beatriz's party-girl attitude, and all of Nina's friends were cliche as well. Nina is the only character who felt really realistic throughout the whole thing.

My last complaint is that I didn't really like the ending. I think because the author was trying to cram so many "big issues" into this book, she went one way with the storyline that made less sense than where it looked like she was going with it. As a result the actual ending fit more into a cliche characterization of one character in particular, when another direction with the story, where we thought it was going for most of the book, actually made more sense. This is vague, but I'm trying to describe it in a way that isn't spoilers.

And one other small thing, not exactly a complaint about the story, just an observation, is that this book will become dated very quickly. It talks about Snapchat, Uber, Trump, Luke Bryan, and other things that no one will relate to in 10 years.

This was not a bad book in any way. Just average to me. The storyline was good and as I said before, very relevant and needed in today's world of social media. But there were a few problems that brought my rating down, although the characters and writing style were good enough that I'd still be interested in this author's books again.

Emily writes of the thing we all fear - our child doing something inconceviable. Told from many viewpoints, great story

Well, Emily Giffin has done it again. She’s sucked me in and held me captive for a few days. All We Ever Wanted is a little bit of a departure from EG’s past novels. This is darker, more serious and certainly timely. As a parent of two teenagers, I am constantly harping on them about being smart about what they put on social media. This storyline hit close to home. Not because my kids have been in similar situations, but because it made me all too aware of what COULD happen.

As in past novels, Emily’s characters are real, human and flawed, just like all of us. They’re believeable and relateable. I usually find myself connecting with at least one character when reading one of Emily’s books. This time, it was Lyla.

All in all, another solid, excellent read from one of my favorite authors. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.