I had a really tough time following this story. I did not connect with the characters or the story line for that matter. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this book for my honest review.

I have read Emily Giffin's books before, but this was like Emily Giffin on steroids. This story was deep and complex, and really kept me intrigued the entire time. I even found myself thinking about the outcome while I wasn't reading the book.

I think we see one of the main characters, Nina, go through a pretty big transformation throughout the book. In the beginning, it's like she's become so accustomed to being "high society", that she has taken on a lot of that attitude in her life. She tended to try to convince herself that she wasn't like those people. However, she would share beliefs similar to theirs, and always find a way to justify why HER reasoning was different and made more sense than theirs. It was almost her way to excuse herself for having thoughts or beliefs that others would find reprehensible. But after the incident occurs, you can see that start to shift. She stops making justifications for the similarity in beliefs that she shares with wealthy, entitled people. She tends to stick more to her core values, and doesn't make excuses for the bad choices that her family makes either.

I loved that the story was told in multiple points of view. While that can get confusing sometimes, I felt like there was enough character development and distinctness of voice that it was very easy to follow. There definitely would have been times that we wouldn't have gotten the entire story if this was told from just one person's POV.

I will definitely read more works by Emily Giffin in the future. While I still find this to be chic lit, it was refreshing to read something that really made you think and made you wonder what you would do if you found yourself in those circumstances.

This is a powerful and compelling drama and based on a current hot topic – consent. I enjoy reading a story with varying POVs which help to move the story forward and learn more about each character.

Lyla has been raised by her father and was fortunate enough to win a scholarship to a prestigious private school in Nashville. Lyla makes a poor decision to drink and thus begins the story with a picture with a racist comment that’s shared among several people. The school’s headmaster wants the honor policy enforced, which covers a wide array of actions, on and off campus. Nina and Kirk are the parents of Finch, who is accused of taking the photo and sharing it. Since he’s very popular, it makes things more difficult for Lyla.

Nina and Kirk are at odds with Nina believing that Finch should accept the consequences while Kirk thinks that his son is a good kid, shouldn’t have one instance have a serious effect on his life and college, and thinks he can just throw money at the problem. The more I learned about Kirk, I was not impressed as he thought his money made him better than anyone.

As the story progresses, Nina is left wondering how her life got to be so materialistic and did she fail her son? The children don’t want to disappoint their parents so some very important facts were not shared, which could have changed the outcome of this story and there were some tragic events.

The issue of consent comes up for several characters along with other criminal acts. Nina attempts to talk to Finch about honor and integrity and yet she lets him shut her out. Finch also has his father on his side so Nina begins to fight both for the truth.

It was difficult to like most of the characters at the beginning of the story with affluence, ‘class’ disparities, teens who don’t think many things are that important and want what they want, and the parenting styles. I ended up enjoying Lyla’s character the most but also Nina and Tom.

The ending was heartbreaking in many ways and yet some good came out of the whole ordeal, although I wish there had been more consequences. This was a thought provoking story and one that is seen often in the news with varying outcomes. I was left wanting just a little bit more information between the event, hearing and then almost ten years later. It seems that Karma took care of one character, which I was happy to read.

Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this early copy.

A quick read with a mixed message.
All We Ever Wanted by Emily Giffin is one of those books that I am really not sure what to think about. Compulsively readable, but with characters that are truly despicable, and only a handful of characters that are kind and good, I really struggled with the characters and their choices here.
Told in alternating POV chapters between high school age Lyla, Lyla’s father, Tom, and Nina, the mother of high school senior Finch. Finch takes a risqué photo of Lyla, captions it with a racist caption (Lyla is Brazilian), and sends it around to his friends. As Finch has just been accepted into Princeton, the photograph has serious repercussions for Finch’s future (not to mention Lyla’s).
Oof. Where to start. So much of this book is about privilege and money, and that just really irritated me. Turns out I don’t care for contemporary fiction that has rich people acting like jerks, especially when those characters never make any positive changes or ever get their comeuppance. Many of the characters here were just absolutely awful, and I really had trouble with a lot of the scenes. Why is attending an exclusive, wealthy school worth all of the drama? Why are people just so darn mean to each other? I never got a satisfactory answer or solution in this read, and I think that was part of my frustration with All We Ever Wanted.
In terms of our main characters, they were all three the most likeable of the bunch, although Lyla’s father, Tom, slightly irritated me with his constant chip-on-the-shoulder towards the wealthy that he had. He was sending Lyla to a fancy private school! Who did she think she’d end up being friends with and dating? He also had some anger issues that bothered me, and I didn’t feel he was as nice a person as the author was trying to portray him. I also am not so sure that his POV was necessary. Our main female characters, Lyla and Nina, were both interesting POVs. I liked Nina’s POV more than Lyla’s, just because Lyla’s own reaction to the photo and her decisions in the book felt a bit forced for the story. Nina felt more real, as she goes through the struggle of parenting, her marriage, and her wealth. I could feel Nina’s emotion throughout the book, and her desire to do the right thing.
This book kept me thinking about all of the different issues it brings up, and this would make a good book club read as I doubt anyone could read this and not have a strong opinion on the characters, the plot and choices made, and the issues involved. This book kept me entertained, but it certainly made me angry as well. I can’t say what I absolutely disliked about the book without spoiling it, but I’m sure that this read would make for some spirited book club discussions!

Bottom Line: A fast read that would make for some good discussion!

Having recently been to Nashville, including a home in Belle Meade, I enjoyed the local references. All We Ever Wanted fictionalizes a story I recall from the headlines. While it has falls into political and socio-economic stereotypes, I nonetheless enjoyed the story. It broached current topics like the Snapchat/sexting culture: "kids take photos like that all the time. Of themselves, of each other." My favorite observation: "Minigolf... is a metaphor for life. ... Do you take it seriously? Too seriously? Do you enjoy it? Do you keep careful score? Do you get upset when you lose? Do you cheat? And if you do cheat, how do you react when you're busted? Are you sheepish? Sorry? Do you do it again?"

Thanks to NetGalley/Random House-Ballantine for providing me with the ARC of this book for an honest review.

Wow. I love Emily Giffin’s novels and had high expectations for this one too. It was even better than I imagined it would be. The topics addressed in this book are so important and relevant to today’s society. The book addresses the fallout of compromising pictures of a girl being distributed to everyone in her school and how that action causes ripples through multiple people’s lives. It’s about families coming together or falling apart in the aftermath, finding out who their friends really are, and so much more.

The author was able to give separate and distinct voices to every character and this is what sets her apart from others. The way she wrote about Nina’s struggles to find the truth, help her son, and get back to being the person she was before she had money or the way she wrote about a father trying to fight for his daughter so that she would understand that she’s worth so much more was so moving. Even the secondary characters were so wonderful. I really loved Bonnie. The author makes you feel like you are right there with these characters. I wanted to follow these characters through the rest of their lives and not just this moment in time.

As someone who lives in Nashville, the book also did an incredible job of highlighting the city and some of cultural and socioeconomic divides that are present. This book has so many layers and themes that it will resonate with any reader. I highly recommend it!

Outstanding honest portrayal of an issue that can happen to anyone , anytime no matter the Social status, Rather it was a bad joke , harmful intent to hurt someone, or just plain bad judgment , the issue at hand portrayed in this story has happened ..The three characters describing the after affects are point on , the reader feels what the characters are going through, open the readers eyes to a issue that had gone viral in the story and could very well happen in real life / real time .The reader has time to think about the issue and how they would react to it , what would they do if they were in this situation .I love this author and how she gets to the heart of the matter , great read , page turner , good storyline that everyone should be aware of , this could really happen .

I have enjoyed every one of Emily Giffin’s novels, and this one was no exception. However, the content of the book was a bit different from her norm as it dove into deeper issues so prevalent in today’s world of social media and the “me too” movement. “All We Ever Wanted” is a powerful novel extremely relevant to today’s issues, and a must-read for all!

A book by Emilie Giffin is always a guaranteed enjoyable read. When I saw she had a new book coming out, I made sure to check it out as soon as I could. She doesn't disappoint! The characters are genuine and you can picture them easily. The storyline moves quickly and keeps you hooked. I don't have a lot of extra time for reading so I'm extremely picky when it comes to choosing something to lose myself in. This is another winner.

Emily Griffin delivered another well written book that is extremely relevant with the me too movement.

It all started with a lewd Snapchat picture at a party. The book then leads down a path of deceit, he said-she said, self-discovery, and so much more.

All we ever wanted explored relationships, young love, and the never ending question of just how far would you go for your family.

I really enjoyed the depth of the characters, how well written the book was, and how relevant it was in today’s society.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House LLC for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGallery for for the opportunity to read "All We Ever Wanted" by Emily Giffin.
My honest opinion of this book is it is so 5 stars! The story had so many twists and turns., it is told from multiple points of view, kept me guessing to the very end. I couldn't put the book down, I just had to know how it was going to end. I fell in love with how strong Nina and Lyla became as the book went on. This book covers everything from parenting teenagers to sexual assault to divorce.... and, how how important having morals and values can be. I wasn't overly happy with the ending, I enjoyed this book immensely!

This was a captivating read by Emily Giffin! It opens up your mind to things you may never have thought about before. Some parts I couldn’t really get into, but overall the book was ok.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

Just one photo can change the course of your life. Very readable and engaging story about tough subjects such as racism, social media, and sexual assault. Social class/privilege is the defining theme. The story is told in several voices and this adds depth to the storyline. Very relevant and a good read.

This book starts out fast and engaging but then devolved quickly. Finch is the privileged son of extremely wealthy parents, attending an elite high school and set to go to Princeton after graduation. Lyla is the daughter of a carpenter dad who’s raising her alone after her mother abandoned them. When Finch makes a terrible decision at a party one night, his choice threatens to destroy many lives, including his own. This story started out with so much promise. I was hooked by the focus on the parents’ struggles of parenting teens, the inequities between the wealthy and those students “on financial aid,” the casual sexism and racism of privileged White men. But then it disappointingly turned from a literary exploration of these deeper issues into a young adult novel with at least two or three italics in every sentence.

Without overstating it, the excessive use of italics really bothered me. It was as though the author was low-key yelling in every sentence. As a result, the book seemed to have a young, adolescent voice narrating each character’s POV.

The “heroine” of the novel, Nina, voices strong opposition to her son’s and husband’s abusive and sociopathic behavior. Yet she doesn’t do anything about it. She just bemoans their actions... and it becomes inevitable this mom is headed into the arms of the single dad. That’s where I started skimming chapters, just wanting to get to the end already.

I thank Netgalley and Random House Ballantine for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

As a parent, to what extent will you go to protect your teenage son? That is the question readers are forced to think about in Emily Giffin's new book All We Ever Wanted. Parents are divided when they learn their pride and joy is involved in a social media scandal. As a school tries to get to the bottom of what happened, school administrators, other teenage parents and students take sides. What really happened that night? Is it just a prank or is it truly harassment and defamation of a girl's character? This thought provoking book asks the reader to take sides and applauds those who aren't afraid to go against the public to do what is right. An honest and heartfelt novel about issues that face today's teenagers that will have readers thinking long after the last word is read!

This book was an enjoyable read. I found the topic to be interesting and could not wait to find out the conclusion. I enjoyed the perspectives of Lyla, Nina, and Tom. I liked the perspective of Tom the most. His struggle to parent his daughter during a difficult and trying time was very interesting to me. I felt his response to the whole ordeal was genuine. I loved the themes of forgiveness, parenting, and secrets.
Overall it was entertaining and I definitely recommend it. Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine Books for my ARC copy. All opinions are my own.

Anytime I see a new Emily Giffin title, I add it to my TBR list- she's just one of those authors whose books I always end up enjoying. Her latest novel did NOT disappoint & may be one of my favorites from her! I was hesitant to read this one after seeing the topic because it's definitely been a hot button lately. I thought it may be a bit overdone/have an underlying political agenda BUT I was pleasantly surprised with how much deeper this story went. I loved where she took this story & the overall direction it ended up going. It exceeded my expectations and then some. Would highly recommend!!

I loved Emily Giffin's Something Borrowed Series. It reminded me of Shopaholic where there's romance, fun and hilarious moments. So I was surprised when this book had a more serious tone. It was riveting. Emily really knows how to rope you in. The reason I don't "highly recommend" this book is because there's a lot of smut. Too many cuss words to make it sound sophisticated and even some risque teenage scenes. It was just too much for me. I'm going to be much more careful picking up anymore Giffin novels. Which is a bummer because I really like her stories and characters.

All We Ever Wanted is another stellar release by Emily Griffin. The story line is timely and kept me engaged. The only disappointment was that I wish there was more character development. The ending seemed to come to fast and I had a lot of additional questions that I wanted answered. If you love Emily Griffin, you will love , All We Ever Wanted. Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced review of this book prior to it's release on June 26, 2018. Also, thank you to Ballatine and Emily Griffin.

This is my first Emily Griffin book and didn’t know what to expect, this book was excellent ~ from her wonderful, raw portrayal of her characters to the portrayal of the events that occurred in the story ~ this could be ripped right out of the headlines.

Kirk, Nina’s husband is all about money and like most men of privilege thinks he can buy his way out of problems.

Nina was a wonderful character. She was flawed and a bit clueless - which did irk me - but further into the book you will know why.

Tom is a bit over-the-top, I mean his reactions to circumstances made me cringe. He was probably the least likeable character.

Lyla - she was mature for her age and I loved that she had such a common sense attitude.

Finch was a lit like Kirk. I’ve jnown people like them and really was annoyed by their attitudes ~ that is the point. They are characters. The author wrote them that way to make a point.
This book can not be considered Chick-Lit. It is ciontempoary fiction at its absolute finest.
Than you #Netgalley, #EmilyGriffen and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review