Aurora, Antero, and Emiliano, kids of the 90s, were promised the world with the advent of the internet age. Now in their 30s, they are struggling with adulting and faced with a digital world only interested in the capital their desires can bring. Is there anything left to believe in, or were we doomed from the start?

I almost stopped reading this several times. The summary promised, “pre-apocalyptic tale of millennial longings,” a book about my generation, the first children of the digital world, promised so much, and disappointed by a broken world. What I got more than was overly-long, blunt descriptions of porn, masturbation, and meaningless sex. Sure, we’re way more sex positive than previous generations, but that’s not the only thing we care about, at least not in my experience, though even in the portions of the book I enjoyed, it permeated every facet of the story.

It’s seems a bit uninspired, and I was expecting a little more. Though there is a gay man in this book, it has been a minute since I read a book about largely straight, white, millennials, so that could have been my bad for expecting something deeper. I stuck with it to the end, because it was short, but it was difficult for me to identify with the characters, and the shallowness of at least one of the characters did nothing to endear me to them.

The characters try so hard to be unflinchingly “real,” but their sterile narratives seemed unrealistic to me. perhaps they are resigned to the disappointment of a world they expected more from, that their lack of depth is intentional. Interesting approach, but the reader should still feel something for characters, and I never warmed up to them.

I was grateful for the POV changes, and the section of the book about the woman at least explores the issues such as women who prioritize their careers, access to and the need for abortions. I identified with her more than the other characters, and perhaps if her narrative led the novel, I’d have enjoyed it more, but by the time I got to her, I had already been turned off by the entire thing, and it was hard to refocus and try to enjoy it.

I could have totally missed the point, so don’t let this review sway you if you might identify with a disenchanted generation with little hope, trying to find some meaning and put the pieces of broken promises back together.

When did we become grown-ups is the question facing Aurora, Antero and Emiliano as they gather after their friend Duke has been murdered. Looking behind them at their past they desperately try to revive the crazy days of their youth as they struggle to understand how they reached where they are and how they failed in reaching their dreams. Well written and engrossing you'll happily flip the pages as you are drawn into their story. Happy reading!