The flip of a coin can alter everything. This is a good teen live triangle where we see the results from flipping heads or tails. Nice read.

See notes for publisher. Posted on Goodreads too!
Excellent use of voice and choice.
I wanted to say some parts were long. The heads and tails parts were hard because of the repeat. That's the point. Loved the epilogue.

Drew and Shane were best friends, not only next-door neighbors who grew up together, but tied to each other because of their relationships with their fathers. Drew’s father was largely absent, first figuratively and then literally, and Shane’s father, to whom Drew was close, died of a disease. At the time, Drew promised him he would always look after Shane.

When a new girl at school attracted both their attention, Drew suggested they flip a coin to see who would ask her out - it was the way they always had resolved disputes. Stevie Rosenstein has much in common with both of them; she is estranged from her father, and she loves music.

The book follows two scenarios. The first has Drew winning the coin toss and the second has Shane winning. Much of the action is repeated in each section but with a twist depending on which boy won the coin toss.

The underlying theme of the book has to do with how much control we have over our lives, how much is due to chance, and how we should live our lives given that combination of influences. The upshot is that you never know: live your life to the fullest, in the present moment, taking advantage of whatever the coin toss of life hands to you.

Evaluation: This book has an intriguing premise and plot design, and many touching, bittersweet moments. There is a lot to think about and it would make a good book club selection.

Interesting concept about what would happen in the future with 2 different guys decided by the flip of a coin. A sliding doors for the YA crowd. :) I like the dual timeline and the 2 different possibilities.... The large role of music in the book made it more interesting. An unique book. :)

I liked the premise and the dual timeline/Sliding Doors aspect of it. However, I also felt a little disappointed when I got halfway through and it then switched over (though I think it would have been much more confusing to have the stories branch off earlier and try and keep track). This story was very much focused on the first love aspect, though the author did try to bring in friendship, family relationships, etc.

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

2/5 stars

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really, really wanted to like this book. I love the idea of dual timelines with different possibilities for what could happen. But I just couldn't bring myself to finish this. I DNF'd around 30%.

Stevie is the new girl in town. Her family moves around a lot, so she never gets a chance to make friends or fall in love. But Stevie immediately hits it off with Drew and Shane, two best friends who are in the school marching band along with Stevie. Drew's parents separated and don't care that he exists. Shane's father died, hurting both Shane and Drew. The two have been best friends for a while now. But they both like Stevie and they toss a coin for the chance to ask her out...leading to very different outcomes.

First of all, this was major insta-love. Both Drew and Shane barely spoke to Stevie and they already had made up their minds to ask her out. From there, the relationship starts pretty much immediately. I felt like we barely had a chance to know them before they were all over each other. Also, I just couldn't get myself to enjoy the story. With the relationship happening so fast that I got whiplash and the lack of anything substantial happening, I just ended up bored with the story. Not to mention, the excessive swearing and inappropriate content. No sex occurred prior to where I stopped, but it was getting close.

I'm giving this two stars simply for the concept and the writing itself. Minus the swearing, I did enjoy the writing style of the author. But the plot, content, and insta-love just fell flat for me.

I see that this book has a lot of positive reviews so maybe it's just me. I'm normally more impressed with Wednesday Books, but this just wasn't the book for me.

I love when I come across a book like this one. I always find it interesting to have a book with dual time lines to see how things could have turned out based on how time unfolded. I like the way it began with a tease of the ending and we had no idea how we were going to get there. I also liked that it kind of showed that things were going to go how they were going to go in either time line and it didn't necessarily matter the choice that was made, sometimes things change but sometimes they don't. Sometimes there is a different route to get to the ending, but maybe it is always your destiny. I know this review is cryptic but I don't want to ruin the plot line of either time line. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys YA. It was a quick and interesting read.

I thought this story took a very unique spin for a YA book and found that I enjoyed it a lot.

Wexler begins the story with an upsetting event set in the future, without revealing how it happened, which started me off very intrigued. Then we go back to the past a bit, when Stevie, the main character, starts at a new school. Best friends Drew and Shane flip a coin to see who should pursue her, and then the author takes us down two different timelines where we get to see Stevie with a different boy in each.

I loved that music was a huge part of the book. It was very relatable to me because I'm a musician and music teacher myself. I will definitely be recommending this book to my students!

Thank you to NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

I really wanted to like this book. In most cases, Wednesday publishes some of my favoite titles. Of course, I was overjoyed to received Where It All Lands.
I DNF'ed this one.
The first thing that I did not like was the excessive use of the f-bomb. To me, it came off as trying too hard to sound like a teenager. I know that some do speak like that, but generally, not every person does it as depicted by this novel.
Secondly, I really could not connect with Stevie. I wanted to because I also love music like she does. However, she came off as spoiled and a bit entitled.

Rating: 1/5 DNF
Lanugage: f-bombs, lots of other words
Romance: lots of sex talk, kissing
Spiritual: some characters are Jewish
Violence: none up to the point where I stopped

*I received a copy of this novel from the publisher. All thoughts are my own and a positive review was not required.

Review will be published to the blog on June 6, 2021.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of Where it All Lands in exchange for an honest review.

I love the premise here. After meeting new girl Stevie, two best friends instantly decide that they want to ask her out. To try and preserve their friendship, they decide to flip a coin and whoever wins gets to ask her out. Told in two possible timelines (one where each boy wins the timeline), the reader knows from the beginning that at least 1 ends in disaster. Wexler's writing is pretty good if a little generic for the genre, I just wasn't personally invested in any of the three main characters or their romances. That may have just been a personal preference thing though because I didn't find anything specifically wrong with any of them, but since most of the book is centered around their relationships I had a lot of trouble getting invested.

My.
Heart.

You might need to grab some tissues for this one, folks.

When sax player Stevie moves to a new town yet again, lifelong best friends Drew and Shane are both drawn to her. So... they flip a coin - and we get to see the two different ways it could all shake out.

Jennie Wexler deftly explores the two outcomes in a fresh structure that had me dizzy with first love, totally caught up in realistically portrayed family dynamics, and - at the end - bawling my eyes out.

I loved these characters so much. Music is a huge part of the book - Drew sings in a band, Shane is a talented drummer, and Stevie only ever feels like she belongs when she’s playing her saxophone. I was also so impressed with how the author captured the boys’ friendship and small mannerisms especially. The tone was pitch-perfect for YA.

Where It All Lands was a satisfying and emotional journey, and I loved watching the three teenagers’ lives weave together and build to an epic conclusion - highly recommend!

As soon as I started reading Where it All Lands, I suspected that this wasn’t going to be the typical new-girl-in-school story. And was I right! The twisty, thought-provoking plot kept me spellbound until the very last page. A word of advice though: have a box of tissues nearby. The characters are so real that you feel what they do- I shared their frustration and tears when the world let them down and their joy when they discovered true friendship and love.

A simple coin toss between two best friends, Drew and Shane, change not only the new girl’s (Stevie’s) life, but also theirs. They learn that they have to stand up for themselves and go all out for what they want - be it a different relationship with their parents and friends, a place in the State band or even love.

Told in alternating points of view, Wexler gets us not only into the heads of each of her characters, but into their hearts as well. Then, she plays around with the events and timeline to show us all the myriad ways this story could have played out. At one point, Drew (the dream boy athlete/musician) says, “Maybe one random thing leads to another and then another and sometimes it works out how you picture, but other times…..” It really makes you think about how each thing that happens leads to the next in ways we can never really predict nor control. And yet, the message of the book is anything but depressing. You close the book smiling through your tears. When we see how it all plays out, we are reminded - yet again - that the present is all we have. We need to give it all we’ve got. Because you never know what’s around the bend.

It’s a definite 5-star. I wish I could give it 6. It’s that good. (Oh, and by the way, it's better with Pearl Jam playing in the background!)

HEADS: Stevie never gets to choose what happens to her - she is caught up in a life where her father, a QB coach in the NFL, moves from team to team. And in her role as the perpetual new kid, she just tries to connect to others where she can. On her first day at her latest school, two guys --Drew and Shane, the best of friends--are mesmerized by Stevie. And they flip a coin to see who will ask her out - which is horrible, but it's a big part of the story. And you can get over it - because what needs to be highlighted is that you can allow life to happen to you or you can make choices for yourself. Too many young women aren't taking the reins of their own life - they are fine being in the passenger seat while others drive. Stevie needs to learn this lesson, but all lessons come at a price.
The story is told twice - once from the tangent of Drew asking Stevie out, and one from Shane asking Stevie out. And it is fascinating to compare the timelines and watch how Stevie has a chance to put down her own roots and begin to build the life for which she's hoped.
(This is where I will end the review I post to Goodreads, etc.)

TAILS: Just to fact check the story a bit, some details seem to be off. One, Drew's dad, at age 65, COULD NOT have "discovered" Springsteen. Bon Jovi, maybe, but Springsteen's first album came out in 1973 - a 65-year-old would have been a junior/senior in HS? Also, Stevie can't have a grandparent who has a number tattoo - a great-grandparent, but not a grandparent. And the exploration of Jewish identity seems to have been cut-off. I mean, the story takes place in the autumn and there is no mention of the High Holy Days?
Also, from a feminist perspective - shouldn't female musicians have a bigger place in the Stevie/Shane conversation? Ann Wilson garners a mention, but I think a girl who loves music and wants to take control of her own life might be influenced by strong women in music.

Drew and Shane have been best friends their entire lives and know not to let their attraction to a girl get in the way of their unbreakable bond. When Stevie Rosenstein shows up at summer band practice, they make a split-second decision that threatens to change all of their futures.

Stevie once again finds herself a new girl in a new town because of her dad's position as an NFL quarterback coach. She resents her dad for making their family pick up and start over, but does her best to immerse herself in her new high school. With Shane's friendship and help she prepares her audition for all-state band, which she hopes will be a stepping-stone to get into a top college.

When love, support, and acceptance are all a teenager really needs, one coin toss between friends holds their futures in the balance. All three are forced to reconcile their responsibilities and life-altering abilities to upend their entire futures with just a single choice.

Wexler's multi-narrator, dual-timeline novel allows readers the omniscience to see the result of all the "what-ifs" that constantly interrupt teenagers' thoughts. Full of love, hope, regret, and possibility, readers are left questioning the results of their own actions and inaction.

**I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.