I honestly don't really know how to review this story.
It almost reads like a memoir rather than a work of fiction.
To me it wasn't bad but it wasn't a stand out either. I felt disconnected from the character and I honestly think that her trauma with her friend is what led to her having a relationship with her professor. I also felt like the sub plot of her advisor and the head of the department was a little confusing as well. There just seemed to be a lot going on.

Let me start by saying Daisy Alpert Florin has huge potential, but I expected a lot more from this book.

The writing style kept me entertained but the plot wasn't there - I kept waiting for something to happen that would elicit more of an emotional response.

I wish I could say more but the book didn't dive deep enough into any one topic for me to come out with major takeaways.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ALC of this audiobook. I enjoyed both the narration and premise of this book, although I feel like I've read it before. Undergrad has an affair with her college professor that shapes her interaction with men for the rest of her life trope- and I'm not mad about it. However, I felt that this story was lacking emotional connection or scandal or anything that would make the reader FEEL something! It's as if the narrative is being told by someone who has compartmentalized their experience and is almost bored with having to retell it. A bit mundane, but fine overall.

Summary - It’s the winter of 1998 and Isabel Rosen has one semester left at Wilder College, a prestigious school in New Hampshire with a wealthy, elite student body and the sort of picturesque buildings college brochures were invented to capture. The only daughter of a Lower East Side appetizing store owner, Isabel has always felt out of place at Wilder, and the death of her mother shortly before she arrived on campus left her feeling unmoored in a way that’s proven hard to shake. Now, right as she’s coming to believe she’s finally found her place, the fallout from a nonconsensual sexual encounter with one of the only other Jewish students on campus leaves Isabel reeling.

Enter R.H. Connelly: a once-famous poet and Isabel’s married writing professor, a man with secrets of his own. Connelly makes Isabel feel seen, beautiful, talented; the woman she longs to become. His belief in her ignites a belief in herself. The two begin an affair that shakes the foundation of who Isabel thinks she is, for better and worse.

Set against the backdrop of the Clinton and Lewinsky scandal, My Last Innocent Year is a coming-of-age story about a young woman on the brink of sexual and artistic awakening, navigating her way toward independence while recognizing the power, beauty and grit of where she came from. Timely and wise, it reckons with the complexities of consent, what it means to be an adult, and whether or not we can ever outrun our bad decisions.

Rating - 3 stars out of 5

I have now learned that audiobooks are not my thing. It was a good book but because I listened on audio I could not enjoy it as much as I should have.

This story was fascinating. I particularly love novels set on college campuses, which is what made me pick this up in the first place.

For someone that attended an all girls Catholic high school and screams sad girl aesthetic, dark academia almost never works for me. Don't get me wrong. I felt every part of this book. I just didn't enjoy every aspect of it.

In 1998, Isabel attends Wilder College. She doesn't quite fit in with her classmates, who seem to have endless amounts of money. She has a sexual encounter she is not sure is rape or not. A few months later, she begins an affair with her married professor that haunts her for the rest of her life. The blurb actually explains a good portion of the book, so if that is up your alley, take a gander.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher.

My Last Innocent Year by Daisy Alpert Florin follows Isabel Rosen, a young woman attending her last semester at a very prestigious college in New England. I attended university around the same timeframe as the main character, so I found some of her experiences quite relatable, and I really appreciated all of the references to what life was like in the late 90s. Isabel gets herself into some sticky situations - a nonconsensual sexual encounter, and a steamy love affair with her professor. This novel captures young adulthood, and the college experience perfectly.

READ THIS IF YOU ENJOY:

- Coming-of-age stories
- Character studies
- Slow-burning plots
- Dark and moody reads
- College campus settings
- Jewish representation
- Father/daughter relationships
- 1990s culture, events, and happenings
- Complicated romantic relationships
- Juicy scandals & controversy

The author’s writing style is what really sold me on this book. I was very impressed by the stunning prose, the pacing, and how well the story flowed. The audiobook was so easy to listen to, and held my attention all the way through. The narrator was fantastic, so that was a huge plus as well. Overall, this was a remarkable debut, and I’ll definitely read this author again.

Alpert Florin does a fantastic job of showing that scary time in your early 20s when you're technically an adult but it doesn't feel like it. The original sexual encounter that starts this is super tricky as Isabel doesn't actual protest oir say no - Isabel doesn't want to call it rape and doesn't seem to want to address it at all until her roommate pushes her to. However, it is still a traumatic event and Alpert Florin does a good job showing the fallout. I can see this being super triggering to some so make sure you check out content warnings. It almost felt like there wasn't much plot here - this was definitely a character driven story.

"He had seen the end embedded in the beginning in a way I hadn't. It was how adults behaved, I knew now. And I would never again not see the world in the same way"

This book was a mixed bag for me, in a literary way. Some points is written with a nearly airy disposition, like the voice of a young person who has not learned the lessons of life. Yet alongside these scenes we have a second underlying story, and Isabel's acknowledgment, or lack thereof, of this parallel story is perfectly poignant.

Isabel Rosen grew up in Manhattan with a small business owner for a father and painter for a mother. She’s used to penny pinching and comparing her life to the lives of others. Shortly after her mother’s death, Isabel went off to college at a beautiful arts school called Wilder. This story begins at the end of Isabel’s college journey, following her through her final semester.

The story starts off with Isabel telling us about a friend of hers, one of the only other Jewish students on campus, the nonconsensual encounter that follows, and the fallout. The way the encounter happens, and the reactions of everyone surrounding it, including close friends and gossips, start to feel almost impersonal. At first the pacing bothered me, but as the story continues I came to enjoy the writing.

During early adulthood we exist as adults while retaining the naivety of childhood. Our hearts haven’t yet taken a beating, we don’t know the true pain of, say, flying over the handrails of a bike. And this is a story about a young woman who learns all these lessons in that last semester of school.

This is an interesting literary piece, but it did lack a personal something that made it feel distant from the reader. For how much the story looks deep into Isabel’s closest personal experiences it felt odd to feel so separate from her emotions. Though from the last line of the book, that may have been its intention.

This coming of age audiobook centers around Isabel and her last year of college. Regretful decisions and how to live with them are the main themes. From an affair with a married professor to getting along with her parents, whom she feels very different from, are the things that Isabel works through. Well written, raw, and intense.

Although "My Last Innocent Year" wasn't exactly a "page turner," it managed to hold my interest the entire time. The book was enjoyable, but when it was over, I wasn't sure what the plot was all about. Maybe that was the whole point, but I didn't feel like I was following the story; instead, I felt like I was reading the main character's journal. Fortunately, Isabel's character won me over, and even though there wasn't a particularly interesting plot, I kept wanting to learn more about her life.

For a first book, "My Last Innocent Year" wasn't at all bad. There is no doubt that Daisy Alpert Florin's future works are worth looking into. I don't think it's a bad thing that her writing frequently reminds me of Curtis Sittenfeld's "Prep" for some reason. Even though the character didn't seem particularly affected by the trauma she went through, there were so many moments that brought back memories of that period of my life that I couldn't help but feel connected.

I listened to Sarah Bierstock's narration of "My Last Innocent Year" on audiobook, which I highly recommend. Without Bierstock's narration, I'm not sure if I would have enjoyed the book even half as much as I did.

I really enjoyed this story. The narration was great and the story was beautifully written. I would definitely recommend it.

I enjoyed my reading experience for My Last Innocent Year by Daisy Alpert Florin. It was honest and real and raw.
Following Isabel as she completes her undergraduate degree at a prestigious upstate university, she experiences sexual assault from a close friend and the aftermath. At the same time, she begins a relationship with her professor.
This book has excellent Jewish representation and I felt like Isabel was real.
The book read pretty fast but overall I feel like I will probably forget the novel in a few months. For that reason I’m rating it a 3/5 but I still recommend the read.

Solid 3 stars. A well written coming of age, loss of innocence story. Unfortunately I struggled to fully get into the story. I wanted to, but I just couldn't.

I really did not like the main character, Isabel, at all and as someone who prefers books character driven books, that just didn't work for me. I tried to move past it, but it was like every time I was starting to slightly be okay with her, she did something else that I struggled with. I am all for character development and redemption arcs for characters you start off not liking, but she didn't have one. In fact, I felt like she had little to no character development at all. By the end of the book, even though years had gone by, it felt like she was still the same person she was in college.

With all of that said though, the story was so beautifully written that I definitely want to read Daisy Alpert Florin's next novel, this one just didn't do it for me.

Please note, this story discusses a lot of deep and dark topics. Make sure to check the trigger warnings before reading.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review,

Thanks to Net Galley and HenryHolt and Co. for an advanced copy of this book.

The writing was excellent and the story line felt authentic and plausible. The topics covered include non consensual sex, death of a parent, extramarital affair with a professor, etc. I know many people have been through the same trauma so I feel that it is important that our reading reflects these issues.

That being said I just never really connected emotionally with the main character or really any of the characters. I can’t put a finger on why. Others may feel that connection. I did enjoy it and read it in fairly quickly.

Title: My Last Innocent Year
Author: Daisy Alpert Florin
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Narrator: Sarah Bierstock
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Four
Review:
"My Last Innocent Year" by Alpert Florin

My Sentiments:

'My Last Innocent Year' was a subtle, exciting novel, with the story taken from the last college year,1990, of Isabel Rosen coming of age. Sarah Bierstock narrated this story, and she did an excellent job with this story. This story features "friendship, family issues, relationships, beginning a career, sexual assault, a forbidden affair, grief, and healing from trauma;" this book has a little bit of it all. Be ready for twists and turns all over the place that will keep you continuing to listen to the reader to the very end. I enjoyed how the story had a backdrop of the Clinton/Lewinsky scandal that was happening at this time in history, which added somewhat to the level of what was happening. Be ready for a good exciting read.

Thank you, Macmillan audio and NetGalley, for providing me with an audiobook arc in exchange for an honest review.

Oh boy this one wasn't for me. DNF @ 50%. I couldn't seem to connect to the main character so I felt really detached from the story as a whole - almost like I was disassociating while reading and that is just not an enjoyable feeling. I won't be posting a review to good reads since I did not finish the book.

Isobel Rosen is a married woman with a daughter. The book is primarily set in her senior year of college in the late 1990s as Isobel reflects upon this point in her life.

Isobel recalls a situation that she encountered with a male friend who has an intimate experience with her. One minute the two were making out. The next moment he became more aggressive and physically violates her. She did not voice that she didn’t want to go this far and he didn’t ask her if it would be okay. She’s confused as to whether or not this would be considered rape. She informs her roommate who goes ballistic and marks this man as a rapist.

Jump ahead a month or so. Isobel is attracted to her married professor Connelly. The two carry on an affair and Isobel falls fast for this man. Later, she finds out a little more about this man which changes her perspective. Without giving too much away, this affair continues to haunt Isobel to this day.

The story is character-driven and was a little slow at times for me. I don’t know how I feel about Isobel. On the one hand, I could not help but feel concerned for her regarding her experience with her friend. On the other hand, I have no tolerance for adultery, particularly going into a relationship knowing that the other is married. Having said that, the prose in this book is beautiful which helped to keep my interest.

There are multiple trigger warnings for this book including consensual sex versus lack of consent/rape, mental health struggles, infidelity/cheating, and suicide. This book will not be for everyone.

I listened to the audiobook version of My Last Innocent Year which was narrated by Sarah Bierstock. I thoroughly enjoyed her performance which was expressive, articulate and a pleasure to listen to. I’d recommend the audiobook version of this book to those that enjoy this format.

I received a ARC of the audiobook from the publisher but the thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.

This first-person narrative work has all the feeling of authentic memoir. Isabel is only two years older than me, a fellow member of Generation X. While we probably would not have ever met in college (I am not Jewish, was a political science major who tutored math, and lived off campus), she and her friends reminded me of girls that I was friendly with in high school. Some of the other reviews are obviously written by members of younger generations, and, all I can say, as cliché as it is, is that you just had to be there.

The book blurbs mention "a nonconsensual sexual encounter." I don't know what else to call it either. I think it's described accurately, as is the messy aftermath when you try too hard to further define it. For those readers who saw that and were looking for a survivor's tale, I can see how they would be disappointed. Likewise if you were looking for Isabel's relationship with Connelly to be something more traditionally romantic. My Last Innocent Year is a bildungsroman. There are a lot of things that happen to Isabel over the course of this year, small and large, that all come together to make her into the woman she becomes. Again, Isabel's crowd was not my own, but I recognize everything.

My major criticism of the book is that it sometimes felt too much like a real memoir workshop project. The chapters where Isabel was in Connelly's writing class felt a little too meta. There may be no good way to smooth out these sections. Isabel is a writer writing about her writing education. The sections where she began to slip in aspects of her future life were disorienting. Her decision to use the very end to play 25-year catch-up wasn't forced, more awkward. I like closure too, though, and was happy to receive as much of it as I could.

I think this was a wonderful first novel. It's not so good that I fear Daisy Alpert Florin could become a one-hit wonder. I'm giving this book four stars. I'd give it three-and-a-half if I could. It's got some exceptional bits with plenty of room to grow. As for the narration, Sarah Bierstock was delightful. Her stage background was evident in her use of different voices and accents. I'm sure I enjoyed this book more as an audiobook than I would have in print because of Sarah Bierstock. I would like to thank Macmillan Audio for allowing me to experience this NetGalley audiobook.

This Jewish My Dark Vanessa is the storyI have been waiting for, well not really, but yes. This book is so beaitufilly complex, sad, beaitufiful, as Isabel tries to find herself.