I was hopeful for this book, based on the email I received from Netgalley promoting it, but I found the overall romantic story tedious and uninteresting. The storyline that spoke to me was that between the main character and her estranged grandmother. However, it could have and should have been more nuanced; the mother- once an unwed pregnant high schooler, needed some merit on her side of the story. It is more satisfying to read about complex characters than largely to cast one in the right and the other in the wrong. I would have liked to have seen Sammy's mother had made genuine attempts to have been a stable presence in life.

This is a book that hit me unexpectedly. I could say that in a thousand iterations, but they would all be true. In most instances, this is your average sort of contemporary romance, with all of the usual beats and plot points to hit. But to me, this book is less about the romance, and more about finding one's own purpose, and figuring out who it is that we want to surround ourselves with. Who are the people that see us for who we truly are, and building up boundaries to keep those who can't out. I can't claim that this is the best book I've ever written, but it certainly made me cry, which always gets an additional star from me. Sammy found herself, and while this book has flaws that shouldn't be overlooked, there's far more gained here than could ever be lost.