4 STARS

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I was surprised by much I ended up enjoyed this book. I think that the cover threw off my expectations. If the cover is in any way deterring you from reading it, just know the cover does not accurately reflect the book.

I think one of my favorite things about this book was the writing. It's written in 2nd person and in a very straightforward way. However there are a lot of subtleties in the overall story-line that I liked, mostly in regards to how the relationships between characters were written.

As I said, the characters were great! I think that every character was multifaceted and fleshed-out. A lot of the side characters were complex and that made them feel more realistic. It also helped me root for or understand them when they were acting annoying or downright insufferable. I appreciated how there was an emphasis on both family and friendship and the balance between the two.

The plot was very character-driven and slow, but I liked it. Everything was set up very well and the pacing was perfect for the feeling and content of the book. While I've seen that other people disliked where and how the story ended, I think that was the perfect ending. I think there were enough hints as to how all the loose ends would tie up, but it still had an open ending. I think that sort of ending was the only way to go for this story.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone looking for a short, slightly different contemporary.

This is an old title that I have tried to read several times, but never finished.

This book is about two sisters. The younger one Nell is supposedly writing it in letter form to her older sister Layla. They used to be inseparable. They were Nellayla.*gag*
Nell (who is fourteen) is finally going to high school with her worshipped older sister..she will be the other half of the Goldens. It's going to be 'awesome.'
Then she realizes that Layla is pulling away from her.
Nell becomes almost stalkerish in her adulation of Layla. (I though Layla was an idiot.)

Then the big reveal of the super sekret secret. That happens early in the book.
*double gag*

The only redeeming thing about the whole silly book? The best friend of Nell..Felix. The standard funny little nerd.

This book is deceptively simple in tone yet rich in nuance and courageous in its approach to complex, painful issues. This book chronicles the parallel journeys of two teenaged sisters, using an interesting twist on the usual YA first-person narrative in that one sister is addressing the other: their relationship forms the core of the story as they grow from intertwined to antagonistic to individuated. The story opens with the narrator and younger sister, Nell, beginning high school and discovering that the previously close relationship with adored, perfect Layla has now developed fracture lines. While Nell develops an unrequited crush on a glamorous older boy, Layla begins acting mysteriously. She, too, has a secret – one that Nell discovers and that has the power to tear them and their whole family apart. Highly recommended for both adult and teen readers for its clear and excellent handling of relationships and sexuality.