I'm sad to say that I am giving up on this book. I think this book will be loved by others, and can already see rave reviews, but it just didn't work for me and I am trying to recognize that early on in a book.
The dialogue style just didn't hit with me. The book feels dialogue-heavy but the dialogue just did not feel relatable. The book jumps around, starting in March, jumping to May, then to July, etc. The book also has dual POV, Sparrow/Savannah and then her friend/dance partner Lucas. His POV rewinds, but I never got to his POV. I think this can be an interesting narrative style but it didn't really work for the topic. This is a book that discusses toxic romantic relationships and abuse, but we only really got to see the bad moments. So, we don't really get to see the moments that make Savannah want to stay in this relationship and we really don't get to understand why she loves him even when she fears him. This is a major part of toxic relationships, but it seemed to skip over the moments that would really make us understand Savannah. Instead, I felt distanced from her. I also felt like I never had enough information. For example, I thought the aunt was Savannah's stepmom. I actually didn't know she was her aunt until reading other reviews. I also didn't understand the nickname of Sparrow. I thought it was a nickname her friends and family use, but Tristan automatically uses it even when he barely knows her. Maybe this makes sense later on, but it was throwing me out of the story.
Anyway, it just didn't hit me like I expected it to. I think it will hit others differently though and I honestly hope that other readers do like this book.
The dialogue style just didn't hit with me. The book feels dialogue-heavy but the dialogue just did not feel relatable. The book jumps around, starting in March, jumping to May, then to July, etc. The book also has dual POV, Sparrow/Savannah and then her friend/dance partner Lucas. His POV rewinds, but I never got to his POV. I think this can be an interesting narrative style but it didn't really work for the topic. This is a book that discusses toxic romantic relationships and abuse, but we only really got to see the bad moments. So, we don't really get to see the moments that make Savannah want to stay in this relationship and we really don't get to understand why she loves him even when she fears him. This is a major part of toxic relationships, but it seemed to skip over the moments that would really make us understand Savannah. Instead, I felt distanced from her. I also felt like I never had enough information. For example, I thought the aunt was Savannah's stepmom. I actually didn't know she was her aunt until reading other reviews. I also didn't understand the nickname of Sparrow. I thought it was a nickname her friends and family use, but Tristan automatically uses it even when he barely knows her. Maybe this makes sense later on, but it was throwing me out of the story.
Anyway, it just didn't hit me like I expected it to. I think it will hit others differently though and I honestly hope that other readers do like this book.