February was a short month, so just one flop!

There were a couple books I put on the DNF (did-not-finish) list for now: Who Killed My Daughter? by Lois Duncan & Ghetto X by Martin Michaud.

---

33th read: If He Had Been With Me

I was going to give this book 3/5 stars until I reached the ending. How disappointing & frustrating…

Spoilers ahead, tread carefully!

---

---

---

SYNOPSIS

If he had been with me everything would have been different…

I wasn’t with Finn on that August night. But I should’ve been. It was raining, of course. And he and Sylvie were arguing as he drove down the slick road. No one ever says what they were arguing about. Other people think it’s not important. They do not know there is another story. The story that lurks between the facts. What they do not know—the cause of the argument—is crucial.

REVIEW

I was frustrated by the lack of communication between Autumn & Finn. A large portion of the plot hinged on their unwillingness/inability to have simple conversations.

Autumn was SO dense. I struggled to understand why she couldn’t see that Finn liked her back (he KISSED her & she didn’t suspect anything at all?) when it was so obvious to everyone else.

The author did a good job depicting mental health.

I loved Autumn’s conversations with her psychiatrist. That part was quite realistic, the sessions she had were a lot like mine. I liked that Autumn’s mother also struggled with depression/suicide.

I also liked getting glimpses of Sylvie’s mental state, even though they were so small. It was nice for Finn to defend her. I didn’t like how unsympathetic Autumn was towards Sylvie (since she was doing most of the things she judged her for herself)

I didn’t understand what was so “weird” about Autumn. She’s quirky because she… wears ripped jeans & tiaras? likes ripped jeans? is depressed in winter? It made me cringe when they spoke about how unique/interesting she was compared to other girls.

The ending was one of the worst parts about this book. I’m not sure which part disappointed me the most: the suicide attempt or the surprise pregnancy saving her life. Just… barf

---