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"In the new novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of First Comes Love and Something Borrowed, a woman is forced to choose between her family and her most deeply held values. Nina Browning is living the good life after marrying into Nashville's elite. Her husband's tech business is booming, and her adored son, Finch, is bound for Princeton. Tom Volpe is a single dad working multiple jobs. His adored daughter, Lyla, attends Nashville's most prestigious private school on a scholarship. But amid the wealth and privilege, Lyla doesn't always fit in. Then one devastating photo changes everything. Finch snaps a picture of Lyla passed out at a party, adds a provocative caption, and sends it to a few friends. The photo spreads like wildfire, and before long, an already divided community is buzzing with scandal and assigning blame. In the middle of it all, Nina finds herself relating more to Tom's reaction than her own husband's--and facing an impossible choice"--… (more)
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Pretty much through the whole book I
I definitely recommend the book and look forward to reading more books by the author.
Thanks to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and the author, Emily Giffin, for a free electronic ARC of this novel.
One night at a party, Lyla had too much to drink and fell asleep. Later that evening a picture was
This was a powerful and emotional story that was a reflection of our current climate in this country.
Thanks to Bookish Firsts for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.
I won this book in a giveaway and was under no obligation to review it.
Emily Giffin is an author that I constantly see and think that I need to read. I am very happy that All We Ever Wanted was my first book I picked up by her. I went into this blind and was expecting
This story is so hard to describe or explain as it deals with so many issues. This is a story around how your actions have consequences and how you will be tested around your true values and character. This is a story about a teenage boy making decisions without understanding how it will impact others. He does not seem to understand the consequences or even care about the consequences. This is also a story involving so many other issues that are very important. You will gets bits of information around suicide, single parents, alcoholism, racism, different classes, values, love, and so much more.
I really enjoyed how we get to see inside the perspectives of the parents instead of just the teenagers involved in the incident. I think it just brought something different to the story and the issues. You are really seeing the issues from the eyes of someone else and not exactly from those who were directly involved. You do get to see through Lyla’s perspective as well. In the end, this was such a powerful story and I wish I heard more people talking about it. I highly recommend picking it up and giving it a try. I cannot wait to read more from Emily Giffin if this is what I have in store!
Emily Giffin is one of my all-time favorite authors. I just adore this woman!! I have read all her books and get thrilled when a new one comes out. I was lucky enough to win an advanced reading copy from Bookish First – so yay for me! I enjoyed All We Ever Wanted and felt it had the
The
* Disclaimer: A review copy of this book was provided by BookishFirst in exchange for an honest review.
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Debbie Krenzer
Debbie Krenzer's Reviews > All We Ever Wanted
All We Ever Wanted by Emily Giffin
All We Ever Wanted
by Emily Giffin (Goodreads Author)
12691311
Debbie Krenzer's review Jul 16, 2018 · edit
really liked it
bookshelves: ebooks, net-galley-books
Wow!
I
I was mesmerized with this story. And it was driving me crazy trying to decide who was telling the truth.
I went back and forth on what was the real truth so much in this book, that my mind probably looked like it was following a tennis match.
This was the second book that I've read lately that dealt with teenagers, alcohol at a party and pictures being taken and displayed on social media. I am still not sure what I would do in this case. I am really glad that I didn't have to deal with this issue!
I really enjoyed this book, however, and was certainly glad that I got a chance to read and review.
Thanks to Random House Ballantine and Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
This book pulled me into it by having great characters. Once that was settled, in that the characters were who they were, like them or not, question them or not, it became a matter of their story. This story is certainly
I like that the story covers the upper class rich and the middle class as well. It covers kids that have been spoiled by that richness and kids that are embarrassed by their circumstances. It covers love on many levels. It covers single parenting from a father's point of view. All of these issues are current and important. I like that it is told from various perspectives. I sometimes did not know who to believe and while I continued to root for those I wanted to believe, I had my doubts.
A well-written and timely book. I enjoyed it and would recommend it highly.
“All we Ever Wanted” by Emily Griffin is a captivating, dramatic, intense, emotional. and riveting novel. I had different thoughts and a variety of emotions as I was reading this page turning
The author mentions contemporary issues as media, bullying through media, entitlement issues, and shows us the disparity of class through wealth, and the dynamics in families. As a result of these issues the characters seem to be complicated and complex. There are betrayals and secrets. Some of the characters seem to be unbalanced, dysfunctional and unlikeable. There are a few characters that is easy to feel empathy for. The blurb says” Different people must choose between their family and their values.”
Nina Browning is living an extraordinarily wealthy lifestyle with her husband after he sells his business, and can have anything that money can buy. Their son has just made Princeton, and they have every reason to celebrate, until one evening, some tragic events occur.
While the Browning’s are out at a charity event, their son is at a friend’s house while there is a party going on. Lyla Volpe one of the students, who has gotten scholarship for her academics, and goes to the same private school becomes drunk, and appears to be unconscious. Tom Volpe, Lyla’s dad is called. Tom is a single father bringing up Lyla, and has been extremely over-protective. Tom is a talented carpenter but works many jobs to support his daughter.
At this party someone took a picture of Lyla holding a green Uno card, and is partially exposed. Someone has written a racial comment on the post. Nina’s son was at this party, and there is a possibility he took, wrote, and posted the picture. This immediately gets the attention of the administrator at the private school the kids go to. There is an investigation, and there will be a hearing.
Tom is outraged and wants justice., and worries for the emotional repercussions for his daughter. Nina’s husband has donated a tremendous amount of money to the school, and as Nina watches everything unfold, all her values come into question. If Nina’s son is found to be guilt, he will probably not be able to go to Princeton, and this will be marked on his permanent record. Nina’s past secrets make her feel very protective of Lyla.
Emily Griffin has written a significant and thought provoking novel, that I highly recommend. I received an ARC from NetGalley for my honest review.
By
Emily Giffin
What it's all about...
Let’s take Nina...a young girl from a small Tennessee town who falls in love and marries Kirk...her college sweetheart and the man she thought she would be with always. Kirk becomes very wealthy and their lives become very grand. Money is not
Why I wanted to read it...
This book is the kind of book I love to read...privilege vs morality and character. Which one will win?
What made me truly enjoy this book...
The characters were my main focus...will Nina give up her luxurious life? Can she? What will happen to Finch if he continues on in Kirk’s path? Is it too late?
Why you should read it, too...
Readers who love books about family issues...tense ones that could happen to almost any family because of drinking, drugs privilege and social media will enjoy reading this well written book.
I received an advance reader’s copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley and Amazon. I also had a paper copy from Random House. It was my choice to read it and review it.
Finch’s parents have vastly different reactions to Finch’s situation. His father Kirk feels like this is just a case of boys being boys and will do almost anything to make sure that Finch attends Princeton as planned. Finch’s mother Nina struggles with how she feels about what Finch has done and puts much more thought into what should be done with him than Kirk.
Giffin casts Kirk as a one-dimensional villain in this drama and doesn’t give Finch and his friends much depth either. However, the other characters are well-developed and flawed but sympathetic.
All We Ever Wanted would make a great book club selection. Groups could talk about how they as parents would handle it if their child found himself in this sort of predicament. There are other issues that are good discussion topics but too spoilery for me to mention here.
This book is more serious than the lighter beach-read type books that Giffin is known for. I was surprised by that but in a good way. I thought she did a great job and I enjoyed reading it. I think her fans will as well. Recommended.
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. Thank you NetGalley!
There is a reason that Emily Giffin's novel All We Ever Wanted is on the bestseller
She incorporates issues of #Me Too, class, and race into the central story, along with youth issues of social media and peer pressure, so the novel feels relevant.
The plot revolves around Finch Bowning, just accepted into Princeton, whose family is extremely wealthy. His mother Nina came from modest roots, while his father Kirk was from one of Nashville's elite even before he became even wealthier. They seem to have everything.
Then there is Lyla, raised by her single father Tom. Lyla is on scholarship at a private school where kids like Finch are clearly from another world.
Then at a party one night, a photograph is taken and circulated, bringing crisis into all their lives.
Nina's own experience offers her insight into Lyla's situation and she wants justice for Lyla. Nina must consider the values her husband has brought into their family, where money is more important than people and anything can be bought. She is forced to evaluate her entire life as she seeks to walk the fine line between what is right and the bonds of family.
I had not read Giffin before and was very pleased with this book.
I won an ARC through LibraryThing.
This was a fantastic book. I loved every minute of reading it! It was about an every day family and their struggles; Mostly the struggles inside themselves. It’s about family and how difficult it
Much of the story is told from Nina's POV and from the outside, it seems her life is pretty fantastic. Nina lets us peek at the underbelly of her life - both current and past- and we see her money is doing nothing hiding the ugly side of things in her life with a glittery blanket.
Another main POV we have is from Tom, single father to a daughter who goes to the same school as Nina's son, but in the money-status-world, they lead completely different lives.
The struggles from both Nina and Tom are ones most parents will relate to (and fear.) The author does a fantastic job of leading the reader through the repercussions of decisions made and how much a parent, and money, can affect the outcome. It's a great story that takes you on many ups and downs along with twists you don't expect and an ending that you'll think about even after you read the last page.
As Nina tries to find out what really happened at this party, she also begins to find that she never really knew her husband at all. His solution is to throw money at the problem to make it go away.
This domestic drama is quite relevant in today's world and shows that there are some things you just can't buy with all the money in the world.
I received an advance copy for review.
Wow, this was totally unexpected. Emily Giffin’s previous novels have been contemporary romances, but this one deals with so much more! Rape, inappropriate sexual photos, bribery, infidelity, lies, shame, and how some people with money and privilege behave in various situations.
I
Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for providing me with an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
#NetGalley #EmilyGiffin #AllWeEverWanted #BallantineBooks