In just a few months Harp Evans will be officially coming of age and graduating from high school. She will be free from the mother that never wanted her, the house that never felt like home, and the disappointment of the last seventeen years. What she doesn’t know is that her mother has been holding onto a secret that has the potential to derail her dreams and destroy her already faulty sense of self.
A self-proclaimed recluse, Harp spends most of her time practicing the cello, in the hopes of earning a full scholarship that will grant her freedom, but will also send her away from her best friend Connor Williams, who is becoming more than just a friend.
As revelations are made, will Harp still feel the same way about leaving everyone that cares about her behind? Or will she continue to pursue the life she’s been dreaming of, for as long as she can remember?
PUBLISHER: Self-Published
PAGES: 302
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The author gave me a copy of this book to read and review (from NetGalley). This has, in no way, altered my opinion of the book and what is written below is a 100% honest review.
There are a lot of reasons which influence a person to initially pick up a book off of the shelf (or internet) and read it: the cover looks especially pleasing, the title is spectacular, or the book blurb on the back is pretty dang catchy. I’m embarassed to say that I requested this book because the main female character is named Harp. I play the harp so it’s fair to say that I quickly asked for this novel. Stupid? You bet. I’m a book hoarder, okay? It’s a serious problem and I need help. In my defense, though, I did read the book blurb and thought it looked genuinely interesting. But, I digress…
I read the other reviews on Goodreads and Amazon and it looks like I’m on an island of opinion by myself. 😦
Harp is an ordinary teenager who is excited to graduate from high school so she can get away from her horrible mother. She has guy best friend, Connor, and they’ve been friends since forever. She’s also a cellist and that figures strongly into her character and dreams for the future. I’m really bad at summing books up, so – if you still have questions about this book – you should check out the book blurb above.
MORAL RATING:
PG-13: Sexual remarks from a bad boy (negatively looked upon), semi-descriptive character’s recount of rape, a few bad words
THE GOOD:
I enjoyed seeing that someone was writing about sexual/verbal abuse against women. Cassie Shine dedicates this novel to those in abusive relationships and gives resources at the back of her novel if you are dealing with abuse. That’s really commendable and I respect her for that.
THE BAD:
I hate to be the one person who didn’t like this. I really do. In fact, I questioned whether I was judging this book too harshly when I read all of the positive reviews. The main problem with this book was the writing. There were commas where there shouldn’t have been. There were a whole ton of awkward sentences. There were long, run-on sentences that could have easily been broken up. Because the writing is the very foundation of a book, the characters and plot were not memorable. This book dealt with sexual abuse. Serious topic, people! I think that this plot should be dealt with even more carefully than the usual teenage coming of age plot because it deals with such a sensitive, serious problem. Unfortunately, it read more like FanFiction than an actual novel. I have to be honest, folks.
I have to give this novel a 1/5. Apparently, there’s going to be a sequel, but I just can’t read it.
"I Think I'm Obsessed" 