In Twenty Years
by Allison Winn Scotch
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Pages: 322
Format: ARC
Buy the Book: Amazon
Goodreads: Twenty years ago, six Penn students shared a house, naively certain that their friendships would endure—until the death of their ringleader and dear friend Bea splintered the group for good. Now, mostly estranged from one another, the remaining five reluctantly gather at that same house on the eve of what would have been Bea’s fortieth birthday.
But along with the return of the friends come old grudges, unrequited feelings, and buried secrets. Catherine, the CEO of a domestic empire, and Owen, a stay-at-home dad, were picture-perfect college sweethearts—but now teeter on the brink of disaster. Lindy, a well-known musician, is pushing middle age in an industry that’s all about youth and slowly self-destructing as she grapples with her own identity. Behind his smile, handsome plastic surgeon Colin harbors the heartbreaking truth about his own history with Bea. And Annie carefully curates her life on Instagram and Facebook, keeping up appearances so she doesn’t have to face the truth about her own empty reality.
Reunited in the place where so many dreams began, and bolstered by the hope of healing, each of them is forced to confront the past.
Kritters Thoughts: Six college students make wishes on their last day of college as to where they hope they will be 20 years from then. After one of them passes away, she sends requests to get them all back together through her lawyer so they can reconnect and maybe send them down different paths then what they were currently on.
Narrated by each of the friends, they each get the chance to tell their side of the story and remember what life was like in college and how they ended up where they are now. I love these types of books where you can see their hopes and dreams and then where they ended up and maybe even get a chance to alter the future by evaluating the past vs the present.
There were obviously some characters that I liked more than others. The musician Lindy was probably my least favorite, she rubbed me the wrong way and I just couldn't get into her story. I loved the overachiever Catherine and her inability to ask for help resonated with me from page to page to page!
I definitely enjoyed that they were able to return to the scene of the crime aka college and regroup and although the circumstances were sad, I loved how they each used her death as a gut check to make sure that in the end they would be happy with their lives.
Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one copy of this book free of charge from TLC Book Tours. I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.
It is sad that a tragedy is usually what forces us to do that gut check on our own lives, but at the same time how much worse it would be to never have that gut check and to continue on a life path that isn't right for you.
ReplyDeleteThanks for being a part of the tour!