Book Review Discussion: Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler

Book: Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler
Genre: YA Romance
Rating:★★★★☆
For: Fun
From: Long time resident of my TBR shelf such that I have no idea where it came from! Probably Borders back in the day.

Short Synopsis: Anna has always been in love with her best friend's brother. And just when they were both (Anna and the brother) finally admitting to this, he was killed in a car accident. Now both she and her friend Frankie are trying to cope. The summer after the accident they head off to the beach together to try and forget.  Frankie comes up with a brilliant plan to connect with 20 different boys while they are on vacation. Of course, Anna fails miserably. But she does manage to come to terms with herself and the death. Or at least start to.

My Response: I loved the writing and the highly emotional subject and scenes. I loved the flashbacks with the brother and was sad throughout the whole book that his character wasn't more a part of the story. The whole dealing with death thing seems to be a big overused trope I'm noticing a lot these days. Or I just seem to be picking up a lot of books about this. I guess it makes for an easy emotional ride. I didn't like some of the decisions these characters made and it frustrated me. I think sometimes this too is an easy out for YA books.

Bottom Line: But that being said, I really enjoyed this book and was invested from the first page. Hard to put down and very heart wrenching.

Let's Talk About: I know this is an older book (about six years I think?) but what do you think about the themes and subject matter that is used over and over and over again? Does it make you crazy or are you okay with it as long as it's done with a twist and unique flair?

Other Reviews:

It covers friendship, trust, truth, death, grief, secrets, forgiveness, family, swimsuits, sunburns, sneaking out, virginity, and the fact that no matter how hard you try you can’t make someone else okay—they have to do that for themselves. From The Book Bundle

It's thought-provoking and beautiful and heart-breaking. From Words on Paper

She created very lifelike scenes and the beach town she created was so real that I could almost feel the sand between my toes. From And Another Book Read

The emotional ups and downs of their grief and anger, expressed in myriad ways by the different characters, are a revelation of creative writing and psychological insight. From Rhapsody in Books