by Jennifer E. Smith
Published on September 1st 2015
Poppy, 246 pages
On the night before they leave for college, Clare and Aidan have only one thing left to do: figure out whether they should stay together or break up. Over the course of twelve hours, they retrace the steps of their relationship, trying to find something in their past that might help them decide what their future should be. The night leads them to family and friends, familiar landmarks and unexpected places, hard truths and surprising revelations. But as the clock winds down and morning approaches, so does their inevitable goodbye. The question is, will it be goodbye for now or goodbye forever?
Charming, bittersweet, and full of wisdom and heart, this irresistible novel from Jennifer E. Smith, author of The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, explores the difficult choices that arise when life and love lead in different directions.
- Goodreads.com description
"Maybe the world isn't full of signs so much as it's full of
people trying to use whatever evidence they can to find
to convince themselves of what they hope to be true."
It's been a while since I read this book, but it has made such a big impression on me that I find myself still thinking about it sometimes, and therefore I thought it deserves a proper review. I love Jennifer E. Smith, I read most of her books and really enjoyed them all.
This book felt particularly special. Everything that happens in this book happens in the span of 12 hours or so. It's about Clare and Aidan, and because they are going to different colleges, on their last night they are deciding if they should break up or not. So, they go back to all their significant places. And it's a hell of a journey.
Clare is decided that it would be best to break up. She is very pragmatic and she thinks this is the best solution.
Aidan is decided that it would be best if they stay together. He believes in the long distance relationship. So you can probably imagine how things got complicated for the two of them.
This was a fascinating read, because you could see all the pros and cons but you still keep changing your mind from chapter to chapter! And when you get at the end.. you are not sure what is right and what is wrong anymore.
The journey they embank on that fateful night - it felt more than just a night. It felt like a lifetime. This book was bittersweet. It goes deep into the territory of what is 'right' and what you really want. It was sad and hopeful at the same time. But mostly sad. This isn't a happy book, so if you are in one of those moods, I highly recommend you to read Hello, Goodbye and Everything in Between.
