e-ARC, 272 pages
Release Date: September 4, 2018Published by: HarperTeen
Read from: August 31- September 2, 2018Stand-aloneSource: Edelweiss (I received a copy of this book from Edelweiss and the Publisher in exchange for a just and honest review. This did nothing to influence my review.)TW: Sexual assault, Pedophilia, and Rape
For fans of: Verse novels, Contemporaries, Realistic Fiction, YAPoignant and chilling by turns, The Opposite of Innocent is award-winning author Sonya Sones’s most gripping novel in verse yet. It’s the story of a girl named Lily, who’s been crushing on a man named Luke, a friend of her parents, ever since she can remember.
Luke has been away for two endless years, but he’s finally returning today. Lily was only twelve when he left. But now, at fourteen, she feels transformed. She can’t wait to see how Luke will react when he sees the new her. And when her mother tells her that Luke will be staying with them for a while, in the bedroom right next to hers, her heart nearly stops.
Having Luke back is better than Lily could have ever dreamed. His lingering looks set Lily on fire. Is she just imagining them? But then, when they’re alone, he kisses her. Then he kisses her again. Lily’s friends think anyone his age who wants to be with a fourteen-year-old must be really messed up. Maybe even dangerous. But Luke would never do anything to hurt her…would he?
In this powerful tale of a terrifying leap into young adulthood, readers will accompany Lily on her harrowing journey from hopelessness to hope.
*MY THOUGHTS*
“He was sort of like a character from a novel. A novel I couldn’t put down.“16%
“…he’d waited for me. Just like he promised me he would when I was a little girl.“19%
I’m not normally one for novels in verse, but because the cover of this one was so pretty and it was a contemp which is normally my favorite. But because I didn’t read the synopsis, I missed a vital part of what this book was about. And to be honest, it kind of caught me off guard. I think it would have been much less harsh if it was written as an actual novel. But I’m not sure if it’s me not liking verse novels or this subject written in this way.
“I’m a little more flushed, a little more hushed, a little more dazed, a little more crazed, a little more more, than the time before.“30%
[Small spoilers] And the ending…. Although it ended on a nice note, I wish it hadn’t ended there. For a novel like this, I wish it had given us what actually happened at the end. So that teens can know that telling someone is ok and safe. I wish it had shown the consequences and hadn’t let him get away with anything. I know this could just be me, but I really needed this to end up with something happening to him.
“Funny word- if. So tiny, but so enormous.“47%
I wanted to read this because the last book I read made me tense and put me on edge and I was expecting a nice contemp to clear my palate. But this was not it. If this is what you’re expecting readers, read a different book. If you’re in the mood for hard hitting contemps and something that will hit you right in the feels, this is the one for you.
I felt the same way at the ending. It's one of those things, where I understand why Sones stopped there, but I really wanted to see justice served.
very honest review. I honestly rarely go for a novel in verse but it's certainly good to try different type of books.