One Night That Changes Everything by Lauren Barnholdt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ – Near Perfect, easily one of my all-time favorites.
Warning: May contain spoilers.
Eliza’s parents are away for the weekend, and she’s all settled to cozy up with her two best friends at home—until she discovers that her purple notebook is gone. A phone call reveals that her super-secret notebook is in the hands of her ex-boyfriend and his friends. And they have some tasks she needs to perform in order to get it back.
Oh, wow. This is the kind of story that while it ends well, is something that could easily happen today—with a far more disastrous outcome.
I still enjoyed it, though. The writing was light, the characters were funny sometimes, and the plot wasn’t completely farfetched.
I have to admit, that I personally isn’t a fan of the mention of drugs. This happened in some other YA contemporaries I’ve read too. It’s not that I try to deny that drugs are a thing when it comes to teens, it’s more that… it comes off as shallow. Like it’s only there to solicit a reaction from the reader that drugs are bad.
Which it is—no doubt about that. But a few lines mentioning how a side-character is so in love with the stoner-kid that she almost ends up in jail because she agrees to hold his stash? Not the way I would have chosen to incorporate the “don’t do drugs” message.
Alas, I’m getting off-topic. This particular hiccup didn’t derail me from enjoying the story, and it’s not the only book where it has been and issues for me either.
Despite the bullying/blackmailing theme, I really liked the story. The prospect of doing the things you’ve always been afraid of is just… thrilling. And I especially enjoyed the part that while she was forced to do this, she ended up without regrets afterwards.
To me, it shows two sides of youth:
The ugly side with blackmail and bullying.
But also the liberating and carefree nature of being young and living the life. I am not talking #YOLO, but more along the lines of “This is my life, and I want to make the best of every crappy situation I get.”
And I find the latter to be a very important thing to remember. Especially when you’re young.
I recommend this books for people who enjoy light-reads, not-too-farfetched plots, books about friendships, contemporary ya, and teenage love.
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