Tawni WatersRezensionen

This novel tells the story of two girls who must navigate their feelings for one another and life in a small, conservative New Mexico town. A lyrical and moving coming- of-age love story.

4.5 stars.

The Long Ride Home by Tawni Waters is a poignant yet surprisingly sometimes humorous young adult novel about a teenager's road trip to scatter her beloved mother's ashes.

Six months after the death of her mom, Harley is still deeply grieving her loss. In the aftermath of her mother's death, she moves from New York to California to live with her mom's best friend, Mercy. Angry, hurting and suffering from anxiety attacks, Harley's only friend (with benefits) is Dean and when she asks him to join her on her cross country trek to spread her mom's ashes, he agrees without hesitation. However, Harley is keeping a big secret from Dean and she is quick to lash out in anger when she feels overwhelmed by the events that have occurred in recent months.

Harley is incredibly prickly and antagonistic but it is impossible not feel empathy for everything she has recently experienced. She uses sarcasm and snark as a defense mechanism when things become too emotional for her. She also shuts down instead of discussing important issues and she is also quick to run away from her problems instead of facing them head on. Her road trip to take her mom's ashes back to New York quickly turns into an emotional journey in which Harley learns some unpleasant truths about her mother's past. However these negative discoveries are offset by the realization that Harley is not as alone as she believes and that there are people in her life whom she can count on. Harley makes several impetuous decisions that are somewhat self-destructive but some of her choices are also unexpectedly healing.

The Long Ride Home is an emotionally compelling, gritty young adult novel. Tawni Waters deftly handles difficult subject matter with sensitivity and she brilliantly balances the more sorrowful moments with humor. With a realistic storyline, a feisty lead protagonist and an endearingly charming hero, this thought-provoking novel is well-written with an unexpected ending. An excellent story that I highly recommended to adult and older teen readers.

I was excited for this because I love a good roadtrip story, unfortunately, I just didn't connect to the characters in this one.

I wasn't a biggest fan of the narration style. It was written like a letter, which I didn't mind at all, but it felt a little like successive info dumps in the beginning. The information wasn't as naturally integrated as I would have liked. I also don't feel like I got enough background on Harley and Dean to care about their relationship, or their friendship. I didn't find Harley to be a likeable character, I sympathized with her for her loss and guilt, but I never actually liked her. Some other emotional scenes didn't really have an impact on me, because we didn't get to spend enough time in the scene - there wasn't enough buildup to have a satisfying payoff.

I did appreciate the strong emotional ending, and it felt like a great place for our characters to end up. This was a nice read, but I was never invested.

I received a copy of the book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Extremely depressing and hopeless. Too many issues in one story with little resolution.

Sigh *** This book gutted me... It was filled with tragedy and hate, but somehow finished off as a heart breaking and beautiful story. The tough topics were quick to pull me in and the character development held my attention long after the final page.

Mara is a girl living in a tough world. Her momma is a drunk, her daddy is abusive, and her brother is special because of a family incident. While she tries to find beauty in all of the ugly, she also faces inner battles. Her mind knows feelings for a girl are wrong, but her heart just can't say no. When her secret is found out, her world becomes a game of cat and mouse. The preacher's son uses pictures to his advantage and in the end gets what he wants.

I really cannot put into words how much impact this book had on my emotions. I went from stomach sickness to swooning. My heart ached so many times and my mind raced to figure out the conclusion. I wanted a happy ending for Mara, but I also craved happiness for Iggy. To me, it was a no win situation. I wanted more then what could happen. I never expected the ending though and gosh did it rock my world. I'm still baffled and a tad sad.

I think this one should be a mandatory read for all ages. It touches on bullying, stereotypes, family struggles, rape, religious beliefs, LGBT, and true love. It wasn't an easy book to read, but it packed a hard punch. I feel extremely blessed to have indulged in such an impactful read and I hope you all check it out too!

A strong portrayal of life in an abusive household, the book loses some points for the flatness of the romantic story line. Excluding Mara's love interest, the characters are vivid and memorable, down to her friend Henry's father, who sprays everyone and everything he meets with bleach. Author Tawni Waters powerfully portrays the terror of living with a father who can go from laughter to violent rage within seconds, although the extent of suffering the protagonist experiences can feel excessive and unbearable.

Heartbreaking and gorgeous. Not an easy read but really a great story of love and tenacity.½

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

My Thoughts: This book was one of those rare stories that holds your heart in a death-grip and doesn't let go. I picked it up late one night when I couldn't sleep - thinking I'd read a few chapters - and found myself unable to put it down for even a second, reading well into the morning. I finished in one sitting and tried to write a review, but couldn't find the words to describe just how much the book had affected me.

Mara and Xylia's story was a heartbreaking one, and I felt for them during every minute of their struggle to be together and their struggle to survive in their backwoods town. This was far from a 'fun' read, but it was a book that demanded to be read. I had a major book hangover after finishing, and it took weeks before I could collect my thoughts enough to write a review. To say that this book messes with your emotions is an understatement - it devastates you. But no matter how bad things get, there is always the hope that things will get better for Mara, Iggy, and Xylia.

The characters were extremely well-written and realistic despite their numerous flaws, but that made it all the more real. The image Tawni Waters was able to paint in my head of Mara's town was incredibly detailed, and the atmosphere of the novel matched the subject matter perfectly. I cannot think of one thing I didn't like - this is one book hangover that I won't be recovering from for quite a while.

Final Thoughts: I recommend this novel to fans of edgier contemporary YA and fans of romance with a darker atmosphere.