Family issues. A topic that is not uncommon to the average person comes in all forms; whether it be as simple as sibling rivalry or as traumatic as being molested by a man who once was thought to be one of the greatest examples of integrity. Unfortunately, Avery Michaels, the protagonist in the New Adult novel, All of You, falls into the latter category. At just sixteen, Tim (her mother’s police boyfriend at the time) tried to come onto her and when she’d successfully fought him off, Avery swore that she would never allow a man to have power over her again as Tim did. At twenty-one, she tries to put the past behind her as she strolls through life with the reassuring thought that when it comes to men she will always have the upper hand. That’s ofcourse, until she meets the tattooed, sweet and very virgin, Bennett Reynolds who asks more from her than she’s willing to give.
As typical a love story setting this book was, Christina Lee infuses emotionally charged metaphors to shape truly unforgettable characters. I immediately fell in love with the straight-laced and supremely charming Bennett from chapter two on wards(chapter one focused more on telling Avery’s lifestyle). Since meeting Avery at a frat party and coincidentally moving into her apartment building afterwards, Bennett is determined to get to know more about this woman who he can’t seem to get out of his head. Avery, however, just wants him to be her latest conquest. As heavy flirtations and heart-to-heart conversations are passed, both parties start to realize that they have more in common than they first thought. Especially when it came to their families. Just like Avery, Bennett has always had to be the one who looked out for his siblings and his mother and protected them from his mother’s latests boyfriends.
Aside from the heated chemistry Avery and Bennett share for one another, Avery’s grandmother-granddaughter relationship with the well-in-age Mrs. Jackson (who is a patient at the nursing home she works at) is just too admirable. Mrs. Jackson is one of the few persons Avery confides in and somehow always knows what’s up with her. She also proves to be the perfect role model for Avery as she deciphers how she really wants to live her life.
Then there’s Avery’s two best friends, Ella and Rachel, who are so realistic that I really have to wonder if the author took the personalities of real life people and gave it to these two characters. The way they talk with Avery and serve her advice (even when she’s not asking) is so authentic and easy to picture. Somehow, I favored Ella more than Rachel because she’s this down-to-earth girl who gives her friends the extra push in the direction she knows is best for them compared to Rachel who is a YOLO kind of girl. Avery’s brother is another character that I also just have to admire. Despite growing up under the roof of a woman he could barely call mother, he is just as determined and strong willed as Avery.
When things between Bennett and Avery are beginning to get serious, Avery realizes that at one point or the other, she’ll have to tell Bennett about what happened all those years ago with Tim and why she is the way she is. But somehow, when she started to doubt whether or not Bennett would want to stay with her after knowing her past, I pushed back the thought that she would ever think that Bennett would leave her over that after he confessed how much he loved her. Instead, I thought about how hard it must be to even reveal to someone that you were molested and I started to understand her hesitation. Eventually when she does tell Bennett, he doesn’t dump her and go running for the hills but becomes enraged and protective of Avery (another plus for Bennett). Since Avery finally exposed her past and how it made her who she is, they get closer than ever and (ofcourse) raunchy sex ensues.
Then everything heads straight for the pits again when Avery’s brother calls her up and tells her that Tim came back and beat on their mother. When I read this part, I swore that the brother was calling to say that Tim had killed their mother or something. And this is the moment that Avery decides that Tim will not cause her family any more pain. She coerces her mother into finally getting a restraining order against Tim. To everyone’s dismay, things don’t go as planned but damn, the ending was very satisfying.
In all, All of You is the type of book that if you take up, you’d be glued to till the end. Regardless of some parts being predictable, sappy and mushy, I enjoyed every bit of it.
Rating: 7.5/10
Advertisement
Book Info:
Publisher: PENGUIN GROUP Berkley, NAL / Signet Romance, DAW (September 17, 2013)
Length: N/A
Series: N/A
Source: ARC (Provided by Publisher)
Genre: New Adult, Romance
Completed: August 2013
Advertisement
