This post contains affiliate links you can use to purchase the book. If you buy the book using that link, I will receive a small commission from the sale.
My Review:Title: Maybe Never
Author: Sadie Allen
Published by: Indie
Release Date: February 21, 2017
Format: eARC, Kindle Book
Pages: 317
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult
Potential Triggers: View Spoiler »
Source: NetGalley
Reading Challenges: Lenoreo's 2018 #LetsReadIndie Challenge, Lenoreo's 2018 Netgalley and Edelweiss Challenge, Lenoreo's 2018 Platypire Diversity Challenge, Lenoreo's 2018 Reading Assignment Challenge
Find it: Goodreads ✩ Amazon ✩ B&N ✩ IndieBound
My rating:
Blurb:One golden boy...
Judd Jackson had it all—star football player with a college scholarship, perfect family, tons of friends, and a beautiful girlfriend. He was the most popular guy in town … until a family secret burned it all to the ground. Now, he’s the object of scorn and ridicule, and the only thing he has left is his scholarship and counting down the days until he can leave town.
One goal-oriented girl...
Sunny Blackfox was alone in the world, but she had big plans and big dreams to keep her occupied. She didn’t have time for anyone in her life. That was, until she came to the rescue of the boy she always had a thing for.
They have everything going against them, but maybe, if they are lucky, they will make it out of town after graduation together ... or maybe never.
I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review/opinion.
3 stars — Hmmm… OK. So this book frustrated me. There were parts that really sucked me in and kept me enthralled. But there were also parts that made me feel uncomfortable. And we’re going to start with those and get them out of the way.
Now, I might just be super sensitive, I’m not discounting that fact — but I couldn’t help but feel that there was subtle transphobia sprinkled within this book. Now maybe it was unintentional. Or heck, maybe it was indicative of the authors views, not everyone is on board the “yay trans people” train. But including a side story about a father who is likely transgender does not in fact automatically make this book a good candidate for diversity. The problem lies in that the majority of the small town vilifies Judd’s father when he is “outed”. Which, fine, small Texas town and all that (though *grumble grumble* stereotype). But Judd and his mother also made comments that vilified Judd’s father. They were really subtle, but I noticed. And I was disappointed. I’d have to go back to look for specific examples, but it was along the lines of “why’d he have to do that?” and “how could he?” and such…though even that’s not exactly it. Damn, I should have highlighted. Now, at the very end of the book the author tries to tie it in that Judd was mostly just angry with his father for leaving, but it was a bit too late at that point. I considered DNFing over this, but I really wanted to know if Judd was going to come to understand his father and change his beliefs. He doesn’t really. Heck, in the epilogue he’s still talking about his father’s “lifestyle choices.” *sigh* And the thing is that none of this was overt, which makes it more dangerous. So for that reason I would not recommend this to young adults or anyone looking for trans-positivity. It was really used more as a plot device.
The other reason I read this book was for my diversity reading challenge, whose theme this month is “Native American History Month”. And while I was really happy with Sunny’s character, and how she was portrayed in the book (more to come), that sensitive part of me was disappointed that the only other Native American character in the book was her father, who was of course the town drunk…which inadvertently plays into the harmful stereotypes of Native Americans. *sigh* So that was a bit of a bummer.
OK, enough of all that. Other than those factors, I really liked both Sunny and Judd! They were both struggling with unbelievable hardships, and I loved how they made each other stronger. I loved the perspectives that Sunny shared with Judd about rising above the bullying and living your best life as revenge. I thought she was a great mix of strong, independent, but also vulnerable too. She was not immune to the hurt, she just tried her best. And I loved Judd’s protective side with Sunny. I loved that unlike many heroes in similar situations, he actually in general kept a lid on his temper and didn’t resolve everything with fighting. Sometimes Sunny helped, but even before they became friends he tried to ignore his taunters.
And their friendship turned romance was actually really sweet. I loved seeing them both going through crushes, and I believed when their feelings deepened.
As for secondary characters, I LOVED Sally, she was a spitfire! Molly, on the other hand, was baffling…I’m assuming her side story was a set-up for her own book. At least I hope so. The Sheriff was a delightful surprise for me! Judd’s Mom on the other hand went a bit too mean to be redeemable…though, I still accepted her transformation.
And then we get to the devil twins. I will admit I’m not big on over the top drama/angst, and Asher and Ashley were super over the top. They were honestly evil, and I just didn’t feel it was necessary for them to go that far. I was not a fan of anything they added to the story.
So yeah. This one was a mix of ups and downs. The parts I loved, I really loved. But it wasn’t enough to make up for the parts that just didn’t feel right. Top that off with not great editing (and I actually read the copy I bought, not just the ARC, so I know it’s in the final copy), and I just couldn’t go above a 3 star.
Really great review! I read this one when it came out. I liked it, but I don’t remember the dad thing. It’s been a while, though. If you liked the writing, I really liked her Saving Me.