Dear Cassie by Lisa Burstein

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What if the last place you should fall in love is the first place that you do?

You’d think getting sent to Turning Pines Wilderness Camp for a month-long rehabilitation “retreat” and being forced to re-live it in this journal would be the worst thing that’s ever happened to me.

You’d be wrong.

There’s the reason I was sent to Turning Pines in the first place: I got arrested. On prom night. With my two best friends, who I haven’t talked to since and probably never will again. And then there’s the real reason I was sent here. The thing I can’t talk about with the guy I can’t even think about.

What if the moment you’ve closed yourself off is the moment you start to break open?

But there’s this guy here. Ben. And the more I swear he won’t—he can’t—the deeper under my skin he’s getting. After the thing that happened, I promised I’d never fall for another boy’s lies.

And yet I can’t help but wonder…what if?

Review:


I requested Dear Cassie because it sounded interesting.  I have wanted to read more contemporary YA and this looked like a great addition to that category.   Unfortunately, Dear Cassie just wasn’t for me.  

First I want to point out the great thing about this book.  Lisa Burstein did an amazing job of getting into her heroine’s head.  She got inside Cassie’s head and it was as if you really are reading the words of this hard on the outside and broken on the inside teen.   

The unfortunate fact of the matter is that Cassie is a frustrating and unlikeable character.  She is whiney and annoying and mean and so closed off.  Yes, she is very broken.  Yes, what happened to her has left her with a significant amount of pain and grief – understandably so.  Her inability to respect and love herself is sad and (because I’m not a monster – at least I don’t think so) I wanted to take her in and give her the love and parental support she really needs.  But because her story is told in the first person and I was constantly in her head full of whiney self recrimination, I found it hard to turn the page.   Ever chapter is titled “(number) of f***ing Days to Go.”  And all I could think was “(number) f***ing chapters I have left read.”  That is how frustrated I was with her character.  

I, personally, saw very little growth in her character.  And although I wouldn’t expect a ton of a growth in just a month’s time if I were dealing with a real live person, I guess I did kind of expect it with a fictional character that only has a few hundred pages to improve her outlook on life.

As for the other characters, I don’t have much to say.   I think if this story had been told in the third person or in alternating first person POV, I could have understood the secondary characters better.  Particularly Ben.  I never quite understood his motivation behind pursuing Cassie.  

This book was definitely not for me.  The reason I give it 2 stars instead of 1 is due to the author’s ability to absolutely and unapologetically own her heroine.  Even if I didn’t like this book personally, I can’t deny how impressive it is to have that ability as a writer.

Nat

The Next Forever by Lisa Burstein

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One night in college can change everything…

Away at college, Amy just wants one night alone without her high school sweetheart, Joe. So when he invites her to go to the library, she heads off on her own instead. How she ended up at a house party with the mysterious bad-boy Trevor is another story…

Joe so isn’t going to the library. He needs space from Amy, too, so he’s decided to rush a fraternity, to get back the swagger he had in high school. But it doesn’t take long for the brothers to invite him to the real rush—where the beer is flowing and one particular girl has set her eyes on Joe.

Over the course of one wild night, both Amy and Joe will have to decide if their futures belong with two new people, or whether the next forever will have their first loves in it.

The Next Forever is an interesting story about two people whose relationship is at an impasse. Amy and Joe have known each other since high school. While there’s something comforting for Amy about being with someone who knows her so well, she’s feeling restless and thinks of Joe as stifling her. Having a shared history is great but it no longer feels like the anchor it once was. The alarm bells go off when Joe casually suggests that they move in together. She’s unsure if this is where she wants to be with her life and with whom. Joe happens to feel the same way where he’s grappling with his feelings about Amy. There's some misunderstanding and apprehension happening on both their parts. Going their separate ways this one night is a test of their commitment to each other and what they want out of their relationship.

The sense you get from Amy’s point of view is that she’s rather unhappy and is unsure if she should stay with Joe. Joe’s perspective is that he knows how much he loves her and doesn't want to lose her - hence his suggestion to move in together. However, he also wants more independence. Since it’s very short, I found elements of the story to be wanting. For example, I would have liked to have known what was so bad about Amy back in high school that worries her so much. Her persona back then is mentioned many times and worries her but it’s not elaborated on. She's very much stuck in her head and doesn't really offer much up in the way of conversation. Joe's issues in contrast are more obvious so I knew where he stood.

Overall, it’s a quick and simple story so if you’re looking for something decent with a tidy ending then this is a good pick.

~ Bel