***I was provided with an eArc via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!***
I’m really bad at actually doing book reviews….Anyway, you might’ve seen this book in my What to Read Wednesday post, but I really wanted to do an actually review post because it’s just that good of a book. Since I read it in 2017 I didn’t want to title it Books of 2018, like I normally would’ve but I didn’t want to title it Books of 2017, since I’m writing the review in 2018…..wow I’m good at this 🙄. Okay, onto the actual book review now.
ALSO EXPECT SPOILERS CAUSE I’VE GIVEN UP ON NOT INCLUDING THEM I KNOW I’M TERRIBLE THANKS!!!
TITLE: You Were Here
AUTHOR: Cori McCarthy
READ: December 25 – December 31, 2017
SUMMARY:
GOODREADS SUMMARY:
On the anniversary of her daredevil brother’s death, Jaycee attempts to break into Jake’s favorite hideout—the petrifying ruins of an insane asylum. Joined by four classmates, each with their own brand of dysfunction, Jaycee discovers a map detailing her brother’s exploration and the unfinished dares he left behind.
As a tribute to Jake, Jaycee vows to complete the dares, no matter how terrifying or dangerous. What she doesn’t bargain on is her eccentric band of friends who challenge her to do the unthinkable: reveal the parts of herself that she buried with her brother.
NETGALLEY SUMMARY:
Jaycee is about to accomplish what her older brother Jake couldn’t: live past graduation.
Jaycee is dealing with her brother’s death the only way she can- by re-creating Jake’s daredevil stunts. The ones that got him killed. She’s not crazy,okay? She just doesn’t have a whole lot of respect for staying alive.
Jaycee doesn’t expect to have help on her insane quest to remember Jake. But she’s joined by a group of unlikely friends- all with their own reasons for completing the dares and their own brand of dysfunction: the uptight, ex-best friend; the heartbroken poet; the slacker with Peter Pan syndrome; and…Mik. He doesn’t talk, but somehow still challenges Jayce to do the unthinkable-reveal parts of herself that she buried with her brother.
Cori McCarthy’s gripping narrative defies expectation moving seamlessly from prose to graphic novel panes and word art poetry. From the petrifying ruins of an insane asylum to the skeletal remains of the world’s largest amusement park, You Were Here takes you on an unforgettable journey of friendship, heartbreak, and inevitable change.
So this is the original review I posted on Netgalley: “I live in the Cleveland area, so the mention of the Randall Park Mall and Geauga Lake I was excited. Especially since I can still faintly remember going to Geauga Lake as a kid and I went to the waterpark several times including the last weekend it was open. That being said, I loved the different POV’s in this story especially Mik’s. The only real problem I had was the ages and years didn’t exactly add up and maybe this was my fault. I thought Mik was the same age as Jake, but if that were the case then he would be slightly older than 21 (17/18 + the 5 years since Jake’s death = like 22/23). Also, I assumed Zach’s sister was younger than 13. everybody seems to treat her and act like she’s 8 not 13.”
(And if you’d like to read what I said about this book on my What to Read Wednesday post, then check it out HERE!)
Okay, so even almost a year later, I completely agree with everything I said about this book before. Cori McCarthy manages to blend different points of views, and even ways of telling the story, to create this journey for the reader to join in. I loved that it wasn’t just written word, that Mik’s pov. was told in pictures/comics. And I loved Mik. I don’t know why, but something about him just makes me wish there was a whole story about him. I would read that. I would read another story with these characters honestly. Each one of them was just so well developed and had there own struggles and problems. This wasn’t just a story of Jaycee overcoming her grief/lose (although that is a majority of the book); it is a journey of discovery, friendship, the truth, and moving on.
Moving on and discovery is a big part of the story in my opinion. Most of the book is the five sorta, but not really, friends, following in Jaycee’s brothers footsteps around Ohio and discovery, not only what he left behind, but new things about themselves and each other.
And moving on.
Natalie, Jaycee’s ex-best friend, continuously tries to move on, but she struggles to do this. From what I can remember she wants to break up with her boyfriend, start new in college, but she struggles to let go of Zach, and of the friend (Jaycee) that she hasn’t talked to in years. Zach struggles to let go of Natalie and grow up, because growing up means moving on with your life, while his friend Bishop struggles to let go of his cheating, and no longer in the US, ex-girlfriend.
And, of course, Jaycee struggles to let go of her brother. She wears his clothes and even starts to sleep in his room.
(don’t worry, this journey helps each of them)
If you read my Netgalley review, then you’ll see that the only thing I really had problems with was the ages. I’m a stickler for things lining up, so really this is my own fault. Mik’s age seemed to be off by like a year or two to me and also I felt like Zach’s younger sister should’ve been 8, not 13 (which I’m assuming it said she was since I wrote it there but idk right now). People treated her like she was 8 and she did things like she was 8, even if she acted smarter than that at times.
Okay, so I’m gonna sign out here, but before I go here’s a link to check out the book for yourself! You Were HERE
till we read again!
(also, let’s give mik some love!)
(no seriously, he honestly deserves all the love)
(but seriously, I might go reread this just to have some more Mik in my life)
"I'm basically an Avenger" 