A wife and mother begins questioning whether her husband and son are making the right choices and if they are telling her the truth. Her son has done something very hurtful to another student, and he seems to be letting his dad take the lead in how to get out of it, by lying and paying off the right people. Although she loves her son, she feels that he needs to accept the consequences for his actions and take responsibility for what he did, whether it affects his admission to Princeton or not. It is an interesting story and uses three narrators to tell their points of view.

I just devoured Emily Giffin’s All We Ever Wanted. Emily is a new author to me, and I received this book through NetGalley. This will not be my last Emily Griffin book. I was hooked from the beginning. This book explores current problems such as teenagers and sexting, parenting issues, ....There are strong characters who need to decide right from wrong and figure out if there is redemption. The reader develops strong feelings for the characters in this book. I predict this book will be a huge success!

This was my first Emily Giffin book but it won't be my last! Powerful topic about the have's and the have nots in life and what we think we know about our children. More importantly, this shows us what our children are thinking and the impact social media has on their lives and their futures.
An EXCELLENT joining of two worlds and insights.

*I received this book from NetGally in exchange for an honest review.

Giffin does it again! This book is the perfect summer read as it captures several different genres as the story unfolds. All We Ever Wanted is a little romantic, a little mysterious, has a little current issues, a touch of parenting, and a lot amazing! I honestly can say that I did not see the ending coming, and I'm so glad because it was a beautiful wrap up to a mesmerizing story!

A fun “palette cleanse”… that’s what All I Ever Wanted by Emily Giffin provided for me. It’s an effortless page turner you’ll not want to put down.

Giffin writes the story from her 3 main characters points of view. She flip flops between chapters, writing each character’s perspective in first person. This is a style which I like to read. Her characters are colorful. They include Nina, a mother living a rich, country club lifestyle in Belle Meade, Nashville. Lyla, an insecure teenager living on the East Side of Nashville and attending the private school Windsor Academy, on scholarship. Tom, Lyla’s father, a single parent working as a carpenter by day and an Uber driver on most nights.

The story unfolds when Kirk, Nina’s spoiled, entitled teenage son, invites Lyla to a party. Things go south from there. A picture is taken and goes viral. What ensues is mostly “he said, she said” with some shocking twists and turns.

This isn’t a book I’ll be reflecting on for weeks to come. It’s light…not much substance, but that’s what I needed right now! I’ll read more of Giffin in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Ballantine Publishing Group for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Giffin gives a very timely take on the 1% here with Nina's story. She manages to get straight to the heart of several #MeToo and financial issues that plague certain sectors of society. As always, she manages to string them together with an outcome that either leaves the reader satisfied, or still questioning each character's logic and motivation. Giffin definitely likes to leave her readers thinking about the characters long after the last page.

Let me start off by saying I have read and loved all previous books by this author. For whatever reason, I couldn’t connect with this one. I think I had a hard time relating to any of the characters – Nina, Tom Layla….
It took me about a month (picking it up, putting it down, picking it up…) to finally finish it. And I can say
I enjoyed the ending. The epilogue was great! I don’t want to ruin it for you, but the ending was exactly how I would have pictured it. Exactly! I wouldn’t make any changes to it… it summed up everything very nicely.
I think this is a good book for some, just wasn’t for me. The writing was just as good as it always is, the story line just didn’t hold my interest. Despite this, I do recommend this book.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Random House Publishing / Ballantine Books, and Emily Griffin for the ARC of this novel. I have read a few of Ms. Griffin's books, but this really resonated with me. I loved how she took many of the current issues we are facing today to the forefront. About how it is so easy to take advantage of young women, how these young women don't want to make trouble or come forward about what has happened to them. How wealthy, some wealthy, people feel entitled., and how they pass that on to their children. They don't even make their own children work for anything, it is just given to them. I love how Nina, faced her past and wanted to help her son and Layla, through this tough situation. That Nina could help Layla try to save another girl who was thrust into a situation, so her boyfriend wouldn't get into trouble. I know we all wish we were rich, but after reading this story. I'd rather struggle with the bills, and enjoy what I have and not keep looking for more. If you have your health, and your family you have everything.

I have not given a 5 star review in a while, but this one deserved it! I have always been a fan of Emily Giffin and this one did not disappoint!

A provocative book that delves into an issue facing many teens. A moral, ethical, and racial issue with two teens caught in the middle. A scandal that pins a privileged, white, upper class male against a working class, mixed race, female. And it all started with a party, and one picture sent out on social media. In the end all lies will be discovered.

A mother who thinks her son is infallible, while his father thinks money can win everyone over and right all wrongs. The teenage son believing that there are no serious questions for his actions, and his father will take care of everything. While another father is trying to protect his daughter, and show her the importance of standing up for herself. The teenage daughter not wanting to cause trouble at her prestigious school (which she attends on a scholarship), not taking what happened seriously, and not wanting to confide in her father. With a mother that left early in her life, she is looking for a female role model. Can these two families see eye to eye? Can the wrong be righted?

Told from the point of view of Nina (the mother of the teenage boy), Tom (the father of the teenage girl), and Lyla (the teenage girl). Each dealing with their emotions over the scandal, while trying to stay positive. Each perspective uniquely different from the other, yet intertwined and forever connected.

This was a refreshing book to read. Taking on a topic like this could make or break a book, but Emily Giffin artistically and gracefully succeeded. I have never been a big fan of "chick-lit" but if I can find more books as gripping and thought provoking as this one I will become a fast fan.

From the first page to the last I had to find out the truth, not because of the scandal, but because of the intricate way the story unfolded. And all I wanted to read was an apology, holding on until the last few pages. I love how one event from Lyla's past shaped her entire future, for the better.

Thank you to the publisher, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, the author, Emily Giffin, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

All We Ever Wanted is one of Emily Giffin's better books. I enjoyed her earlier works more than her last 2-3 books. With All We Ever Wanted, the storyline was extremely relevant to the current social media climate and held my interest throughout the story. However, I did feel that it was slow in the first half and then the second half came together quickly and was tied up a little too neatly..

I received this ebook from NetGalley for an honest review. I have always been a big fan of Emily Griffin so I am always excited when she has a new book come out! I also love the cover of this one! I really enjoyed this book and read it very quickly. I have already recommended it to friends. I love the characters in this book and I love that until close to the end I wasn’t exactly sure what had happened and who had done what. This book did a good job of hitting on topics that actually affect parents/students/administrators today. Another great book from Emily Giffin!

I have read all of Emily Giffin’s books and this is definitely one of my favorites! It grabbed my attention from the beginning and I was excited to see what happened. With 3 small kids it usually takes me awhile to finish a book but I finished this in a week!

Nina thinks she has it all: a beautiful house, money, a loving husband, and a son who was just accepted into Princeton. They’re living a perfect life until a scandal involving her son threatens his future and makes Nina reevaluate what’s really important in life. I loved the characters and found them really relatable. Read this book you won’t be disappointed especially if you’re a fan of Emily Giffin!

I've read all of Emily Giffin’s books and while I felt this one was very different from the others, it was a great book! This book is in line with the current #metoo movement and is definitely on point with current events.

Focusing on current issues faced by teens and parents in a world of social media, instant photo sharing and peer pressure, I found this read both enlightening and interesting. Without spoiling any of the content, I will say that I think the author did a great job of capturing some of the challenges we often hear about. This would be a great book club read because it would lead to some interesting discussion.

In my opinion, Giffin really strayed from her lighter plots and characters to something much deeper and darker. Readers ponder life choices and their ramifications and when it becomes too late to make a change. The fear of parenting and the profound impacts we make as parents are explored: can we fix our mistakes? Can we protect our kids? Do we need to let our kids face the fire for the greater good (ugh this book sometimes made me physically ill thinking of all the bad that can happen as our kids age!)

Nina was an inspirational character, and I so enjoyed her story. I absolutely loved how honest she was about her reflections and her goals, her fears and her priorities. I actually loved all the character. I felt they were all necessary, and even if I didn’t approve of their person, I approved of their role. The plot drew me in, but the themes were profound. I highly recommend this book—I had a hard time putting it down.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!

James E. Faust once said, “All parents hope and pray that their children will make wise decisions. Children who are obedient and responsible bring to their parents unending pride and satisfaction.”
The underlying message of that quote sums up the content of Emily Griffin’s book, “all we ever wanted.”
Griffin’s book takes on themes of affluence, sexual assault, social media, harassment, racism and elitism in a story that will leave the reader asking, “what would I do in that situation?”
One bad decision will ultimately change the lives of two families forever and lead to collateral damage to others.
Griffin gives the reader a chance to see the point of view from all the main characters in real time giving us a chance to feel the highs and lows of every person involved.
I find myself still thinking about this book a week later and discussing it with friends and family.
A definite must read and should be on everyones book club list.
I received a copy of this book via Netgalley. It did effect my review of this book.
#netgalley #allweeverwanted #emilygriffin

Giffin's insightful writing and compelling prose go way beyond what one usually finds in a family drama. She masterfully addresses the influence of social media and exposure on teens, family, and community, class and economic influences on the interpretation and handling of moral indiscretions, and the ability to 'overlook' character flaws in the ones we are closest to when the price of noticing feels too high...what more thought provoking themes could a reader want? And yet, the beauty of this writing is that it is smooth, believable, and never heavy-handed.

The story is of a son accused of sending a sexually explicit photo of a fellow high school student passed out at a party, with a racist comment underneath. We see this events unfold through several points of view-- Nina, the mother who struggles to understand who her son and husband really are, and therefore who she has become, Lyla, the teenage girl whose sole desire is to fit in at a school where she is economically disadvantaged, and Tom, her brilliantly written working-class single father. For me, the class issues that this addresses could not be more timely. It is a story well told, and a perfect book club read.

Thank you to the author and publisher for allowing me to read this wonderful novel through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

If Emily Giffin ever wrote a book that I didn't thoroughly enjoy, I'd be shocked. All We Ever Wanted pretty much had me at hello. I love that the storyline was something current and relatable. The entire time I was reading this book, I was putting myself in the shoes of almost every main character. If I were a mother, could I do what Nina was trying to do? Very intense story, and so much of what we are seeing and hearing lately. A terrific subject/plot, Emily. Characters were well described; I could picture them. It didn't jump around and kept me wondering how it would end. I finished this title in 2 days.
I wasn't suprised that this was another Emily Giffin title that I loved. I'd definitely recommend this for parents and non-parents...teachers, students, ..... EVERYONE.

I have always enjoyed Emily Giffin's books, and this was no exception. This one was, however, a bit of a departure from her other frothier books, dealing with much more serious topics like race and sexual harassment rather than romance. The story follows Nina, a very wealthy mother in Nashville, her son Finch, Finch's classmate Lyla, and Lyla's father Tom. It starts off with Nina learning about an inappropriate photo Finch took of Lyla at a party and sent around to his friends with a racist caption, and the story that follows deals with how class, race, and privilege play into Finch's consequences and everyone else's perception of what really happened. As usual, Emily Giffin has written an incredibly readable breeze of a book, this time a bit more though-provoking and with a little more grit. I definitely recommend if you enjoy a domestic drama and/or have enjoyed Emily Giffin's previous novels.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely loved this book. Felt like I knew the characters. Count wait to get into bed at night to picking back up. Definitely going to be buying more books by this author.