Emily Giffin's "All We Ever Wanted" is a book for our times, looking at how status, money, family, and values collide in the wake of a social-media scandal at an elite Nashville prep school. Nashville socialite Nina Browning apparently has all she ever wanted -- a beautiful home, impressive husband, and social status -- but when Finch, her Princeton-bound son, is implicated in some salacious photos of his classmate Lyla, Nina has to reconsider her values. What's more important -- family or the truth (whatever that turns out to be)? What about Lyla, with whom Nina identifies as an outsider? And, how does her husband's reaction to the situation compare to Lyla's father's reaction?

It's an interesting take on our times, and a good beach read. Fans of books like Big Little Lies will enjoy this take on privilege and suburban society.

This book had me from page one! Reminding us how having it all, or nothing at all doesn't matter when life throws you curves! Nice summer read!

I was given the opportunity via NetGalley to read an electronic copy of All We Ever Wanted. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

Nina Browning's carefully crafted world comes crashing down, after her son posts an unspeakable image of a fellow student on social media. As Nina tries to right the wrongs of her family, will she learn volumes about herself at the same time? Will her connection with the wronged student ultimately topple Nina's life?

The premise of All We Ever Wanted had promise, but the book fell a little short of expectations. Half of the characters in the novel are detestable and all conform too much to different stereotypes. Nina could have been interesting, but the author spends too much time hammering home how different Nina is from the other elite without actually delving into her background in a meaningful way. I liked the character of Tom Volpe, but I do not think he was given his due. The epilogue was just there and not really all that worthwhile. I do not think it is necessary for an author to wrap up all of the details in a neat package because life is ongoing. Readers do not need to know the future, just that there are possibilities. All We Ever Wanted was a good beach read, but not as good as I was expecting.

This was a great read.

Nina Browning married into a old money family. But years later, after her husband, Kirk, sold his software company, their wealth increased tremendously. That's when she starts to see Kirk's true colors; and she realizes that their son, Finch, is becoming just like his dad.

One night Finch is at a party, and he does the unthinkable, which might jeopardize his future to attend Princeton in the fall. At first he accepts total responsibility for the incident, but he quickly turns on his girlfriend and blames her instead. Kirk tries to pay off the family to avoid the private school getting involved. But the headmaster already knows about the picture.

Lyla has had a crush on Finch since she transferred to the school. But she NEVER thought that he would do something so degrading to her. When Finn lies to her, she naively believes him.

Tom, Luke's dad, is furious that this wealthy family tried to buy his silence and gives the money back to Nina when they meet for coffee. Nina isn't on Finch's side, because she sees no remorse from him and she knows that he's lying. She sees a lot of Kirk in him, and she is so disappointed.

Tom and Nina stick together for the same of Lyla, but end up becoming good friends. When things start to get ugly for Kyle and she finds out the truth, Nina is there for her every step of the way.

I really wanted to like this book...I generally like Emily Griffin's work, but this one felt very formulaic and heavy-handed. The characters were very 2-dimensional, which I almost feel was done on purpose in order to get her message across. Don't get me wrong, this was a page-turner for me, I really did want to know what happened next...but I knew I was being manipulated, even as I continued to flip those pages. The major issue was, I didn't like any of the characters...I wasn't given a reason to. Though...I will say, I did like Tom. Everyone else....meh. Nina was supposed to be this character that sees the "errors of her lavish ways"...but she mostly seemed like a timid, caged mouse, who had the nerve to be morally indignant, even though she was a happily, kept woman. I understand the #MeToo movement is in everyone's mind, but this book didn't address it in a useful way, it just seemed like rich people bashing. And making assumptions about a large swath of people is a real turn-off. I also hated the political labels that were liberally (pardon the pun) sprinkled throughout the book, which labeled Republicans as (Greedy, selfish, rich, white people) and then assumed their perspective of hatred against the "Highly-educated, liberal elites". It was annoying and irritating, because again, I don't like one-dimensional character assumptions. She could have gotten her point across in a myriad of ways, without throwing political labels on people...the story wouldn't have lost anything, in fact, it may have been better. That honestly tripped me up several time and left me very disappointed that the political tribalism war even ended up in my fiction.

I received a copy of this title from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

"All We Ever Wanted" is told in the point of view of three extremely sympathetic characters: Nina, Tom, and Lyla. Nina's son, Finch does something terrible to Tom's daughter, Lyla. As Finch is faced with possible consequences for his actions, we follow Nina's heartbreak when she realizes her husband, her son, and her life may not be what she expected. We live Tom's anger and impotence as a single dad trying to protect his daughter. And we feel for Lyla, who is trying to grow up and fit in a world very different from her own. I took me a while to get through the first half of the book because I really felt for the characters and needed to take breaks from them. I flew through the second half of the book because, as the story unraveled, I needed to know how everything would end. And that end was in parts satisfying, in parts infuriating, much like real life.

Thank you to NetGalley/Bookish for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was looking forward to the release of this novel because during her time in college in Nashville, my daughter was a day time au pair for a a Belle Meade family that included picking up the kids at their school, along with some very “A list country music parents. It was a great experience for her. And the family could not have been nicer.

I enjoyed having the novel set in Nashville, being familiar with the area and really liked the premise of the story. I sometimes think that the instant info culture of the mobile phone culture of the day becomes awkward in a plot, but in this book the phone is the plot.

Unsupervised teenagers, alcohol and phones and self-absorbed parents- what could possible go wrong. Quite a bit actually, and the author weaves a very plausible situation with well constructed characters into a story that could be happening in any town and school in the U.S. although we know what what went wrong immediately, the rest of the book keeps the reader guessing until the end. This could be a fable for today with its message of the perils involved with cell phones across age, class and culture. Great book!

A very timely topic - teens and social media and how far will someone go to protect their child.

Nina Browning has a great life - a successful husband and teenage son who was just accepted in Princeton. Tom Volpe is a struggling carpenter raising his teenage daughter on his own. Their paths cross when Nina's son Finch is accused of posting suggestive and racist photos of Tom's daughter, Lyla. Nina wants to hold her son accountable while her husband chalks it up to boys being boys. Tom thinks that it will just be swept under the rug because of the Brownings wealth.

This was a thought provoking story - how do you protect your child while at the same time letting them learn from the mistakes they will make - especially if that mistake could haunt them for the rest of their lives. What is a minor mistake and what is one that is not? This book touches on racism, wealth and privilege, and doing the right thing and accepting responsibility. It asks what would you do if Finch was your son or Lyla was your daughter.

This was not your typical Emily Giffin book...it took me a bit to get into it....but once I did, I LOVED IT!

All We Ever Wanted by Emily Giffin is a fast paced compulsive read. Kirk and Nina Browning are a prominent wealthy Nashville couple. Their son Finch has just received his acceptance to Princeton when he finds himself in the middle of a sexting scandal at his elite prep school, Windsor Academy. The Brownings are pitted against single father Tom Volpe whose daughter Lyla, is an academically gifted student attending Windsor on scholarship. The book explores the themes of “affluenza” and entitlement as well as social media obsession and rape culture. All We Ever Wanted is a light, quick, but thought provoking book. Thank you #NetGalley for the ARC, all opinions are my own.

Yet another great book by Emily Giffin. All We Ever Wanted strays from her typical love story into issues relevant to today’s society. I enjoyed the alternating perspectives following a #metoo incident, in which we get to see the responses from not only the victim, but also the alleged perpetrator, and members from both families. The intimate look into how each processes the incident is eye opening, and likely not all that uncommon. Emily again creates characters you love, and love to hate. And an ending that isn’t all that fairy-tale. Over all a solid read.

I absolutely loved this book! I could not put it down, I got to know and really see inside all of characters. I felt as if I lived in the town and had a daughter at the school. This book was fresh, juicy, loving and a perfect read for YA also.

This flows very nicely, even with the different points of view it's being told from - this can end up a bit clumsy sometimes. This story draws you right in and pulls at your emotions. Emily's stories are always well written and engaging. They are very relatable. This will definitely keep you thinking long after you've reached the end.

It is very scary rising kids this day and age. With Social Media and Fake News, sometimes I just want to keep my sons locked up in the house! It is a scary world out there and often times so much of what happens in out of our control as parents. This book really takes a deep look into how one post can change the whole trajectory of your life and the colossal mess it can leave in wake.

This book was so heartfelt and real. The characters were flawed and lovely. I identified with the struggle of the main character and her views on the actions in the book. I think it's a very realistic portrayal of something that could happen in our world today.

Would 100% recommend this book to people looking for their next great book!

Lyla Volpe had no idea that attending a party with her best friend Grace would end up with her being photographed, passed out on a bed, a green Uno card tucked in her hand, and the caption “Looks like she finally got her green card.” Lyla was a scholarship student at the exclusive Windsor Academy, a sophomore where the others at the party were the popular seniors, and it was rumored that Finch Browning had circulated the picture. Finch’s family was one of the wealthiest, he was friends with only the most elite, and his folks were heavily involved in philanthropic causes in and around Belle Meade, Tennessee. Oh, and Finch had been accepted at Princeton, so any negative behavior could possibly impact his chances of attending in the fall.

Lyla’s father Tom, a self-employed carpenter and part-time Uber driver was beyond outraged when he learned of the picture, demanding the headmaster to bring Finch up on charges he had violated the Honor Code. Finch’s parents, Kirk and Nina, were divided on how they should handle this inappropriate behavior. Kirk was inclined to let the school handle it, but just in case, he offered Tom a bribe to make it all go away. Nina was more sympathetic to Lyla, and was shocked at how easily Finch seemed to be getting away with his complete disrespect of this young woman.

This is truly a book that demonstrates the updated Golden Rule – “The guy with the gold makes the rules.” Kirk seemed to be totally without a conscience, Finch was following his father’s example, while Nina was becoming less enamored of the lifestyle that gave her many material things but no true friendship or companionship. Tom is struggling as a single parent, doing the best he can, and Lyla, like so many of us have, simply trusted the wrong people and got into a situation that sucked her in and threatened to bring her down. She’s a strong character, refusing to be chased away from school, facing the photograph and the fallout straight on. This is a powerful story, with raw moments and sad situations, but the love and support of good friends and family (the one you create, not always the one you’re born into) will get you through.

Fascinating and timely, I thoroughly enjoyed this read. Highly quotable and riveting, I would purchase this title as a gift for a girlfriend.

I went into this book very excited about it. The synopsis provided sounded so good and you always hear excellent things about the author. I wouldn’t say the book was bad, it just fell short for me. I despised the characters Nina and Tom. Tom had a huge chip on his shoulder and Nina was so flighty. I didn’t think Nina’s marriage was provided in enough detail either to really understand what was going on there.. The kids were more mature than the adults it seemed. Anyway, I don’t want to ruin the book for others but I couldn’t appreciate the ending as much because the rest of the book was just kind of a dud for me. Thanks for providing this book netgalley, I’m glad I finished it, but probably won’t be reading any more from her.

This was such an interesting look into family dynamics. I enjoyed looking into this unfortunate situation in all of their lives and seeing how it played out. I really liked how we were sort of always unusual of what the truth was because of the change of point of view. We get different truths from different people and it’s a great way to tell a story. Emily Giffin writes another great story about life in the south, While the plot is very different than smoke fo her previous books' it focuses on people and their relationships through hard times. Would completely recommend to friends.

*3.5 stars*

With her ninth novel, Emily Giffin takes an ambitious step away from her traditional love story narratives and attempts to tackle relevant topics surrounding social media, privilege, racism and self-worth. Things that feel all too timely with the dominance of social media and the #metoo movement. I’m just not so sure it all worked.

Despite the staggering number of issues Giffin sets out to address with this plot, there’s a lack of emotionality, leaving the reader to flail in the shallow end of the pool. Entertaining for sure, yet all too forgettable, in the grand scheme of things.

I think by now we’ve all read some version of this story or at least seen a Dateline special (have I mentioned, I’m a junkie?)—a sexually explicit photo of a drunken scholarship girl, taken by the uber-popular rich guy, and captioned with a racist “joke", goes viral. The question becomes, what really happened that night and who’s responsible?

It takes the rumor mill—gossip perpetuated by one of her biggest rivals—to snap Nina Browning into reality. Maybe buying her son, Finch, a brand new G-Wagon, allowing him to drink without repercussion and footing the bill for everything his heart has ever desired has made him feel entitled? Untouchable. Privileged. You think? Compounding her regret is her husband’s own pompous attitude.

In stereotypical fashion, Nina’s husband and Finch’s father is convinced throwing money at the problem will simply make things disappear. They have plenty of it, being one of Nashville’s elite, so what’s the harm? Why hold your son accountable when it might jeopardize his acceptance to Princeton or tarnish your own standing in the community? Gag.

The major obstacle to just moving on—Lyla’s dad. The typical overprotective father, with a host of his own issues and insecurities surrounding money, is adamant. He’s taking a stance (although, he wavers at the most unexpected times)—his daughter’s self-worth is too important to just let the incident fade into the ether.

Lyla earns the spotlight here, being the naive teenage girl, too in love with her crush to do anything other than brush away his major error in judgement. With time and wisdom, she'll learn.

There are a host of other issues packed within these pages—relationship baggage, infidelity, dishonesty, date rape, divorce . . . it’s a bit much. While the ending is a little unexpected, it still feels deflating somehow. I can’t help but to think, if Giffin would have honed in on a few key issues, instead of trying to color with every crayon in the box, the big picture might have been more impactful.

While I would consider this an enjoyable experience—for the most part—it’s not one I’m earmarking as a favorite of Emily Giffin’s.