I received this book in exchange for a review, but all opinions are my own.
OK, so I am 9% through this book and I am already gasping and as it is the day before July 4th, I am already plotting how many times I can sneak away from my guests to read this book without getting caught. Otherwise, I am gonna be super tired because I will stay up all night reading. So this book has so much going on, so many twists and turns. It begins with parents going to a charity event, then the story unfolds with unforeseen things.. So many issues are addressed in this book, entitlement, middle class trying to stay afloat, minorities, and more. After reading this book, I am not sure I am going to be able to make it through the teen years with my kids. There are so many more things to consider today with social media and how things can be seen. The plot is based on a drunken underage photo that was taken and distributed of a private school girl on scholarship. Meetings are held and moves are made to protect those involved. There is just so much that happens in this book that I found myself frantically turning the pages. This is a great book for the beach, vacation or even just to read in your downtime, but be prepared not to be able to put it down.

Giffin usually turns out decent "chick lit." Not this time. Melodramatic, loose ends, throw away characters. Disappointed.

ks
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Debbie Krenzer
Debbie Krenzer's Reviews > All We Ever Wanted
All We Ever Wanted by Emily Giffin
All We Ever Wanted
by Emily Giffin (Goodreads Author)
12691311
Debbie Krenzer's review Jul 16, 2018 · edit
really liked it
bookshelves: ebooks, net-galley-books

Wow!

I wish I could say that I sped through this book. However, all I can say is that I wanted to speed through this book. I didn't want to put it down.

I was mesmerized with this story. And it was driving me crazy trying to decide who was telling the truth.

I went back and forth on what was the real truth so much in this book, that my mind probably looked like it was following a tennis match.

This was the second book that I've read lately that dealt with teenagers, alcohol at a party and pictures being taken and displayed on social media. I am still not sure what I would do in this case. I am really glad that I didn't have to deal with this issue!

I really enjoyed this book, however, and was certainly glad that I got a chance to read and review.

Thanks to Random House Ballantine and Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

Emily Giffin novels are among my favorites and I was really excited to read this one! I was quickly reminded why I love her books with the story jumping right in and the writing flowing so effortlessly. I was slightly surprised by the controversial topic but thought it was very relevant in today’s climate and loved the thought provoking perspectives with strong female characters. I would highly recommend this book! When does her next one come out!!!!

I absolutely adore Emily Giffin’s books, and All We Ever Wanted was no different. This is definitely my new favorite of hers! While this book could easily fall into the Chick Lit category like her other books, I think All We Ever Wanted could easily touch more people. The message is clear and important, and the characters are complex, making it that much more vital to be able to see inside their heads. While at first I wasn’t a huge fan of Nina, I grew to connect with her and wished to know more of what she encountered after the book’s ending. As always, Giffin’s book left me wanting a sequel or a movie adaptation. I couldn’t put it down! Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC!

Emily Giffin’s new book, All We Ever Wanted, isn’t one of her classic love stories. Like her last book, Giffin has once again penned a story with a more serious tone and focused around family drama, with relatable characters and life lessons. All We Ever Wanted is a tale of two sides of a city: Nina Browning and her family live the good life among Nashville’s elite while Tom Volpe is a single father raising his daughter in the not-so-nice part of town. When Nina’s son posts a scandalous photograph of his classmate — Tom’s daughter, Lyla — their worlds collide and are forever changed. Lyla, already an outsider because of her background, is faced with even more adversity after the photo circulates throughout Windsor Academy. Giffin tells the story through alternating viewpoints of Tom, Lyla and Nina, as they attempt to navigate their new realities and search for meaning in a world where money talks and the truth isn’t far behind — it just takes some digging to get to there.

I’be read several of Giffin’s books, and this was my least favorite. I found it sensationalized and unbelievable, and it also lacked depth. Not Giffin’s best work.

Emily Giffin has written another brilliant novel. In All We Ever Wanted, four different characters must make a decision regarding a scandal... some take the high road, and some take well, the lowest of the roads, really. Giffin challenges the perspectives and provides an excellent example of women caring for other women in solidarity, Solidarity that is formed through unfortunate circumstances. A cunning way to illustrate the power of the Me too movement while thoughtfully highlighting the differences in generations.

Yes, to sharing this story, and so much yes for Nina Browning sticking up for what's right, even if it meant trouble for her son.

Giffin absolutely NAILED IT with this absolutely made-for-book-clubs story! ALL WE EVER WANTED is set in the world of Nashville's elite, and it is a riveting story of class, race, rape culture, social media, parenting and marriage. I had to slow myself down to keep myself from finishing it too fast, and won't be able to stop thinking about this story for a long, long time. As a parent of both daughters and a son, this book paints a stark picture of my worst fears of parenting when my kids reach their young adult years. Easily on my list of Best of 2018 ~ intensely readable, wide appeal, so many hot issues. Go put it on hold at the library immediately, or buy from a local store!

A sweet book, and a nice exploration of values and family choices. The characters were a little predictable, but not so much that it got in the way of the story.

This was my favorite Giffin book. At first I thought it would be a typical mean girl type of novel but it had more meaning than that

I'm sorry but this read turned into the common crass language and story that seems to be popular these days and I quit reading shortly after the first chapter.

Loved this book, even when I was not reading it I kept thinking about it and couldn’t wait to pick it up again and I finished it in a day. Would definitely recommend to others and can’t wait to read other titles from this author.

Highly recommend!!

5 Thought Provoking Stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

This book is a MUST read! Not only was it absolutely brilliant it also touched on so many of today’s issues... it was a book that really made you think... what would I do in that situation? And as a single mother of two boys and a girl I could see so many sides of this story... and this book really made you realize that with social media a teenager’s reputation can be trashed in a matter of minutes.... makes you long for the good old days when you needed to make a trip to the local drugstore to get your pictures developed and your rash words were only ever read/heard by a handful of people...

One night, one thoughtless moment, and lives are changed forever... what do you do when your daughter has had her picture taken in a compromising position at a party and it is plastered all over social media? What do you do if it was your son that took this picture? Meet Tom single father of Lila the girl in the infamous picture and Nina the mother of Finch the photographer.... both parents instant reaction was to defend their children, as all of ours would be, but what is the right thing to do? Wow, this is tough! If I were Tom I’d want blood my heart would break for my daughter in that situation... but what would I do if I were Nina? What If it were one of my boys that took this picture? This was something that nagged at me throughout this entire book.... i’d like to think I do the right thing, I’d like to think my boys would never do something like this.... but how hard would it be to let your son ruin his life over one indiscretion?Ugh still have no idea what I would do, and fingers crossed I never need to figure it out!

This book was told from the perspectives of Nina, Tom, and Lila and I thought this was super effective.... all three characters were likable, relatable, and reel.... Nina was probably the most relatable character to me, because she was a mother... my heart broke for her what a horrible position to be in! But to Nina’s credit she handled the situation with intelligence, grace, and an open mind.... actually all three of these characters handled the situation in a very commendable manner... unfortunately not every character in this book did... it is always amazing that controversy can show people’s true colors....

Loved this book from first page to last and the ending was perfection... strongly encourage everyone to pick up this book and make sure you have a box of tissues nearby when you read it!

*** many thanks to Valentine Books for my copy of this wonderful book ***

Emily Griffin's novel, All We Ever Wanted, focuses on the issue of an inappropriate online photograph of a high school student. This is a great subject matter to tackle as it affects so many young people today. However, the plot and seriousness of the subject seems to get lost in the myriad of the rich, spoiled lifestyle of the kids as well as the parents. I wish Griffin would have focused more on this novel using an "average" person as her basis. I think I may have related and liked it a little more.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley.

I liked this book, I really did. Ms. Giffin is a fantastic storyteller, and this work is well written, and had me hooked from the first page.

This story is so relevant to society today. It's the story of a high school girl, Lyla, a scholarship student at an elite private school who goes to a party, gets drunk, and the next day, a compromising photo of her starts to get texted around the school. The story is told from four points of view: Lyla, her father (her Mom ran off when she was little), the boy accused of taking and distributing the photo-Finch, and Finch's Mom. I really enjoyed getting the story from four sides. The depth really added to the novel. The reader is taken through the minds of single Dad trying to raise his daughter in this tech-savvy society, the out of her element daugheter trying to fit in, the spoiled rotten boy who has never had to suffer consequences for anything. Ever., and his Mom, who you really want to like because you see how vulnerable she is and you learn her back story-but damn it Mom, get a backbone.

So why four stars? First off, I thought the whole "rich boy, poor girl" plot was a bit too cliche, but what really bothered me was how it all ended up tied up with a pretty little bow. After everything we go through with the characters, Finch, yet again, suffers no consequences even after he blatantly uses his friends, his Mom, and Lyla. I wasn't prepared for a happily ever after.

Thank you NetGalley for affording me the opportunity to review this novel.

I couldn't put this book down! I loved every word. As the mother of a daughter, I got a pit in my stomach reading about what happened to Lyla at a party and how cruel and difficult it can be growing up in this world of technology. Your life can be changed in a matter of seconds! The struggle the parents faced trying to raise children who grow up to be confident, loving, caring, respectable and all around good people despite the outside influences, can be difficult at times.

Emily Giffin did a great job of making the characters so real and drawing you into the issues they each faced as if they were your neighbors. I would definitely recommend this book to family and friends!

This will be short, but to the point.

I find myself struggling with Giffin. This isn't the first time, but I expected to enjoy this more than I did. I didn't finish, and maybe I will at some point, but with the cliche characters...I just needed a break.

Nina Browning’s family is living well. A few years earlier, her husband, Kirk, sold his business for a bundle, allowing them to go from being comfortable to being downright wealthy. Their only and adored son, Finch, attends a tony prep school and has just been accepted at Princeton. It seems like a dream come true for everyone. Tom Volpe is a divorced carpenter with a teenage daughter, Lyla, who also attends Finch’s prep school on a scholarship. Ton wants only to provide the best for Lyla and is constantly looking out for her while trying to help her achieve her best. Then, one night, Finch does something foolish, turning both his and Tom’s family upside down. Other actions/reactions involving both families follow, only making things worse. In addition, Nina, who came from a regular, middle class family herself, has become very disillusioned with her marriage and life style—and becomes more so as the days and actions/reactions continue. In this book, the author has presented a rather interesting look at how actions can have repercussions and can impact others, even though they seemed quite harmless at the time and were never meant to cause any harm or disruption of lives.

This is a book that borrows from the current social/political environment to bring out a message of how one simple act can change a multitude of lives for better or worse. However, as I read, I thought the author had taken and overblown one act, using the current social/political environment to make her point. Also, after spending the book demonstrating the impact of Finch’s act, the ending left me wanting, as I do not think that it fit the story well or even completed it. I will not go into the details, but, suffice it to say that, for me, the book left me wanting and unsatisfied. I have read this author’s other books and enjoyed them all, but I did not really enjoy this one as much. Of course, the writing was great, and the characters were well-developed, as always, but I did particularly like any of them, and, as I said, the book had a strange ending, after all the time the author spent on the repercussions of this one act. This will never be one of my favorites by the author. However, others may find it quite different, so, if you enjoy the author, you might want to give it a try. I received this from NetGalley to read and review.

I typically have loved Emily Giffin and her unique way of storytelling, I did not enjoy this book as much as I did all of her others but I do like that she chose a darker topic in this current climate which is why I still gave the book 4 stars