You can read the full (edited!) text of my review in Publisher's Weekly at the link below.

Brainerd’s bracing debut focuses on a group of teens at a Connecticut boarding school and an ill-spent summer in New York City.

Downloaded this title for my work as a marketer for Penguin Random House, will not be posting my review publicly.

#Net Galley #Age of Consent

I did not finish this book. I didn't find it interesting. I will not Review this book.

Coming of age boarding school novels are one of my guilty pleasures, which is why I picked up Amanda Brainerd’s Age of Consent, a novel of two friends who spend an eventful summer together in NYC after a rather dramatic year at their boarding school in Connecticut. While novels with a school setting are a favorite of mine, it seems I have been selecting the bad apples of the bunch lately. Unfortunately, Age of Consent is one of those bad apples.

It is apparent almost from the very beginning that Age of Consent is a meandering, pointless novel that tries to be more highbrow, and at the same time, shocking, than it really is. The characters are not interesting, the plot goes nowhere, and the book is written in such a way that the story is muddled, confusing, and unremarkable. Furthermore, the sexual relationships between these teenagers and older men are treated as amusing pastimes, and something that promiscuous girls just do. There’s no depth, substance, or thought given to any of these encounters, and while the subject matter is vile, it can be handled well. Look to books like Kate Elizabeth Russell’s My Dark Vanessa to see it done better.

I hate to rate Age of Consent so low, and honestly, I try to find value in everything that I read, but this novel has very few, if any, redeeming qualities. I think this novel will only appeal to a select few in nuanced literary circles - this book is not for the majority.

A fun, mature campus novel set in the 80s and full of precocious teens, AGE OF CONSENT is a solid debut but not one that will be very memorable. I wasn't sure what the thesis of the book was, though I did enjoy taking a trip back to 1983 to my favorite settings (a fancy campus and a gritty early New York City). We follow two sophomores. Eve and Justine, who quickly become best friends at their new boarding school. They are different in that they come from diverse economic backgrounds, but quickly depend on each other through first loves, exploits to the city, and all the other wonderful things that happen to girls during high school (including a David Bowie concert!)

Brainerd's writing is full of wit, but I had a hard time connecting to the characters. I just didn't have a good feel for them, and didn't really care what happens (which, unfortunately, isn't all that much). I liked the character of India, the girl's friend who lives in NYC alone and 16, but there wasn't a whole lot of her all in all. There is also a lot of teens having sex or inappropriate relationships with grown men which does not come to any clear conclusion or indication of a crime occurring. It left an odd taste in my mouth (even though yes, this is the 1980s and times were different I suppose?) I just didn't care about what I was reading at all, and when I did care, it just made me kind of angry and confused. Not one I can recommend, unfortunately.

I enjoyed reading about this friendship set against the backdrop of the early 80's. I felt like it was at times soapy and salacious and I really enjoyed it.

Perhaps it is just because I am too old to have nostalgia for the 1980’s, but this story, while readable, didn’t hit its mark with me. Three teens from a boarding school spend a summer in New York City. There is plenty of nostalgia for those growing up in 1980’s. I just wanted to say “Where are the parents? Why are they letting their girls learn that sex is a commodity?”

I know people like these meandering character sketches with no real plot to them—but I really hopes something was going to come from all this. Instead it was just watching three precocious teen girls, two at a prep boarding school, all at some point getting it on with older men, and none of them able to have working relationships with guys their own age. And all their parents are screw-ups in some shape or form.

I had also wanted to read it for the setting—New York City circa 1983. There was no real color or flavor—or maybe, because the galley formatting was so crappy, it kept ruining my ability to focus on details.

I’m just so disappointed I’m actually ANGRY about it, LOL.

This novel didn't quite connect with me. I liked the setting and the characters rang true, yet ultimately I didn't really care whether they made it through their various awful situations. But it is a useful entry into a dialogue about how young women are treated in certain spheres of society and what has and has not changed since the 1980s. I think a book club could have great discussions after reading this.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for a digital ARC for the purpose of an unbiased review.

Really well written, although the characters read more like college students than high school and I often had to remind myself it was set in the 80s. I enjoyed the nitty gritty of Eve and Justine's trysts and flops - finished the book in just a few days. Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to review this title. I would be interested in reading more from Amanda Brainerd.

This book is set in the 1980's. I love that time period. There was a lot of cultural references that I really appreciated. This is a story of friendship, darkness, and influence. Peer pressure is the at the focal point of this novel, as well as intimacy and sexual relationships with different men. Feminism is an overarching theme as well. I liked the setting, which as an Academy. I've always gravitated toward stories with an academic atmosphere, Secret History comes to mind. This book was part coming of age, part a tale of friendship. Definitely recommended!

I never felt connected to the characters, nor did the story pull me in. I think this writer has talent--the setting and characters were well-drawn--but this novel just didn't grab me.

I really wanted to read this book. But I found it slow moving and I really didn't connect with any of the characters. It had great promise but fell flat. I pushed myself to finish it but by the end I was glad I had finished it.
Thank You NetGalley and publisher for this title.

I wanted to love this book. It sounded like Prep to me, which I liked. This was meh. The concept was great but I didn't love any of the characters. I kept reading because I wanted to see how it played out but many might walk away early.

I have really mixed feelings about this book. I feel like the setting was well written, and the characterizations were done well also. However, I kept waiting for things to happen and they just didn't happen. I did not like any of the characters and I really didn't feel any empathy for them. I feel like this book had a lot of potential that just wasn't realized. And it's unfortunate, because the book is well written. But I just wasn't a fan.