I received this ebook from Netgalley.com for my honest feedback.
This one was a little depressing, but so well written that I forged on. I'm so glad I did! I wanted to know more about the characters and how Shelby was going to overcome her inner demons.
Life -- how to survive and come out on top....
This book will stay on my mind for a while.
This review is also posted at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1651251251

I am drawn to Alice Hoffman novels and have loved listening to them on CD (The Dovekeepers, The Museum of Extraordinary Things) but I felt the same about Faithful as I did about The Marriage of Opposites...it was ok, but not great. I really want magic realism when read Hoffman, and always feel a bit let down when I don't get any. I'm looking forward to diving into The Rules of Magic soon. I did love the choice of Amber Tamblyn as the narrator though.

Faithful has an eerie beginning that feels like a ghost story. Each year, the town honors a young girl that was critically injured in a car accident. Her name is Helene and she’s been in a coma since that day, lying in a hospital bed in her childhood bedroom. Some people believe that she can heal the sick and a large group of volunteers always hold vigil in her room and help Helene’s parents care for her.

But there was another girl involved in this accident: Shelby. Shelby walked away with a whole body, but she sunk into her own coma. The young girl who was on her way to NYU won’t leave her parents’ basement or stop smoking pot. It’s like her life has been lost and she’s walking around in a shell of a body.

This novel follows her – at times, she is selfish and unlikeable. At other times, she is a raw nerve who is only trying to navigate her survivor’s guilt. She rescues defenseless animals, defends families just trying to break the cycle of poverty and send their own children to college, and makes amends with those she’s hurt in the past.

Shelby’s selfishness almost made me put this book aside. I was shocked at some of her behaviors and found her to be self-indulgent and unnecessarily hurtful. But I kept reading and am so glad that I did. I began to see more of myself in Shelby – there’s a certain bit of her humanity that kept shining through, even when she was treating others around her like garbage. And I’ll admit – I cried through the entire last half!

4.5
BEAUTIFUL.
When I started this book I had no idea what it was about. I didn't even read the synopsis. I just started reading and was hoping to be surprised...And I was, although at the beginning it was quite difficult to understand everything.
I found that the beginning was dense, but it give this book an opportunity, and I am glad I did that. Alice Hoffman is such an amazing writer, Until this book, I did not have idea that she has written many books. But, this book in particular really cautivate me, her characters are so real, so relatable and I completely loved them.
I couldn't relate more to the main character, Shelby has made lots of mistakes but she is still there after everything. And, although, she is still struggling with the accident, she is brave enough to continue with her life. I had an accident two years ago and I know all about these kind of feelings, when you feel that your life is going to end, that you can't give more, that you are in a black hole of depression and your life turns upside down. But I loved how the author treated this topic.
There are so many topics in this book that is impossible that you would not like it, I completely loved it and I would definitely read more books of Hoffman.

Beautifully written story that gets to your heart. Definitely a fan of her writing and love her amazing cover!

This is classic Hoffman with the exquisite prose and beautifully crafted story we love about her writing. Its a joy to read this book and experience her writing in a new story. It is a tale of two teenage girls and how a accident changes fate for one and gives life to the other. It is both poignant and sad, heartfelt and compelling, It is classic Hoffman and a wonderfully written novel.

Leaving this one unrated because it was a DNF book for me. It's definitely one of those "it's not you, it's me" situations because it's not a bad book, I just couldn't get into it. I'm going to give it another try at some point because I think I just tried to read it at the wrong time, but I'm shelving it for now.

This is the second book I’ve read by Alice Hoffman. I definitely enjoy her writing style, but this one left me wanting. I will say in it’s defense, that it got me out of a slump and kept me turning the pages, making it quick read, which is always a plus.

Faithful is a coming of age story following a horrific tradgedy. Our protagonist is riddled with guilt and is hellbent on living her life trapped in sorrow, some call it penance, I say horrible depression and slight agorophobia. Once again Hoffman displays great writing skills and character development, even though the main character did not actually evolve through the story (if that makes sense). The timeframe for the book is about ten years, and during that time there wasn’t a lot of personal growth for Shelby.

Sometimes you’re in the mood for a melancholy page turner, that’s packed with flawed characters, this book fits that bill. The plot has a good pace making for a quick read. I never wholly connected to the main character, her magnetism was definitely lacking. This story is slow, somber, and doesn’t really go anywhere, but sometimes that’s life. I can relate to a lot of Shelby’s miserable-ness. I will say that where the she lacked charisma, the story itself is very relatable if you’ve been dealt a hand of hard times/challenges in life. *Disclaimer – Tears were shed. Have tissues nearby.

Not so long story short, if you’re looking for a mopey quick read, with great writing, I definitely recommend it. It’s like those Saturdays you just want to stay in with ice cream and snacks, binge on Lifetime movies, and cry on the couch all day.

Sometimes we just need those.

One snowy night, in their senior year of high school, best friends Shelby and Helene are involved in a terrible car accident. Shelby escapes physically unscathed and emotionally scarred, but Helene’s injuries have put her into a permanent vegetative state. Helene’s parents keep her in her bedroom and word spreads far and wide of Helene’s supposed “healing” powers. As a line of faithful followers forms outside of Helene’s house every day, Shelby is admitted to an inpatient psychiatric ward where she falls deeper into depression and self-destructive behaviors.

some spoilers below.

I loved Hoffman’s Seventh Heaven and was unimpressed with The Museum of Extraordinary Things, so I was really hoping that I would enjoy this book. I was so excited to see this available as a “Read Now” on Netgalley, but it’s been more than six months since I downloaded my copy. I’ve finally read it, and I don’t really know what to think. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t love it, either. I really just didn’t see the point.

As always, Hoffman’s writing is beautiful. Unfortunately, beautiful writing doesn’t stand in for the absence of plot. Although this book follows Shelby for a good decade or so of her life, very little actually happens.

At the outset of the book, and I want to mention this because I am quite sure it will turn off some readers, Shelby is regularly raped by one of the orderlies in the inpatient psych ward. This understandably undoes any progress that she might have made while hospitalized, and it carries over to how she views relationships for the next several years.

Out of the program, Shelby shaves her head and wears shapeless black clothes and combat boots that she knows make her look unattractive and scary. She’s trying to look bad because she doesn’t deserve to look good. Her best friend is in a coma because of her, and why should she be enjoying her life when Helene can’t?

Shelby abandons all hope for a good life. Although she’d been accepted to NYU, she never moves into her dorm. She moves down to her parents’ basement, where she sleeps on the couch and smokes a lot of weed. Her only semi-meaningful relationship is with her dealer, Ben, who she eventually begins dating. Shelby doesn’t actually like Ben, but she feels that she doesn’t deserve to be in love because Helene is in a coma. Eventually, Shelby and Ben move to New York City together.

Shelby is awful to Ben. She feels that he deserves better than her, and maybe if she yells enough, if she’s crazy enough, if she treats him poorly enough, he’ll leave. But Ben loves Shelby, and it’s not until she cheats on him with a handsome, charismatic veterinarian that he snaps. It’s not even the cheating that bothers Ben, it’s the fact that Shelby is going to leave him for this smarmy doctor. When things don’t work out with the vet, Shelby realizes what a good person Ben was. At this point, it’s too late. Ben wants nothing to do with her.

At some point, Shelby realizes that she needs to get a job. She begins stocking shelves at a pet store, a dead-end job she picked so that she wouldn’t have to talk to people. Shelby is quickly promoted to manager for no real reason and becomes best friends with one of her coworkers. Although Shelby is a self-professed child-hater, her coworker tells Shelby that she will be babysitting her three children for several days while she goes out of town. (Why you would leave your three children with someone who doesn’t know the first thing about kids and admittedly hates them is beyond me, but this made for a really good couple chapters.) It turns out that Shelby is amazing with children. She knows exactly what to say to all of them so that they will become better versions of themselves. She calms fears and tames wild teenagers, all while letting them eat forbidden food and stay up past their bedtimes.

While working at the pet store, Shelby also learns that she loves animals. I guess she didn’t know this before. When she sees an animal being mistreated, she liberates it from its current owner and takes it home with her. By the end of the book, she has a motley crew of four dogs, ranging from a teacup poodle to a Great Pyrenees. Shelby is amazing with these dogs and can turn the worst-behaved animal into an angel almost instantly. I’m glad that she saved these dogs because I, too, have a very big soft spot for animals, but I don’t know how she kept getting away with stealing them!

Shelby also goes to college at some point, where she’s admitted without much effort on her part. I suppose it’s possible that her old SAT scores and high school grades helped, but it seems like it should have taken a bit more work given that she hadn’t been in school for so long. Of course, Shelby turns out to be absolutely brilliant and she gets great grades without even trying. Shelby is so brilliant that the state of New York actually pays her to go to school. Everything comes naturally to her and she ends up applying to (and being accepted at) UC-Davis for vet school. As the book ends, Shelby moves to California with the love of her life as Ben begs her to take him back.

I guess I didn’t really understand the point to this book. Shelby tries so hard to have a horrible life, but good things just keep happening to her. She tries to have a terrible, low-paying job and is promoted to manager. She tries not to have any friends, but good people insert themselves into her life. She tries to hate children, but ends up playing the part of the cool aunt. She tries not to succeed and ends up with a pretty perfect life. I was happy for her, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t understand what the reasoning for all of this was.

The book is very emotional, and I often wanted to cry while reading it. But, as I’ve said with other books like this, what’s the point in making me cry? You haven’t made me realize anything new. You haven’t made me see things from a new perspective. You haven’t shed light on any underrepresented topics. You just want me to cry. Congratulations, chunks of this book felt like punches to the chest. But why?

Now, this book has a fairly high average rating on Goodreads. It’s a book that many thousands of people have absolutely loved. Personally, it didn’t do it for me, but please don’t let that stop you from reading it.

Final rating: ★★★☆☆

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!

This book did not go the way I expected. It was expertly written, with such an ease to read, probably due to the author's extensive back catalogue. I thought it would be the story of Shelby and Helene, both injured in a car accident as teenagers but Helene the one that ends up in a coma. Shelby seems down a road of self-destruction, the accident seemingly ending both their lives. I expected there would be more involvement in the story of Helene, seeing as there was so much focus on her in the early part of the story, but this was my only gripe. Shelby is an interesting, complex character, who, although does some questionable things, you still end up liking - a difficult task.

This is a beautiful, gorgeous book! The main character exudes all that is dark and sad in many of us, and I'll bet you will see yourself in her to some degree. I didn't want this story to end.....I would love to read more and more.

About 15 minutes into this audio book, I stopped the narration and double-checked that I had downloaded the correct book. "Faithful" was nothing at all like my last experience with Alice Hoffman -- The Marriage of Opposites, with its complexity and lyrical language. I thought for sure I had mistakenly clicked on the latest YA release. My screen confirmed that, indeed, this was Hoffman and that "Faithful" was a very different book than "Opposites."

Once I let go of my expectations for what this book was "supposed" to be, I found that I enjoyed and appreciated it. In this novel, a teen-aged Shelby is behind the wheel when a car accident leaves her best friend bedridden in a coma. We see Shelby's downward spiral into self-destruction and despair as a result of depression and survivor's guilt. Hoffman aptly captures not only Shelby's emotions, but the those of her parents as they watch their daughter punish herself for the accident.

While this book is not officially a YA novel, it definitely had that sort of feel about it, and those who don't care for that genre will likely not enjoy this book.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for a galley of this book in exchange for an honest review. While I was provided with a galley I chose to listen to an audio version, which was excellent.

I requested this book to review months ago and never read it. One of our Bloggers Elizabeth loved the author so I figured we could do a read along. Life happened and that got delayed. I'm happy I finally got around to it but I have major mixed feelings about this book. This is probably one of the strangest books I have ever read. The plot wasn't anything unusual. The pace was average. It was my feelings on the book and the feel of the author's writing. It's a bit hard to explain so I'm going to break it down as much as I can without spoilers.

I HATED the first 150 pages of this book. It had everything I dislike in a novel. I'm not even joking. It used rape as a plot point that didn't matter later on. The author didn't create the world to imagine. She listed what everything looked like and what the characters were doing. (Example: Shelby did this. Now, shebly did that. Shelby is sad.) It was beyond boring and it felt dead. I almost quit reading it as I felt it was sloppy writing. I rarely DNF a book. The fact I wanted to put it down is unlike me but it was not my cup of tea.

The thing that shocked me is at about 150 pages it seemed like the author grew as a writer. There was more emotion in the text. It felt alive and the characters weren't as one dimensional. The growth was gradual but by the end of the book, I felt it was a 5-star read. I'm not sure how to explain it. I'm a bit uncertain If it was meant to be like that to show character growth or what. I have never gone from 100% hate to 100% love while reading a story. Normally, by the halfway point I can tell what rating I'll give it. I can't give it 5-stars obviously. I'm thinking 3.5 as it was rough getting past the first 150 pages but I'm glad I did.

What an emotional rollercoaster! I loved this book and could not put it down. The characters and relationships were well done. The themes and topics were handled well. The ending was bittersweet.
A five star read for me.

I tried so very hard to get into this book, but I just could not. I don't think it is the author's fault. I just did not enjoy the story line. I quit after about six chapters.

Hoffman’s novel has been in my stack forever and I’m not sure why it took me this long to finally settle with it. I was an avid reader of all her books for many years and I must say, this is one of her sweetest stories of all.

The main character, Shelby, is a teenager who has been involved in a tragic car accident that leaves her best friend in a coma. Unable to forgive herself, she finds herself on a downward spiral. Motivational messages are being sent to her from an anonymous sender though telling her to keep fighting and going. These act as an important catalyst as Shelby’s life begins to find new purpose.

Heartbreakingly real, this redemption story of finding you are loved, even in your darker moments, is surprisingly hopeful. If you like a good love story, you’ll really enjoy this book.

This is a wonderful but very sad story about a young woman's spiral into darkness following an awful road traffic accident. Beautifully written, as all Alice Hoffman books are. Heartbreaking but also hopeful.

Faithful by Alice Hoffman is again another wonderful story. Hoffman has once again been able to weave a plot that touches so many and is so real.

Exploring the world through the eyes of a teenager who has experienced tragedy the reader is taken to the depths of despair and brought back from the edge. Following through the eyes of Shelby we are taken for a joyride that turns tragic. Shelby and her best friend, Helene, are at the pinnacle of their high school experience. They are popular and get good grades. They have been accepted to the same college. But a mistake changes their lives in a minute and there is no going back.

Shelby people would say was the lucky one, she walks away able to continue on with her life. But, as sometimes people don't see from the outside, Shelby does not feel lucky. She does not feel like she can move forward or go on with the life she had planned. Though her parents try to help, they also are working through challenges in their marriage. Shelby must find her own way, the answers that will resonate for her and bring her back from the edge. She meets Ben, a boy she did not like in high school, who now is trying to help rescue her.

Shelby is not sure she is worth rescuing or that it is even possible. Shelby learns with time that, "Every story had the same message; what was deep inside could only be deciphered by someone who understood how easily a heart could be broken."

Shelby feels that she is broken and is not sure she can be fixed. This is a story that every parent understands as the reason we set rules for our children. This is exactly the kind of heartbreak we are trying to save our children from.

This book had everything in it that I love: dogs, books, and broken characters.

I have to say that I love Alice Hoffman's writing- this one didn't quite have many magical elements in it like some of her past works, but I enjoyed it immensely. Shelby Richmond gets in a terrible accident on an icy road in high school and survives. She struggles to understand why she should've been the one to walk away when her best friend Helene- did not. What follows is Shelby's quick path to destruction, random inspiring postcards arriving in her mailbox telling her to "Do Something" and then she decides to take that advice. She starts rescuing one eyed dogs being used by homeless to induce sympathy from passers-by. My heart broke wide open for Shelby- she reels into herself and makes some serious mistakes (who hasn't), she's obsessed with Chinese take-out and always choosing the wrong life.

I really enjoyed the nuances created in this novel. Hoffman does a brilliant job of weaving some memorable characters into this story. The drug dealer who changes his life around, a older single mom with 3 teenagers she's trying to keep out of trouble, a married vet, and my favorite- the rescued (kidnapped) dogs she saves. I teared up on the elliptical as I found myself rooting for this broken woman and wanted her to choose herself in the end.