Release Date: December 2, 2010
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If someone hurts your sister and you're any kind of man, you seek revenge, right? If your brother's been accused of a terrible crime and you're the main witness, then you banish all doubt and defend him. Isn't that what families do? When Mikey's sister claims a boy assaulted her at a party, his world of work and girls begins to fall apart. When Ellie's brother is charged with the crime, but says he didn't do it, her world of revision, exams and fitting in at a new school begins to unravel. When Mikey and Ellie meet, two worlds collide. Brave and unflinching, this is a novel of extraordinary skillfulness and almost unbearable tension. It's a book about loyalty and the choices that come with it. But above all it's a book about love - for one's family and for another.
You Against Me is a hard-hitting book that deals with serious issues like sexual assault. Jenny Downham will never let you down when it comes to emotion. You can expect one hell of a roller-coaster!
This book is told from different point of views, Mikey and Ellie. I think that having two different people tell the same story did work for this book. Mikey's younger sister has just been a victim of sexual assault. Ellie is the younger sister of a boy who has just been accused of sexual assault. Soon their worlds collide and they can't stay away from each other even though they know how it will end.
"It was strange how words meant something when they came out of your mouth. Inside your head they were safe and silent, but once they were outside, people grabbed hold of them."
Jenny Downham has delivered a book packed with emotion and romance that will have you hooked until the very last page. I fell in love with the characters from the very first chapter because they were all so unique with forbidden thoughts that I wanted to dig into.
A brave and confident standalone.
Even though I loved the romance between our heroine, Ellie, and our hero, Mikey, I can't help but think that their relationship might have been different in reality because their relationship did blossom a bit too fast. But, that's just something that briefly crossed my mind. I love Jenny Downham's writing style and her imagination, I just want to jump into her mind and find out how she thinks Ellie and Mikey's relationship to continue. The ending of You Against Me did leave me hanging (I hate cliffhangers) but I guess the ending was appropriate for the book.
Overall, I recommend You Against Me to everyone who loves a beautifully written novel with an issue that not many authors are prepared to take on!
Rating:
Great review, I'm going to read this one soon. I agree that it's a tough subject to write about but one that should be discussed more.
ReplyDeleteI saw this book in my library and was debating checking it out... thanks for the review to tell me more about it!
ReplyDeleteAnastasia
Bookish
tnx for the review
ReplyDeletei so want it
contemp rocks
What did you think if the relationship between Elli and her brother? Its a...difficult subject, and you are right that she handles it well. Good review.
ReplyDeleteHaley@www.passingthepages.blogspot.com
This sounds like a great book, and I agree, in this case it has to be told from both perspectives. I love it thematically and it's great the characters make you wonder about them:)
ReplyDeleteThanks for your review! This sounds like a great book :D
ReplyDeleteMariska
I feel like I need to try this book again. I picked it up a few months ago, and stopped after the first few chapters. Maybe I need to go back to it!
ReplyDeleteI just got this book from the library a few days ago, and your review just reminded me of it so thank you!
ReplyDeleteGreat review!
I saw this at my library a couple of days ago but I didn't borrow it. After reading your review, I'll probably go see if I can find it as it seems like the type of book I'd like; packing an emotional punch, well-written and a somewhat complicated romance.
ReplyDeleteThis book sounds awesome! I have to read it for sure, because I love these kind of stories! Thank you for the review!
ReplyDeleteYOU AGAINST ME is not a crazy premise. It's about a fifteen-year-old girl who accuses a college student of sexual assault after a night of drinking. The young man denies it. She's poor, he's rich. The boy's sister (Ellie) was in the house at the time of the attack and her entire family, including her brother, expects her to defend him in court. The girl who was assaulted has a brother (Mikey) and he'll do anything to protect his deeply hurt sister, including beating up the boy who assaulted her. It's because of these circumstances that Ellie and Mikey's lives intersect. What happens after is fascinating and crazy. Because how does one build any kind of honest relationship based on such horrific circumstances, let alone open one's heart? But Jenny Downham pulls it off, and she does it magnificently!
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