Title: Saint Anything
Author: Sarah Dessen
Genre: Fiction
How I got the book: I bought it
Summary (from Amazon):
Sydney has always felt invisible. She’s grown accustomed to her brother, Peyton, being the focus of the family’s attention and, lately, concern. Peyton is handsome and charismatic, but seems bent on self-destruction. Now, after a drunk-driving accident that crippled a boy, Peyton’s serving some serious jail time, and Sydney is on her own, questioning her place in the family and the world.
Then she meets the Chatham family. Drawn into their warm, chaotic circle, Sydney experiences unquestioning acceptance for the first time. There’s effervescent Layla, who constantly falls for the wrong guy, Rosie, who’s had her own fall from grace, and Mrs. Chatham, who even though ailing is the heart of the family. But it’s with older brother Mac—quiet, watchful, and protective—that Sydney finally feels seen, really seen, at last.
My Review (may contain spoilers!):
This book was amazing. The idea of having someone in the shadow of her troubled brother (who is in prison) was implemented so well.
I simply fell in love with Sydney, Mac, Layla, and their mother. I had a love-hate relationship with Sydney’s mother and father and absolutely hated Ames, but only because I was sympathizing with Sydney. I felt so in tune with these characters.
The writing itself was pretty good. Sarah Dessen has a knack for painting beautiful pictures in my mind. I did think the beginning of the story was a bit long. However, once you get to the end of the book you realize that absolutely everything that happened earlier was build-up. Nothing was out of place and nothing was thrown in just to fill in more pages.
The ending, the last few chapters, were just fantastic. It was emotional and I shed a few tears, which just proves how much I love these characters. They were a mixture of worried-tears and then happy-tears, but any story that hooks me that deeply is a win for me.
Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen gets 5 out of 5 stars.
Favorite Quote:
“There’s no shame in trying to make stuff work, is how I see it. It’s better than just accepting the broken.” –Sarah Dessen, Saint Anything
Be sure to check out my Goodreads to see what I’ll be reading next!
