Review: Until Friday Night by Abbi Glines

Review: Until Friday Night by Abbi GlinesUntil Friday Night by Abbi Glines

Published by Simon and Schuster on 2015-08
Genres: Adolescence, Contemporary, Family, Fiction, Love & Romance, New Adult, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Sports & Recreation, Young Adult
Pages: 328
Format: Paperback
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
two-stars

Click here to buy the book from AmazonBooktopiaBook DepositoryAngus and Robertson
To everyone who knows him, West Ashby has always been that guy: the cocky, popular, too-handsome-for-his-own-good football god. But on the inside he's grief-stricken - his father is dying and he hasn't told anyone because he can't face the truth. Now, as his pain grows unbearable, West finally decides he needs to talk to someone about his dad. So in the dark shadows of a party, he tells the one girl who doesn't speak everything he can't tell anyone else. West expected to feel relief, a flood of emotions - but what he didn't expect was for Maggie Carleton to reply. For her to reveal a pain even deeper than his own. And, for them to form a connection so strong that he couldn't ever let her go.

Until Friday Night is the first book in Abbi Glines’ The Field Party series featuring footballers, cheerleaders and the game which brings the whole town together. With this new series being aimed at a slightly younger audience than her bestselling new adult series, Sea Breeze and Rosemary Beach, I was curious to see what Abbi would come up with in a novel containing high school characters.

One of the things I like most about Abbi Glines’ writing is you know what to expect. She writes good romance. The kind where you pick up her book and before you know it, it’s a few hours later, the book is finished and you’re now emotionally involved in the romance between her characters. Her books are steamy and fun full of possessive alpha males and the women who love them.

Until Friday Night delivers the same overall vibe as her other books despite being aimed at a younger audience. The more sensual scenes are toned down and aren’t quite as descriptive which does make it feel more appropriate for the YA category. I also liked how the main characters are teens in high school and because of this their parents are a feature in the book! YA books without some kind of parental figures is one of my pet peeves so I loved that West and Maggie’s caregivers were important to the characters and to the plot.

This is a book which does feature some fairly heavy subject matter. There’s death and dying along with feeling isolated, grief and surviving. For me personally, Maggie’s story hit a little close to home. Her situation is identical to that of someone in my extended family. I found myself being frustrated with Maggie for how she dealt with everything. Which is somewhat ridiculous on my part. Maggie was a victim and she was coping with life in her own way. But one of the things I like least about Glines’ novels in general is that her females are all victims and the men are overbearing, somewhat controlling arrogant He-men. Until Friday Night‘s characters embody both of these stereotypes.

The romance between West and Maggie was nice to read. There’s instant attraction and after that the two do get to know each other over a brief period of time. There is more to them than just pure lust to their relationship. You do get the sense that they grow to love the other and are there for each other no matter what happens. I liked this aspect of the novel. Other parts of the book were a little predictable but it is a romance book and Glines does deliver on the happy ending. There’s also drama and action with tender and heartfelt moments too.

The other footballers and characters we meet in this book are great and I’m excited to read the rest of this series so I can read their stories. Until Friday Night does set up the series really well in terms of the vibe of the town they live in as well as the type of people who live there.

Until Friday Night is a teen series perfect for fans of Abbi Glines’ other series. It’s a contemporary romance set in a small town with larger than life characters. Romance, family drama and heartfelt moments, this book has it all.

 

Many thanks to Simon and Schuster Australia for the review copy.

 

2 Comments

  1. “But one of the things I like least about Glines’ novels in general is that her females are all victims and the men are overbearing, somewhat controlling arrogant He-men. ” Thank you for putting it into words! I like the soothing predictability of her plots, and how almost everyone in Rosemary Beach got a backstory or a romance, but there was always something off-putting. Another thing I noticed was how the women got pitted against each other, “competing” for men, and some character always got called a slut, which I found weird since that someone would then get a book of her own. All this said, Until Friday Night still sounds interesting, and I’ll keep an eye out for a copy. 🙂

    • There is a sense that any girl who isn’t in the main clique must be a maneater out to steal their men. But then once the characters who were once evil jezebels get their own books and they’re all wonderful. Because if you are a main character of an AG book then you must be amazing… but possibly previously misunderstood. I glad you understand what I mean. These things don’t make me hate her books. There’s something comforting about reading a book that you know will end up with a bit of steamyness and a happy ending for everyone. That doesn’t mean I think they’re flawless.
      There’s a little bit of slut-hating (I don’t know how to phrase this better.. but I think you know what I mean) in this book. But the core group of friends should pan out to be interesting with each of the footballers getting their own novel. Hope you enjoy it if you get around to reading it! 😀 Thanks for visiting Agnes!

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