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All You Never Wanted Adele Griffin Books

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All You Never Wanted Adele Griffin Books

Older sister Alex has everything that Thea wants--a boyfriend, popular friends and good looks. Thea sets out to obtain everything her sister has. A pathological liar and a bit of a stalker she created an image of herself named Gia--everything Alex is and has. Alex has her own issues. She has severe anxiety and has stopped eating due to an embarrassing event. Thea is planning a party, but plans never come out you you think they will, do they?

This is a hard book for me to review. ALL YOU NEVER WANTED fell short of my expectations based on the blurb for the book. Told in alternating POVs, Thea's chapter in first person, Alex in third Adele Griffen gives each girl a sting and unique voice. Thea was a loathsome character, yet it could empathize with her neediness. Alex was pathetic, and in my opinion overreacted to the embarrassing incident. I have a hard time liking a book when I can't root for any of the characters. Story felt incomplete and the ending left me unsatisfied.

This was over all a disappointing read.


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All You Never Wanted Adele Griffin Books Reviews

Over the past year, I've been discovering a love for realistic fiction, my home base having always been fantasy novels for pretty much all of my YA-reading past. When I was an actual teen, my favorite genre to read was chick lit humor, sexy times, and a hot man for every woman; I pretty much hoped that would be my future. As I've gotten older and seen that this would not be my future, these happy novels have failed to move me most of the time, seeming much less realistic than their depressing counterparts. With Adele Griffin, I have found another author who writes books full of broken characters and feels.

At its core, All You Never Wanted is the story of two sisters, Thea and Alex. Both are broken, unable to exist comfortably in their own skins. They used to be happy, even after their parents' divorce and father's abandonment. What undid them was their mother's remarriage. Interestingly enough, the problem was not Arthur, the mother's new husband, who treats them well and would do anything for them. The issue is his wealth, and that he travels so much on business, taking their mother with him.

During the time where they had very little money, both girls working to help the family scrape buy and pay the bills, the three of them were a tight family unit. They were close and happy. With the money and resulting luxury, the three have grown apart. More separate and free, the two girls find it hard to figure out who they are or how to behave. The fact that both are classic 'poor little rich girls' is made less obnoxious by their acknowledgment and distaste of that fact, as well as by the fact that they have not always been this way.

Alex speeds toward hermit status, afraid to leave Camelot (the name of their immense house) because of a traumatic experience she had during her internship at a fashion magazine. She withdraws more and more, skipping school, shutting out her boyfriend and sister, refusing to eat, and only barely managing to continue tutoring at Empty Hands, a volunteer center. This last may seem the least important, but her work there, kids like Leonard who count on her, are the only tether keeping her from closing herself inside permanently.

Thea has always worshipped her prettier, older, better-liked sister. Before, Thea was a nerd, who delighted in essay contests and winning trophies for academic achievement. As Alex disappears, Thea overcompensates for the loss of her idol by trying to become Alex, single white female style. No longer caring about her grades, she throws herself into a web of lies in an effort to entertain the highest echelon in her high school, to become one of the popular kids. On top of that, Thea wants Alex's boyfriend, Joshua.

Griffin uses an interesting narrative style to accomplish this tale Thea's perspective is first person, and Alex's third person limited. This can be a tricky technique to pull off with multiple perspectives, but Griffin does so marvelously. Thea's personality fits a first person narration perfectly, since she's such a storyteller. She wants to be able to tell the audience what's going on in her life her way, put her spin on it and make it a better story. Alex has no desire to be known, feels foreign even to herself.

I ripped through this brief novel, caught up in the drama and pain of their lives. My biggest issue with the book is that I just could not believe the truth of Alex's trauma once I heard it. Call me a terrible person, but I definitely laughed, though it does allow for a nice joke at the end. Also, complex and real as they were, I never bonded with Alex and Thea. Of the two, though, I liked Alex best, despite her weird issue, especially since she has a touching romantic story line.

From what I've heard, this is not Griffin's best novel, but, even so, I can tell that I need to read more Griffin. Her writing has a unique flair and she does not turn away from darkness. Given its brevity, this is well worth a read if you find the concept intriguing or have enjoyed Griffin before. This would make a great readalike for Denise Jaden's Never Enough or Sarah Wylie's All These Lives.
All You Never Wanted was different from my usual reads. It reminded me a lot of Sara Shepard's Pretty Little Liars and The Lying Game in that it's about two rich girls at odds with each other. Alex is the older sister and she is an integral part of the popular crowd---where her younger sister Thea desperately wants to be. Thea will stop at nothing to be popular like Alex, even going so far as to spread lies about everyone around her, just to get attention.

I really hated Thea, although I did understand where she was coming from. She just wanted to be included, to be part of a group, like Alex. The lengths she went to to insure her place in the popular crowd were unbelievable! Thea was very vain and immature and all that back-stabbing started to get old for me. For me, Thea's quest for popularity made the whole book feel petty and shallow.

Alex has something more going on though. She has a huge secret that is literally eating her up inside. She's never shared it with anyone...and doesn't plan to either. Until she connects with Xander. The source of Alex's misery was a definite surprise. I was expecting her problems to stem from an eating disorder, abuse, or something more typical of a teenage girl. To find out what happened in her past that's the source of all of her present trauma was a true surprise for me, which was nice.

Alex and Xander's relationship really saved the book for me. I loved the ending (although I would have liked a few more details as to whether Thea got what she deserved). I did feel like the resolution to Alex's problem was pretty unrealistic, and I hated that her strength did not come from within, but rather from Xander. I would have liked to see her overcome her problem in a healthier way.

Overall, All You Never Wanted was a good read, but not one of my personal favorites. I think that fans of Sara Shepard will enjoy it, as well as fans of contemporary YA.
I usually enjoy Adele Griffin's novel, but this was one was just okay. I was annoyed by both sisters. I don't think a lot of teens could identify with either sister.
Older sister Alex has everything that Thea wants--a boyfriend, popular friends and good looks. Thea sets out to obtain everything her sister has. A pathological liar and a bit of a stalker she created an image of herself named Gia--everything Alex is and has. Alex has her own issues. She has severe anxiety and has stopped eating due to an embarrassing event. Thea is planning a party, but plans never come out you you think they will, do they?

This is a hard book for me to review. ALL YOU NEVER WANTED fell short of my expectations based on the blurb for the book. Told in alternating POVs, Thea's chapter in first person, Alex in third Adele Griffen gives each girl a sting and unique voice. Thea was a loathsome character, yet it could empathize with her neediness. Alex was pathetic, and in my opinion overreacted to the embarrassing incident. I have a hard time liking a book when I can't root for any of the characters. Story felt incomplete and the ending left me unsatisfied.

This was over all a disappointing read.