When We Were Bright and Beautiful

This is one of those books where the reader needs to be patient because there are time switches in the beginning that may confuse you. I'll just urge you to keep reading because by the end of Part I, the plot takes a very interesting turn and from there on in, you'll be hard pressed to put this one down. While the main characters are white privileged moneyed selfish people, by the end you at least see them as more than that - as flawed human beings who may never be entirely happy in their own skins but who you now understand at a deeper level. A sad tale - no one makes it out “aive”, particularly Cassie, our protagonist, a young girl orphaned at an early age and still longing for the warmth and safety of family.