What I Thought Was True by Huntley Fitzpatrick

TL;DR fluffy contemporary romance focusing on (mis)communication

(finished 9/22/15)

Disclaimer: my standards for fluffy contemp / character-driven books are different than plot-driven books. I'm much more lenient with these than with other books. 

I really enjoyed Fitzpatrick's My Life Next Door, so I was pretty optimistic about What I Thought Was True, even in the beginning when I didn't feel very interested in it. It's been a little bit since I read a fluffy contemporary romance book, so I had to find my groove again.

The first thing that comes to mind is that I appreciate the fact that What I Thought Was True doesn't feel like My Life Next Door. Fluffy contemp books -- especially Sarah Dessen-like ones -- have a tendency to be the same plot and almost identical characters, and that wasn't the case. At least for comparing the two books to each other. Granted, it's been a year and a half since I read My Life Next Door, but the situation was different and I didn't feel like I was just reading about the same characters given different names. 

In regards to the characters, I can honestly say that the one I liked the most was Cass. (Which was highly influenced by the fact he is a "map geek", as Gwen puts it. Like, dang is Cass a boy I never expected to see in YA.) I also liked that he was honest -- though he still committed some lies of omission. And man, Gwen and Cass' sense of sass. I think all of the characters could've been a little more human, but they were believable within the context of the book.  They were believable teenagers. They only vaguely felt like cardboard cutouts. I also liked Grandpa Ben, Emory, and Mrs. E. They were cute characters. 

Some of the relationship stuff definitely felt staged, especially what happens between Viv and Nic towards the end of the book. At the foreshadowing point I was like "heh it'd be funny if ..." and then when my assumption was actually true I just kind of stared at the book. I didn't actually want to be true on that one. So I'm not too keen on the romance part. Gwen and Cass' relationship also felt like it worked out a little too nice. Or convenient. I'm not actually sure what to call it, but if it was a real relationship, they probably would've had a lot more issues with each other. I appreciate the relationship they ended up having, but it wasn't all that realistic. 

So the plot was basically about miscommunications. All over the board. And, you know, that can be really frustrating to read about. It's not a very compelling plot, but it works for a fluffy contemp. The book is definitely character-driven. I really wish all the characters would've been more open with each other, but of course, that would eliminate the plot, so ... 

I think a lot of the negative reviews I've seen have to do with how character-driven it is. Like, nothing really happens for much of the book, but I didn't mind that because I liked the characters to just read about them going and doing their everyday thing. That's why I read fluffy contemps. Sometimes I need escapes from actual plots. 

The remainder of the negative reviews focus on the fact that Gwen doesn't actually explain what happened between her and Cass until well into the book. I mean, it can be assumed easily enough, but I do agree in that her explanation was kind of overdue. And in the fact that she was kind of an idiot, but hey, she was a high school junior. I think she's allowed to be stupid and misjudge people. Melodrama like this isn't exactly rare in regards to high school relationships. 

Also speaking of the plot, it was pretty unstructured up until the end, where everything kind of happened all at once and then was resolved by the epilogue a few chapters later. I didn't like that part as much. I kind of appreciated how unstructured the plot was because it reflected real life a little better (though not really) and then how everything was just nicely wrapped up by the end kind of felt like a cop-out. But it's also a standalone, so I'll give it that. 

What I Thought Was True was also kind of awkward to read in school, especially considering it's a romance book that portrays teenage relationships fairly accurately, but that's really my own fault. I should've thought that through a little more. There was nothing indecent (at least not in indecent detail) but there were definitely a few scenes that I was like "why did I decide to read this in a public spot where someone could read over my shoulder". 

As a side note, some grammatical / continuity errors managed to make it into the final copy of the book. They're not really bad, but there's at least two little continuity errors within scenes and at least one "I changed my sentence and forgot to switch the comma to a period" and a word with a letter left off. So yeah, in a book that's from a big publisher that's kind of a problem, but I assumed they were human mistakes made by the editing / publishing team. Those happen occasionally. They didn't really detract from the story. (And I've gotten a little too used to dealing with them from the past couple ebooks I've read.) 

I typed up all my sticky notes into a spreadsheet. 80% of them are just me appreciating Gwen and Cass's sass and the fact that Cass is a fellow "map geek".

TL;DR it's a good fluffy, character-driven book, but if you're looking for teenagers making smart romantic decisions or a strong plot, you're probably not gonna like it.