*Review: S. Walden*
Hi Brats :)
It's not very often that I come across a book that I will feel compelled to review, but this book? Well, it was just that damn good....
Cadence Miller is a good girl. She just happens to make one terrible mistake her junior year in high school which costs her ten months in juvenile detention. Now a senior, she’s lost everything: her best friend, the trust of her parents, driving privileges, Internet access. It’s a lonely existence.
But there is one bright spot: Mark Connelly, her very cute, very off-limits 28-year-old calculus teacher. She falls hard for him—a ridiculous schoolgirl crush headed nowhere. She can’t help it. He’s the only good thing at Crestview High. She doesn’t expect him to reciprocate her feelings. How inappropriate, right? But he does. And he shows her.
And that’s when her life goes from bad to good. My Review Let me start by mentioning the things that have compelled me to write this review - firstly, the topic is somewhat controversial/taboo. Secondly, the author, S. Walden, has received some demeaning reviews calling her a 'Sex Pervert' on platforms like Amazon and thirdly, S. Walden has refused to stop writing what SHE wants to write simply because readers don't like it. So lets begin... Good is the story about a seventeen year old girl, Cadence, who spends 10 months in Juvie after making a "big mistake." (Now I'd like to point out that this has nothing to do with the relationship with her teacher that develops a little later on...) “I was never allowed to make a mistake, and when I finally did, I paid the ultimate price.” When she returns home, her parents continue to punish her & and soon, she finds herself ostracised, shunned and bullied by other students, as well as the rest of her small community. It is at this point that her calculus teacher, Mr Connelly, starts showing an interest that starts out as 'concern' and becomes more... Cadence finds herself with conflicting feelings - on one hand she feels something for Mr Connelly, and on the other, she knows it's wrong to have 'romantic' feelings for a teacher. “I was perfectly content to harbor a secret crush on my teacher – one I knew would go absolutely nowhere. It was one thing to fantasize about an inappropriate relationship. It was quite another to actually pursue it. And he was pursuing me.” This begs the question: Is it wrong that she's a student who has feelings for her teacher OR is it the fact that she's 17 and he's 28?? Let's explore shall we? When you hear about couples with big age differences, it's often a non-issue, especially when it's only 10 years. But now we have a 17 year old student, who has very real, very romantic and very forbidden feelings for a 28 year old teacher who happens to reciprocate those feelings. In fact, HE is the one who pursues Cadence... This in itself raised a few more 'issues' - It was suggested that he was a predator, that he took advantage of a young, naïve, innocent girl. But one should consider the ability of a 17 year old to make her own decisions, especially after the "big mistake' that landed her in juvie. THAT was a decision SHE made, there was no coercion or manipulation in that situation that made her do it. She had the opportunity to end it when Mr Connelly started pursuing her, but she didn't... “What I’m doing is wrong… Being with you. Sneaking around. Lying. Letting you do things to me. It’s wrong, and I feel guilty.”
“Do you really think it’s wrong that we’re together? Or do you think it’s wrong because that’s what you’ve been taught?”
There's another factor that played an important role in the development of this story, and that is Religion. It was brought in throughout the story, but was taken out of context by many who read the book. It wasn't about Christianity as a whole, and whether or not it condoned this kind of relationship - it was about Cadence's religion on a personal level and how she dealt with how she felt versus what she was taught to believe. It was a personal conflict... The author explains this as follows...
"She’s grappling with her private faith, and the reader gets to hear that. I made her Christianity an important part of her personal identity on purpose. I wanted my story to be layered. I didn’t want Good to be all about “What if we get caught?!” That’s exciting, but that’s been done. A lot. I wanted a heroine who not only worries about getting caught, but worries about what a relationship like that will do to her soul. I wanted her to struggle with her faith, to question it, because that’s how readers can see her growth."
So yes, there are a few 'controversial' issues that come up in this book, but none of them were dealt with disrespectfully, or in a way that is intended to offend readers. But in all honesty, I loved that this book pushed my boundaries and forced me to think differently about this. One thing that stood out was Cadence's need to please her parents and get them to trust her again. The irony, however, was that when she started lying to them and sneaking around with Mr Connelly, they started trusting her, and ultimately started treating her the way they had before...
“I worked for an entire month since my release from juvie to get back into my parents’ good graves… The irony was that I didn’t need to show either of them I’d chanced because I hadn’t. I’d always been a good girl, even when I made that mistake. Yes, it was a really terrible mistake… but it didn’t alter who I was. I didn’t suddenly overnight become a drug addict or a career criminal. I made one bad choice that branded me for life, at least in my parent’s eyes.”
Do I think her parents were scared for their daughter? Yes. Do I think they played a role in some of the 'bad' decisions Cadence made? Maybe. I'm of the opinion that the more open a parent-child relationship is, the less likely it is that a child will feel the need to do something behind a parents back. We live in a day and age where children are exposed to so much 'more' than their parents, and this has required parents to be far more proactive with their parenting. Would I want my children having sex in their teens? HELL NO! Can I stop them? HELL NO! But can I prepare them? Can I educate them? YES. Do I want them to be too afraid of disappointing me to talk to me about these kinds of things? NO.
I loved how this book made me feel things I shouldn't, and had me rooting for these 2 people when 'what I've been taught to believe' had me saying "But it's wrong!"... But is it really??? Love is not black and white. Ever. We can't choose who we fall in love with, nor can we be 'manipulated' into loving someone. Sometimes it just happens.
I think S. Walden is a FANTASTIC author and her ability to stay true to herself is awe-inspiring. It took courage to write this and I don't think she could've done a better job. I am eagerly awaiting the 2nd book (There's a cliffy in this book but not a relationship cliffy.) and really hope that Summer will give Cadence and Mark the happy ending I feel they deserve - if I have ever wanted a couple to beat the odds, it's this one! <3 ~ Tam
*For more on the author's response to the critique of 'Good', visit her blog HERE *
*Buy GOOD on Amazon*
It's not very often that I come across a book that I will feel compelled to review, but this book? Well, it was just that damn good....
Cadence Miller is a good girl. She just happens to make one terrible mistake her junior year in high school which costs her ten months in juvenile detention. Now a senior, she’s lost everything: her best friend, the trust of her parents, driving privileges, Internet access. It’s a lonely existence.
But there is one bright spot: Mark Connelly, her very cute, very off-limits 28-year-old calculus teacher. She falls hard for him—a ridiculous schoolgirl crush headed nowhere. She can’t help it. He’s the only good thing at Crestview High. She doesn’t expect him to reciprocate her feelings. How inappropriate, right? But he does. And he shows her.
And that’s when her life goes from bad to good. My Review Let me start by mentioning the things that have compelled me to write this review - firstly, the topic is somewhat controversial/taboo. Secondly, the author, S. Walden, has received some demeaning reviews calling her a 'Sex Pervert' on platforms like Amazon and thirdly, S. Walden has refused to stop writing what SHE wants to write simply because readers don't like it. So lets begin... Good is the story about a seventeen year old girl, Cadence, who spends 10 months in Juvie after making a "big mistake." (Now I'd like to point out that this has nothing to do with the relationship with her teacher that develops a little later on...) “I was never allowed to make a mistake, and when I finally did, I paid the ultimate price.” When she returns home, her parents continue to punish her & and soon, she finds herself ostracised, shunned and bullied by other students, as well as the rest of her small community. It is at this point that her calculus teacher, Mr Connelly, starts showing an interest that starts out as 'concern' and becomes more... Cadence finds herself with conflicting feelings - on one hand she feels something for Mr Connelly, and on the other, she knows it's wrong to have 'romantic' feelings for a teacher. “I was perfectly content to harbor a secret crush on my teacher – one I knew would go absolutely nowhere. It was one thing to fantasize about an inappropriate relationship. It was quite another to actually pursue it. And he was pursuing me.” This begs the question: Is it wrong that she's a student who has feelings for her teacher OR is it the fact that she's 17 and he's 28?? Let's explore shall we? When you hear about couples with big age differences, it's often a non-issue, especially when it's only 10 years. But now we have a 17 year old student, who has very real, very romantic and very forbidden feelings for a 28 year old teacher who happens to reciprocate those feelings. In fact, HE is the one who pursues Cadence... This in itself raised a few more 'issues' - It was suggested that he was a predator, that he took advantage of a young, naïve, innocent girl. But one should consider the ability of a 17 year old to make her own decisions, especially after the "big mistake' that landed her in juvie. THAT was a decision SHE made, there was no coercion or manipulation in that situation that made her do it. She had the opportunity to end it when Mr Connelly started pursuing her, but she didn't... “What I’m doing is wrong… Being with you. Sneaking around. Lying. Letting you do things to me. It’s wrong, and I feel guilty.”
“Do you really think it’s wrong that we’re together? Or do you think it’s wrong because that’s what you’ve been taught?”
There's another factor that played an important role in the development of this story, and that is Religion. It was brought in throughout the story, but was taken out of context by many who read the book. It wasn't about Christianity as a whole, and whether or not it condoned this kind of relationship - it was about Cadence's religion on a personal level and how she dealt with how she felt versus what she was taught to believe. It was a personal conflict... The author explains this as follows...
"She’s grappling with her private faith, and the reader gets to hear that. I made her Christianity an important part of her personal identity on purpose. I wanted my story to be layered. I didn’t want Good to be all about “What if we get caught?!” That’s exciting, but that’s been done. A lot. I wanted a heroine who not only worries about getting caught, but worries about what a relationship like that will do to her soul. I wanted her to struggle with her faith, to question it, because that’s how readers can see her growth."
So yes, there are a few 'controversial' issues that come up in this book, but none of them were dealt with disrespectfully, or in a way that is intended to offend readers. But in all honesty, I loved that this book pushed my boundaries and forced me to think differently about this. One thing that stood out was Cadence's need to please her parents and get them to trust her again. The irony, however, was that when she started lying to them and sneaking around with Mr Connelly, they started trusting her, and ultimately started treating her the way they had before...
“I worked for an entire month since my release from juvie to get back into my parents’ good graves… The irony was that I didn’t need to show either of them I’d chanced because I hadn’t. I’d always been a good girl, even when I made that mistake. Yes, it was a really terrible mistake… but it didn’t alter who I was. I didn’t suddenly overnight become a drug addict or a career criminal. I made one bad choice that branded me for life, at least in my parent’s eyes.”
Do I think her parents were scared for their daughter? Yes. Do I think they played a role in some of the 'bad' decisions Cadence made? Maybe. I'm of the opinion that the more open a parent-child relationship is, the less likely it is that a child will feel the need to do something behind a parents back. We live in a day and age where children are exposed to so much 'more' than their parents, and this has required parents to be far more proactive with their parenting. Would I want my children having sex in their teens? HELL NO! Can I stop them? HELL NO! But can I prepare them? Can I educate them? YES. Do I want them to be too afraid of disappointing me to talk to me about these kinds of things? NO.
I loved how this book made me feel things I shouldn't, and had me rooting for these 2 people when 'what I've been taught to believe' had me saying "But it's wrong!"... But is it really??? Love is not black and white. Ever. We can't choose who we fall in love with, nor can we be 'manipulated' into loving someone. Sometimes it just happens.
I think S. Walden is a FANTASTIC author and her ability to stay true to herself is awe-inspiring. It took courage to write this and I don't think she could've done a better job. I am eagerly awaiting the 2nd book (There's a cliffy in this book but not a relationship cliffy.) and really hope that Summer will give Cadence and Mark the happy ending I feel they deserve - if I have ever wanted a couple to beat the odds, it's this one! <3 ~ Tam
*For more on the author's response to the critique of 'Good', visit her blog HERE *
*Buy GOOD on Amazon*
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