The Last Time We Were Us by Leah Konen

The Last Time We Were Us by Leah Konen

Release Date: May 10, 2016  

Publisher:  Katherine Tegen Books

Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 368

Summary:   A passionate summer love story about a girl, her childhood best friend recently released from juvie, and the small-town lies that have kept them apart. A teen romance debut with a dark edge.

Liz Grant is about to have the summer of her life. She and her friend MacKenzie are getting invited to all the best parties, and with any luck, Innis Taylor, the most gorgeous guy in Bonneville, will be her boyfriend before the Fourth of July.

Local teen convict released early.

Jason Sullivan wasn’t supposed to come back from juvie. A million years ago, he was her best friend, but that was before he ditched her for a different crowd. Before he attacked Innis’s older brother, leaving Skip’s face burned and their town in shock.

“Everything is not what you think.”

Liz always found it hard to believe what they said about Jason, but all of Bonneville thinks he’s dangerous. If word gets out she’s seeing him, she could lose everything. But what if there’s more to that horrible night than she knows? And how many more people will get hurt when the truth finally comes out?

“You’re the one person who believes in me.”

Leah Konen’s southern romance swelters with passion as it explores the devastating crush of lies, the delicate balance of power and perception, and one girl’s journey to find herself while uncovering the secrets of so many others.

My Thoughts: Honestly, I went into this one not knowing if I’d like it or not. I had heard some good things and some bad things about it.

I did find myself enjoying it throughout the story.

We are introduced to Liz who has always tried to the good girl. She has a mom, dad, an older sister. She has friends. She starts seeing a new guy named Inis. Inis is popular and everybody likes him. They think he’s a great guy. I liked him at first but as the story unfolded I just knew he wasn’t as perfect as everyone thought.

We are also introduced to Jason. Oh, sweet Jason. Jason made a mistake and has paid the price. Honestly, there was a lot more to the story than what we knew. But of course, Jason used to be Liz’s friend and she’s been told to stay as far away from him as she can. But that is kind of hard when his family still owns the house next door.

I knew there was going to be a lot to this story. It had a lot of depth and you really had to pay attention to the details.  I really liked Jason. I liked Liz but at times I wanted to ram some truth into her head.

I’m glad where the story ended up even though things weren’t peachy and perfect. It was raw and emotional.

Overall: I’d say this is probably more of a 3.5 cupcake rating. I liked it. I liked the plot but at times I felt like things went to slow but thats okay!

Cover:  I like it! Very romantic!

What I’d Give It: