[Book Review] When We Were Worthy by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen

When We Were Worthy

by

Marybeth Mayhew Whalen

Blurb:

"When the sound of sirens cuts through a cool fall night, the small town of Worthy, Georgia, hurtles from triumph to tragedy. Just hours before, they'd watched the Wildcats score a winning touchdown. Now, they're faced with the deaths of three cheerleaders--their promising lives cut short in a fatal crash. And the boy in the other car--the only one to survive--is believed to be at fault. As rumors begin to fly and accusations spin, allegiances form and long-kept secrets emerge. At the center of the whirlwind are four women, each grappling with loss, regret, shame, and lies: Marglyn, a grieving mother; Darcy, whose son had been behind the wheel; Ava, a substitute teacher with a scandalous secret; and Leah, a cheerleader who should have been in the car with her friends, but wasn't. If the truth comes out, will it bring redemption--or will it be their downfall?"

My Review:

When We Were Worthy is the SheReads book for September! This book is written by Marybeth Whalen, who is one of the cofounders of www.shereads.org, of which I am a reviewer for. Marybeth has a way of writing people. It's so fun to delve into her worlds because the characters come to life on the page. It's the drama, though. Oh, the drama! Do normal neighborhoods have this much drama? In this book, Marybeth takes an unfortunate event (one that's unfortunately not that uncommon) and then she allows the reader the view the event from several women's viewpoints. This was one sticky point for me; I could not keep these women straight for the life of me. Every time I got to a new chapter I had to go back and figure out who this woman was and how she fit in the story. I'm not sure why, since they're all very different, but I had a hard time with this. Once I figured out which woman was which though, the story and the drama intrigued me. I couldn't put the book down because I had to know what would happen next. At first I thought I related to Ava because she was a substitute at the school, and she had little children, and her family was very important to her. Oh yeah, and then I learned her little secret, and I decided I didn't relate to her much at all. As the story unfolds, you learn more about each woman, her past, and her present situation, and you watch her growth through the rest of the book. None of us like these trials we have in life, but trials make us grow stronger, and they help us learn vital things about ourselves and others. It was also interesting to watch the men in these women's lives. Some of them learned and grew better because of it, and some of them took wrong turns. Trials also help us put our lives in perspective and help us to focus on our priorities. Or, they can send us spinning out of control, causing us to lose what is most important to us. I think it's important not to allow the latter to happen. Use the trials in your life to help you grow and strengthen your talents, and to focus on what's really important in life. Ok, I'm getting a little more philosophical than I thought I would with this review. Oops! Sorry! Can you tell I've been going through a little adversity myself lately? Anyway, even though it's a tragic situation, I enjoyed the book. I loved delving into the world of Worthy, Georgia. I thought the book was well written and the characters were very well developed. I enjoyed this book a lot.

Here's the trailer for the book:

Rating: R (This book is not appropriate for younger readers. There is at least one "f" word, and there is some other profanity, but not much. There are some very adult themes in this book, along with a rape.)

Recommendation: Adult

Disclosure: I did receive a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.