Goose by Dawn O’Porter
Genre: Contemporary, Coming Of Age
Published by: Hot Key Books
Pages: 280
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★
Where to Find: Goodreads | Author | Amazon

I initially picked up ‘Goose’ because one of the main characters discovered religion, and I was interested in reading about that subject matter, as I think religion isn’t really something that’s dealt with a lot in the YA genre. Also, the characters were about to go off to university, and it was supposedly a tale of friendship. Being in that situation myself, I was looking forward to a possibly very relatable read. But, alas, if this book wasn’t under 250 pages, I wouldn’t have finished it. Here’s why.

Characters
I knew what I was getting from the blurb. But Renee and Flo were different to how I imagined them. Renee was ready just to have some fun, and I really didn’t relate to her adult situations or mindset. Flo, the character who finds her faith, was the more likely prospect to be my favourite of the two, but I didn’t like either of them. As much as Flo was different and interesting for exploring faith, and how it made her felt, she was just as adventurous as Renee in bars, and was addled with the desire to have a boyfriend and everything that entails. I guess, because the only other book I’ve read with religious characters is ‘Clearwater Crossing’, by Laura Peyton Roberts, I was expected Flo to be a denim-skirt-wearing-cupcake-baking kind of girl. When she didn’t live up to that I was disappointed.

Friendship Dynamic
It’s a cliche within the genre to have friends that are complete opposites, when in reality, Flo and Renee wouldn’t even speak to each other, they had so little in common. I’m very much an advocate of feeling like how much you like and depend on a friend being mutual and if you feel unwanted, finding a friend that would actually accept you. I’m just fed up of reading about unequal relationships, where you can’t share what you’re actually feeling.

Plot
I didn’t realise that ‘Goose’ was a sequel to ‘Paper Aeroplanes’, which I haven’t read. (Kind of glad I haven’t, really.) There were lots of little reminders of what happened in the first book, though, so I wasn’t at a loss, and won’t pick up the next one because I know all the plot twists and secrets and worries.
For ‘Goose’, the plot just seemed like a weird patchwork of events. The character’s families and situations were so far-fetched, it was hard to believe they were real. Some characters were just names while others held the spotlight, and the imbalance of events was just weird, so I put the book down.

Overall, I only gave ‘Goose’ one star. Most of the content didn’t sit well with me and was uncomfortable to read. I didn’t like the situations the characters were in, and that pretty much sealed my low opinion of the book. A lack of comfort and enjoyments equals a lack of stars.