Title: This One Time With Julia
Author: David Lampson
Release date: February 2, 2012
Publisher: Razorbill
Pages: 232
Source: Publisher
Joe’s twin brother, Alvin, disappeared. And with him went Joe’s tenuous grip on real life. The rest of it: the road trip, the maybe-murder, the burned-down house–all of that came later.
At eighteen, Joe is stuck in limbo. Directionless and simple, he blows through his inheritance playing poker and eats only cheeseburgers, pizza, and guacamole. Then his twin brother, Alvin, disappears–and Julia, Alvin’s tempestuous girlfriend, takes Joe on a whirlwind road trip from L.A. to Tennessee. There, he’s thrust into the dysfunctional dynamic of her wealthy family. For the first time, Joe has a job. He has a suit he wears every day. And he’s in love with a crazy, beautiful girl who only talks honestly in her sleep. Joe’s so blinded by his seductive new life that he almost misses the truth about what happened to his twin…Maybe Joe can’t grow up–but he can love.
This One Time With Julia is one of the strangest books I have ever read and I do not mean that in a good way. Half the time I didn’t have a clue what was going on and when I finished the book I was left wondering what the heck the point of the book was.
Joe is a very weird boy. He is 18-years-old but he can’t read, has very little education, he lives on his older brother’s couch, and he is very naive. I almost wondered at times of he had some mental issues but it was never mentioned. Joe’s brothers, Alvin and Marcus, were not in the book very much but I did not like either. Alvin took advantage of Joe and Marcus was just plain mean to him. As for Julia, she was manipulative and really nothing special. I did not like her at all.
The plot never really went anywhere. Honestly there seemed to be no point to the book. There really wasn’t a conclusion, the story just ended. I’m still left wondering where the actual ending was.
Overall, This One Time With Julia is not a book I would recommend. Some people may enjoy it but it honestly made no sense to me. Definitely get this one from the library if you are at all interested.
not 4me
tnx4 the review
Awh, I hate when books are confusing. And when plots are going nowhere? I tend to put the book down, haha. I also can’t really enjoy a book if the characters are not likable. I’m sorry this book was such a miss for you, Katie! 🙁 I think I’ll pass on this one. Thank you for the honest review!
I completely agree with you! My review is very similar to yours. Most of the time I was reading I felt like my face was all scrunched up with a “huh!?” expression. lol
This one was on my TBR, but after hearing similar sentiments from other people I don’t think I’ll read it. I abhor books that seem to nowhere.
I was going to read this novel, but since most of the books I look for are from you and other bloggers, I would guess this book is not really worth checking out. Thanks for preventing me from wasting a few hours of my life 😀
I was excited for this, but it seems like a lot of people have similar feelings. Maybe I’ll get to other things instead. Thanks for the honest review!
Oh, no this book doesn’t sound like it holds much promise! I’m a bit confused by your 3 star review though, it sounded like a 2 star to me, LOL!
This could’ve been so good!
I can’t believe he couldn’t read – that’s kind of unrealistic.
Too bad none of the characters redeemed themselves.