Since You’ve Been Gone – Morgan Matson

Since You’ve Been Gone – Morgan MatsonTitle: Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson
Publishing Info: May 6, 2014 by Source: Audible
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult
Find it on the web: Buy from Amazon // GoodreadsDate Completed: July 17, 2015
Related Posts: Amy & Roger's Epic Detour

It was Sloane who yanked Emily out of her shell and made life 100% interesting. But right before what should have been the most epic summer, Sloane just…disappears. All she leaves behind is a to-do list.On it, thirteen Sloane-inspired tasks that Emily would normally never try. But what if they could bring her best friend back?
Apple picking at night? Okay, easy enough.
Dance until dawn? Sure. Why not?
Kiss a stranger? Um...
Emily now has this unexpected summer, and the help of Frank Porter (totally unexpected), to check things off Sloane's list. Who knows what she’ll find?
Go skinny-dipping? Wait...what?

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SINCE YOU’VE BEEN GONE was actually my first Morgan Matson book (yes, yes, I know)!  I had purchased the audio a few weeks prior to reading it and when it was time to for a new audiobook and I happened to be in a contemporary mood, the timing was right to start SINCE YOU’VE BEEN GONE!

I really wasn’t sure what to expect. Having never read one of her books before, I was going in a little blind with no knowledge of Morgan Matson’s writing style or what might pass for a typical character or concept. All I knew was that she’s a fan-favorite and I felt a lot of pressure to enjoy the book (especially seeing it has a 4.21 rating on Goodreads which is pretty high), so when I started listening to the book and found myself struggling, I really started to worry.

I really thought I was going to be the black sheep on this book. I had a really hard time with the beginning, especially with the characters. I never made it to the point where I thought I would put the book down, but it was really just a middle-of-the-road contemporary read for about the entire first half. I really had a hard time with Emily and how awkward she was and I found her actions cringe-worthy to witness. Other characters didn’t quite click for me either. Emily’s parents seemed silly and like characterizations rather than real people. Collins was goofy and seemed like a bit too much for me and I really didn’t care for him either. And even though Sloane wasn’t physically present in the book at the time, the flashbacks to her interactions with Emily bothered me as well. The writing just didn’t work well for me throughout the first half and scenes felt forced instead of just playing out naturally. BUT the good thing was that I had plenty of friends who had enjoyed the book and promised me it would get better so despite my hesitations, I was ready for the book to improve!

And those friends turned out to be right! I finally found some cute moments between Emily and Frank about halfway through and really started to enjoy their friendship and whatever might be developing between them… then I started to enjoy their relationship even more and before I knew it, the whole book was finally taking shape. Characters really started to feel real instead of just a collection of traits on a page. Relationships were really blossoming — not just between Emily and Frank. I loved the new friendships that Emily was forming in Sloane’s absence and really all of the characters grew quite a bit. I was really impressed with how much each one had changed and felt so much more realistic, but I was sad that I had felt so disconnected from them in beginning. I felt like the growth was exponential but I had that lingering memory of how much they had annoyed me in the first half of the book.

I did enjoy the second half of the book but I just wish I had been able to feel those things in the beginning! Not to mention I felt like one scene was directly out of ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS (although it’s not that like scene hasn’t happened anywhere else… but I’m so ANNA-obsessed that I couldn’t NOT see it) and a bit of a stunt there at the end that was totally insane for someone Emily’s age (I wonder if there were any consequences for that…) but I just let it go and rolled with it.

I was very on the fence with how I felt about Emily and Sloane’s friendship. I honestly don’t really think I’ve had a friendship like that. A lot of my close friendships were a group of three of us (or more) and I feel like I didn’t have ONE best friend that I spent all of time with who was just MY best friend. Sometimes their friendship felt too clingy for me (mostly likely because I didn’t have the same experience so I didn’t quite relate) and I also didn’t like how Sloane felt so much more dominant than Emily (although I totally understand that). I felt like their friendship has some great moments and other times, I didn’t like it at all.

I guess you could say it was an interesting read for me! I actually kind of liked that my opinion on the book didn’t seem to align with so many others because I was able to have my own take on the book. Sometimes when I love the same book that everyone else loves, it isn’t that the book doesn’t deserve it but sometimes I feel like my opinion isn’t unique so it was fun to bounce my reactions off of other people and see how our feelings differed. I was hesitant in the beginning but upon finishing, I’m excited to read those other Matson books that I have on my shelves! I’m not sure they’re high-priority or that I will love them like everyone else loves her work but I’m also open to leaving my expectations at the door and seeing where the books take me!

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“The View from Goodreads” is a featured section in my reviews that I decided to incorporate! I tend to update my Goodreads status a LOT when I read — reactions, feelings, notes — so I thought it would be fun to share the sort of “reading process”! All status updates are spoiler-free (no specific plot points will be revealed) but will contain reactions to certain pages and/or characters!

since you've been gone goodreads

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Emily // Character Obsessions: Sloane, the list, trying new things, comfort zones.
I had a really hard time with Emily in the beginning. What’s funny is that at times, I think she reminded me of myself when I was her age… and maybe that’s why it was so painful to see how awkward she was! But I also feel like it’s very hard to read such awkwardness in the pages of a book. For some reason it just makes everything feel awkward and I think it had an effect on the writing for me which is a bummer. I really DID like how much she grew throughout the book, though. The progression felt natural and… actually… I think she needed to be without Sloane to see that it was possible. Sloane was the dominant personality in their friendship and anything daring that Emily would have done with her would just have been her acting under Sloane’s influence and safety net. Even though “the list” came from Sloane and they were her ideas, I think Emily was able to grow not only by taking chances and doing things to prove that she could be brave and have fun outside of her comfort zone but that she could really do things on her own and have friends with different kinds of encouragement and support.

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Kept Me Hooked On: Character growth. As much as I was irritated with the characters in the beginning, I was really impressed with how much they changed and grew throughout the course of the book! I really enjoyed where each one ended up at the close of the book.
Left Me Wanting More: Connection. I felt a bit sad that it took me so long to make that connection with the characters. The awkwardness put a damper on our relationship and I was just bummed that I didn’t really connect until the last half of the book!

Addiction Rating
Read it

This wouldn’t be a book to purchase for me, but I think it’s a good read! I really did like the messages about friendship in the end and though I was expecting it to more of a lesson revolving around Emily’s friendship with Sloane, I think it was much more pertinent to her friendship with Frank, Collins, and Dawn. It also was a great story of learning to stand up for yourself and really figure out who YOU are and not who you are with someone else.

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BOOKS LIKE SINCE YOU’VE BEEN GONE

(Click the cover to see my review!)

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Hi, I'm Brittany!
Hi, I'm Brittany!

I'm an avid reader, candle-maker, and audiobook lover! Here you'll find book reviews, fun blog posts, and my other loves of photography & craft beer!

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8 thoughts on “Since You’ve Been Gone – Morgan Matson

  1. Kate @ Mom's Radius

    I read this book last summer, and I can’t remember the details, but I rated it 5 stars. I thought the whole thing was cute and fun. I think I related a lot to Emily because I was the “follower” twin growing up. I went through that abandonment when my sister and I separated in college, so I enjoyed reading about Emily coming out of her shell.

    Reply
  2. Gwen Burke

    I really enjoyed reading your thoughts. I read this book back in March and it was my first Morgan Matson book as well. I found Emily to be super annoying for pretty much the entire thing. You were spot on with my feelings on her. As far as Sloane goes she ended up being one of my favs in this book. I’d love to get another book with her as the main. I did a review of this on my blog and I did one on my YouTube channel as well.
    As far as Matson’s other books I have since read Amy & Rogers Epic Detour which is by far my very fav book of hers. I love it so much! Road trips, playlists, it’s just the cutest. I love how it was written and set up. Morgan Matson took the road trip she wrote about and included pics from the road trip in this book. I would recommend reading this as your next Matson! I have also read Second Chance Summer. SCS was ok. It had so good points but for the most part I was reading it in hopes of it getting better, getting back to the main plot points and I felt it dragged a little bit. I also have to say it’s the only book that has made me cry though. That ending….Whew. I look forward to hear8ing your thought on other Matson books when you get around to them. In the meantime….Happy Reading!

    Reply
  3. Danielle @ Love at First Page

    I’m glad I read your review! I’m reading this soon – July has been a month of TBR reading – and with all the great reviews I’m expecting to LOVE this. But now I can maybe lower my expectations a bit. I am sorry you didn’t love it though! I hate that feeling. But I’m glad the second half picked up for you. 🙂

    Reply
  4. Inge @ Bookshelf Reflections

    I’m glad to see you ended up enjoying it after all! I wasn’t sure if you would after seeing your earlier status updates on Goodreads. I had the same problem — I had trouble getting into it at the beginning, and thought about DNFing for a while, but I pushed through and it rewarded me. I loved the relationships between Emily and her friends, it was really cute and realistic, and overall the book made me smile a lot. 🙂

    Great review! I do agree it’s nice to see a little variety in the reviews for this book.

    Reply
  5. Kristen@My Friends Are Fiction

    Hmm. I’m not sure I’ll read this one. I’m sad it took you half way through the book to realy click with it. I’ve heard such great things about this one but I think I’ll hold off a bit longer giving it a try. Great review!!

    Reply
  6. Cassi @ My Thoughts Literally

    I’ve seen a few people say the same thing about this book and Emily. I loved it. It was the book that made me want to try more contemporary novels. I do understand what you mean about Emily being awkward and it making you uncomfortable. I found those moments endearing but I usually like “unlikable” characters so I’m not a great barometer for that. But I did also love Frank and his relationship with Emily. I think that’s what surprised me most about this book because of how picky I am about romance. Great review and I’m glad you ended up liking it.

    Reply
  7. Kate @ Ex Libris

    I just bought this on audio, so I’m glad I came across your review! I have not read any Morgan Matson, either, although I have read the books she writes under Katie Finn. I’m glad it came together for you, in the end.

    Reply
  8. Cynthia @ Bingeing On Books

    I just read this one and I completely agree with you. For the first part of the book, it was only okay. There were so many people who absolutely loved it and I just didn’t see it at first. I am glad I stuck with it though. I ended up really enjoying it. I love the relationship with Frank! And yeah, there were times I didn’t really like the friendship between Sloane and Emily either. Great review.

    Reply

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