It started with a wedding. And then there was a reception. There was a lot of drinking, and a lot of drugs. In hindsight, it probably was not the best idea they had ever had to drive that night in a drunken drug induced haze but they did.
And that is when they hit the girl.
For Carmen, Alice, and Nick, the accident is carried with them wherever they go, far into the future. The girl shows up in Alice’s paintings in the gallery…. a girl, wearing the same clothes she wore that fateful night…. a girl who Alice can not find closure for. Casey has memories of the girl she never knew and Nick all these years later still tries to hide inside a bottle.
How… in the flash of a wrong choice, that alters lives forever… HOW do you move on with out carrying the one?
When I first read the synopsis of Carry The One I could not wait to get my hands on it. A tragedy… an accident… and how a family moves on from something so terrible, so senseless, so their fault….
and so I listened to this on audio and…
let’s just say Carry The One was not what I had thought it would be. I was expecting a deeply involved novel that did carry the victim throughout the pages. That was not the case. In fact, the book is really more about the three siblings, Alice, Carmen, and Nick… and their lives. Alice paints and searches for love, but that is no different from what was happening prior to the accident. Carmen’s choices may have an underlying hint of the accident and a need for closure, but mostly she is just doing life, and Nick… well Nick was in trouble before the accident with his drug use and alcohol abuse and that remains the same throughout the book.
I hate to use the word disappointed, but that is what sums this one up for me. I really thought this book was going to show how one struggles to move on when the unthinkable happens and I really thought the center of the book was going to be about the little girl, Casey. To me, it was just a book about the lives of three people and day after day how they tried to get it right. The girl, is not mentioned much, but occasionally, yes.
Maybe I set myself up for failure on this one by having an entirely different idea of how this would play out. I wanted to like this, shoot… I wanted to love this.
I did not.
There are some interesting reviews going around about this book. Quite a few loved it. I think a few more found it an average read. Be sure to check out other opinions on Carry The One and if you have read this, please let me know in the comments and I will be happy to link up your review to mine.
Amazon Rating
Goodreads Review
Book Journey 
Sorry this one didn’t meet your expectations.
I wish it had Kathy, I really wanted to like this one. 🙂
Sorry it was a disapointment. Now that I know what the book really is all about, I may skip it too. I would have similar concerns as yours! Thanks for an interesting review.
Sure Harvee, I wish I could have given a more positive report.
i am 3/4 of the way done and i really don’t know why i’m still reading it…ithought howyou did….and it isn’t like that at all!!! the blurb is really misleading and i’m disappointed…will finish and hopefully something will ping with me. the only part i like is that i live in the chicago area so her references are fun for me
I do like references I can relate to Diana! There are some raving reviews out there I just didn’t connect as I had hoped. 🙂
I’ve been wanting to read this one…maybe I still will.
Thanks for the review, and I’m sorry you were disappointed.
I hope you like it more than me Laurel… 😀
Hmmmm. So it’s more of a coming of age novel and not a struggle to get on with our lives story. Well, I’ll probably try and read it anyway since I already have a copy.
Yeah…. but kind of both actually not that you mention it… hmmmm…. I hope you enjoy it Leslie. 😀
I ended up giving up on this one because the sex scenes were a bit… much. After reading your review, I think I would have been very disappointed if I had finished it.
Thanks for your candid thoughts…I would’ve expected more too…passing on this one!
Just didnt cut it for me 🙂
I gave up on this one early in because the sex was a bit much. I’m glad, because after your review, I think I would have been really disappointed.
That part does not get any better Carrie, that is pretty much throughout the entire book.
Interesting. I am where you were before you picked this one up, I think it sounds like exactly the thing I would love. But now I’m afraid I might find myself disappointed as well.
Check out some other reviews too Heather, I know some really liked it 😀
Sorry for the repeat comment – I thought my first one had disappeared into the ether.
No problem, I was digging them out of spam 😀 How weird that happened!
I actually had the same thoughts about the book that you had. That it would be more about the girl and the aftermath of the accident.
You are not the first to say they were disappointed.
I think I may pass on this one. Too many others I’m dying to jump into.
I hate to say it Rose, but knowing what I know now… it would have been a pass for me…
Yes…. too many books out there waiting to be read 😀
Interesting…you found it disappointing, huh? I also thought it sounded really good and have been hoping to read it, so I really appreciated your review – thanks!
Sue
I have seen mixed thoughts Sue… some really enjoyed, some are like mine… after listening to Weird Sisters, I think I can now put my finger on what I feel was missing….. (in both books)
I am totally with you on the “average” rating. The accident with the little girl is just something that happened – it really doesn’t play an integral role in the novel. And the characters – wow, really? Can any of them make any right choices? 🙂
Oh I am so glad you felt that way too Julie! Seriously I felt bad that I did not connect with the book! I have to read your review now! 😀