In the follow-up to Abbi Glines’s #1 New York Times bestseller Until Friday Night–which bestselling author Kami Garcia called “tender, honest, and achingly real”–three teens from a small southern town are caught in a dramatic love triangle. Willa can’t erase the bad decisions of her past that led her down the path she’s on now. But she can fight for forgiveness from her family. And she can … her family. And she can protect herself by refusing to let anyone else get close to her.
High school quarterback and town golden boy Brady used to be the best of friends with Willa–she even had a crush on him when they were kids. But that’s all changed now: her life choices have made her a different person from the girl he used to know.
Gunner used to be friends with Willa and Brady, too. He too is larger than life and a high school football star–not to mention that his family basically owns the town of Lawton. He loves his life, and doesn’t care about anyone except himself. But Willa is the exception–and he understands the girl she’s become in a way no one else can.
As secrets come to light and hearts are broken, these former childhood friends must face the truth about growing up and falling in love…even if it means losing each other forever.more
Gunner was not my favorite character, but now I can understand him better. I just want hug him now. I wouldn’t even be able to imagine the guilt of living through the trauma of what the Will character went through even if it wasn’t her fault.
I am loving this series! The picturesque town of Lawton with it’s perfect families and excellent football has some dirty little secrets. Some of the nasty has come in this story and I have a feeling there’s more to come.
<3
This is the second book in The Field Party series and boy it was so very different from the first. This book centered around Brady, Gunner and Willa but was mostly Willa and Gunner’s story. The steam level on this one was much less than the first however I believe that was intentional due to the truth bombs dropped throughout the discovering of Willa and Gunner’s six years apart. I can’t tell you how many times I stopped and reread what I just read to make sure I actually read what I thought I just read. Yes that was confusing but that is where this story took me! There were several times I just sat there with my jaw on the floor in utter disbelief of the situation. I cannot wait to read book three, I mean where do the characters go from here??
Just like “Until Friday Night”, the first book in this series, Abbi touches on very important life issues that make the characters relatable. While some of the teenagers in this story face everyday teenage issues such as a crush, what to wear for a party or being part of the popular crowd, Willa and Gunner face issues that they shouldn’t be facing at their age; they face issues that even some adults don’t experience in their lifetime. Gunner, Willa and Brady were best friends since they were kids. They spent all their time together, however, Willa’s friendship with Gunner was different that her friendship with Brady. With Gunner, Willa could always be herself and share her deepest secrets with him. Willa lived with her grandmother who was the caretaker of Gunner’s home. When Willa was 11 years old her mother took her to a different state to be part of her new family. Leaving let Gunner empty because she was truly his best friend.
After six years Willow returns to live with her grandmother, who lives in a small house on Lawton Property. Willow isn’t the girl who left this small town. Feeling as if she was never part of her mother’s family, Willow made bad choices that ultimately led her down a tragic path resulting in the death of her best friend’s little sister and her best friend.
Gunner is popular and rich. His family is powerful. From the outside Gunner has it all – looks, popularity, girls lining up to be with him, money, big house, etc. The reality is just like Willa, Gunner has always felt as an outsider in his own family. Growing up he never received love from his mother and father. HIs older brother got all of the attention. Gunner hated his life. All of the hurt in his life caused him to be apprehensive about love. For Gunner, love only resulted in pain and hurt.
When Willa returns to Lawton her friendship with Gunner continues to develop in a more in-depth aspect. They become each other’s confidant. As Gunner’s family secrets are revealed, he realizes why his father hated him so much. As one secret is revealed others follow. Eventually Gunner finds out that he is the sole heir of Lawton. Willa and Gunner develop a trust and reveal their secrets to one another. As their friendship and trust continues to develop they realize that they are in love.
Again, this isn’t a typical teen book. It addressed issues of infidelity, rape, abuse, drug use and death. Gunner and Willa were victims of their own parents secrets and betrayals. Both are strong characters and survivors. This was a great read.
This review MAY contain spoilers.
Compared to the first book in this series, this one felt like it was lacking something. I really loved the first book of this series and I was fairly shocked when I didn’t love this one as much. I certainly enjoyed it, but it didn’t wow me as much as the first book did.
I think that the differences between Until Friday Night and Under the Lights lie in a few areas. The first thing that I noticed was most of the story seemed to take place outside of school or school functions. And for a book series centered around high school football, it seemed odd. I was in the mood for a high school story and I didn’t feel like I got that. The majority of the story centers around the drama surrounding the two main characters’ family and personal lives. The other part of the story was the romance, which was a love triangle between childhood friends.
Another difference was the lack of a family support system. Granted, this was one of the issues that each of the main characters had, but I felt like the author could have included more support from friends. I know that the way the two main characters confided in each other was a way that they grew close and fell in love, but they could have still done that with the support of friends. It felt a little unrealistic that Gunner would not have confided in Brady about ANYTHING that was going on in his home life. And since he didn’t, what does that say about their friendship?
While the first thirty percent of the book felt way too slowly paced, once the drama started coming out things started to pick up. And I have to admit that the drama was shocking and definitely compelled me to read more. I was not expecting the way that all the drama unfolded, which I appreciated. I love when I can’t see the twists coming in a story.
I really liked the journey that the two main characters face. They both have their own demons to conquer and they find themselves doing so with help from the other. That being said, I didn’t feel overly connected to the characters as I did in the first book. I felt like they could have used more development in terms of depth. They had great backstories, but that isn’t all that makes a character relatable.
Okay, that ending was pretty uneventful and disappointing. After everything that happens in the story, I was expecting something more. I did like seeing the scene at the end from when Gunner and Willa were children, but I needed more of them in the present. I needed an ending with more finality. There wasn’t enough closure.
Overall, I enjoyed this book but it did not live up to the first book for me. This book left me feeling like something was missing. That something special that makes a book stand out to you when you read it. It has a decent story and likable characters, but the magic was missing. I still recommend this series to those that enjoy small town YA stories. I’m definitely continuing the series with After the Game, and I am hoping that Brady’s story wows me where this one did not.
(4.5 stars)
This quickly became one of my favorite books by Abbi Glines. Willa returns to Lawton after a six year absence. Her two childhood best friends, Gunner and Brady, barely recognize her. Willa once thought her heart belonged to Brady but her and Gunner both have a darkness in them that bonds then. My only “complaints” would be 1) that I need more of Willa and ….. I felt they ended up together and a few sentences later it was over and that 2) I thought the 6yr ago flashback was put in an odd spot. I would’ve much more preferred an epilogue.
Loved it
I’m a big fan of Abbi Glines books. This is her most recent release and it really great to pick up around this time of the year. With it being the start of school launching on to us this comes around the same tie as that. A great recommend from me.