Goodreads Blurb:
At seventeen, Trinity McCabe has already made enough mistakes to fill a lifetime. Especially the one where she got high, drove a car, and almost killed a dog. And then let her friend Aidan take the blame.
She’s clean now and desperate to fix the messes she’s made, but first she’s going to have to get out of her pajamas.
As Trinity struggles to stop sleepwalking through life, she faces the painful, tingling sensation of waking up. It’s sometimes embarrassing (she really didn’t want to have lunch with Aidan’s mom), sometimes terrifying (group therapy is beyond intimidating), and sometimes, amazingly enough, pretty romantic (who’d have though Aidan would be such a great kisser?)
Trin is lucky, though—luckier than she deserves, she’s sure—and she doesn’t travel this road alone. Her family, her therapist, and her new friends are all pulling for her. And it turns out, some of them have made pretty big mistakes, too.
But before she can embrace her new life completely, Trinity has to be forgiven by the one person who is holding out the hardest: herself. It’s not easy changing everything, especially when you don’t think you deserve a second chance. Trinity might make an even bigger mess of things before she figures that out.
When the smoke clears on her latest disaster, will anyone still be standing there?
My Review:
When Liz came to me and presented me this book, I didn't have any expectations. I honestly only accepted it because I truly loved the Brenna Blixen novels. As busy as I was, it took me way too long to get to reading it, until now.
The book started out with Trinity who was deemed a sleepwalker of life. She had a terrible past where she made mistakes and hurt other people in the process. When she finally had her recovery, she felt so bad about herself and for how she made her family feel that most of the time, she chose to stay in her snowman pajamas and mope. It wasn't until she decided to check in Aidan that her life started to change.
Aidan was the guy who took the blame for her mistakes and paid for it in juvenile detention. She was surprised that Aidan didn't hate her. She kept telling herself that she deserved it. Long story short, she looked up to him like some kind of idol. She continued to run away from him despite his efforts to communicate with her and make her understand that what she did was not as bad as she thought.
When she was finally ready to stop running, that's when everything changed. She and Aidan had some sort of role reversal. Aidan started running and she started chasing. Turned out, Aidan was not who she thought he was. He wasn't the perfect guy with the pine and licorice scent that she loved. He was weak-willed and he made mistakes just like everyone else.
And then, there was Ruth. She was the awkward girl in English class and Trinity's new best friend. She also had a rough past but turned out to be such an amazing person. I LOVE how she would start to "fix" things when she got angry. In general, she just liked to keep busy so she would always organize Trinity's room when she was around.
Finally, there was Christian. He was Trinity's super awesome brother. I thought of him as a rockstar but he wasn't really described as one in the book. Nonetheless, I think he was absolutely amazing and adorable, and made amazing pancakes!
Forgiving Trinity was truly a literary roller coaster ride. I would recommend it. There's a lot to learn from reading about people who made mistakes and struggled to believe that they deserved forgiveness, too.
Other personal comments:
Other personal comments:
- I love how their love symbol is an armadillo!
- Aidan turned his life around because of his love for Trinity.
- I want a best friend like Ruth!
- "Double Parent Hugmonster Moment"
- Just like the Brenna Blixen novels, Forgiving Trinity induced memory of my past. Liz was seriously spying on me!
- When Trinity told Aidan that they will be together, just not now, I thought she was extremely strong and admirable.
Check out awesome quotes/excerpts that I loved from the book!
Trinity: "I was wondering if I could ask you about Marcus."
Christian: "Shoot," he says then whips his head around to look at me. "You're not getting some weird crush on him, are you? Because I can't stomach that, Trin. That's just not cool."
Trinity: "No! I wanted to know how you two became friends."
Christian: "He traded me an Anakin Skywalker card for a Jar Jar Binks."
I'm standing in the middle of my room wishing I had something to occupy my hands with. Maybe something like Aidan Achelles and his crazy cow licks and wild tongue. With that thought in mind, I walk over to him and smooth his hair down with my hand. It bounces back up. I smooth it again. The same. I lick my palm and start smoothing it down, but stop when I see Aidan's face.
"Did that just gross you out?" A few minutes ago, we were swapping saliva, but suddenly, this feels more intimate.
"No. I'm obviously not grossed out by your spit, Trin. How about the dance? It's Friday."
"It doesn't have to be a date right?"
"No. Just two friends who swap a lot of spit going to a dance."
Aidan: "My dad is really into quilting." I gave him a look. "What? A guy can't quilt? I'm actually really decent with a needle and thread."
Christian: "So many people want to play, but they never bother to pick up a guitar. Or when they try one lesson and aren't Jimi Hendrix, they give up. At least you're still massacring songs."
Christian: "You should play the song. We'll do a special cover. I'll play with you. What do you say?"
Trinity: "Are you serious? After you just fell off the bed laughing at me because I'm the worst player in the world? I'm a joke."
Christian: "You're not. C'mon. It'll be fun. I'll play really loud. C'mon, it'll be cool. Live a little."
Trinity: "All right, I'll do it. But don't cry to me when your audience runs away screaming."
Christian: (covers his eyes and moans) "This is going to be so bad!"
Trinity: "Christian!"
There are a lot of weapons in the world of cooking. I wonder what the culinary fatality rate is.
On the night of the first cooking class, I consider pretending to have a strained finger from too much guitar playing, but Mom looks so happy and ready, I can't disappoint her. Plus that, if I put the brakes on this whole master plan, Ruth will murder me in cold blood. I'm not tricked by her milk-maid innocent face; she's lethal when you cross her.
Ruth doesn't bother asking my opinion about anything that has to do with the way I look; she has spoken, and her word is clearly the total, unarguable law.
Dr. Kohl (therapist): "I want you to keep in mind that healing can be a very painful, uncomfortable thing, and sometimes we lash out at those we love the most. And remember, if caring for Aidan ever starts to take away from caring for Trinity, you need to take a big step back, without guilt. Your health and well being is what you need to protect first and foremost. Is that clear?
"Trin, that's a fantastic costume. Very Eastern!"
"Thanks, Dad. What are you again?"
"Your dad. That's scary enough."
Question for my readers: Would you be able to befriend someone who had a dark past? Be honest :)