ARC Review: Wrong in All the Right Ways by Tiffany Brownlee

Title: Wrong in All the Right Ways
Author: Tiffany Brownlee

Publisher: HarperTeen
Rating: 3/5 Stars
Hardcover, 366 Pages
Publication Date: July 17th, 2018

Summary: Everything in Emma's life has always gone according to her very careful plans. But things take a turn toward the unexpected when she falls in love for the first time with the one person in the world who’s off-limits–her new foster brother, the gorgeous and tormented Dylan McAndrews. Meanwhile, Emma’s AP English class is reading Wuthering Heights, and she’s been assigned to mimic Bronte’s style in an epistolary format. With no one to confide in, she’s got a lot to write about. Emma and Dylan try to constrain their romance to the page–for fear of threatening Dylan’s chances of being adopted into another home. But the strength of first love is all-consuming, and they soon get enveloped in a passionate, secretive relationship with a very uncertain outcome.

I received an advanced copy of this book courtesy of author Tiffany Brownlee in exchange for an honest review. I'm glad I did, because although I haven't read Wuthering Heights, this book's retelling definitely make me interested in the story. So without further ado, let's get into the review!

As the summary explains, Emma's about to get a new foster brother, and at first she isn't sure how she feels about it. But then she finds out that he's a teenager, in her grade, and that he's...really cute? And if she didn't know how she felt before, she definitely doesn't know how she feels now. Because before long, she and Dylan start to fall for each other, but that makes everything incredibly complicated...especially when Emma's parents have decided that they're going to officially adopt Dylan, which means they'll be siblings for real. Can their love last throughout all of this -- and can they manage to keep it a secret at the risk of destroying everything?

What I liked about this book was the fact that although I haven't read Wuthering Heights, that didn't hinder my ability to read this book or understand it as a retelling. While I'm sure that people who have read the book would understand subtle references to the original story, you definitely don't have to worry about not understanding this book if you haven't read the classic. Plus, there are a lot of times where Emma will describe certain scenes that happen in Wuthering Heights, so you aren't left totally in the dark. And the parallels between Emma and Catherine's lives were very evident, from the few examples I was given! 

My favorite character in this book was definitely Karmin. She was funny and sweet and loyal, and such a good best friend to Emma, even when she wasn't necessarily the greatest best friend back (which is something that I'll get into in a second). I really like how she stuck with Emma through thick and thin and helped her enjoy the rest of her senior year, even when it felt like the rest of her life was becoming a mess. I also really shipped Emma and Karmin's brother Keegan, even though the ending of the book wasn't exactly what I wanted. (But no spoilers here! Read the book to find out!)

Shockingly enough, I really disliked Dylan and Emma's characters in this story. I thought Dylan was really being a jerk at time, with his totally hot and cold moods. And especially the part about where he tried to guilt Emma into staying nearby for college...like, no. Emma still held her ground on that front (to a degree), but the fact that he was even trying to get her to do that wasn't okay with me. He was really sweet at some moments but a complete jerk in others, which is why I thought Emma would've been way happier with Keegan. As for Emma herself, I thought she made some really not-good decisions sometimes, as I will describe in the next paragraph, but there are spoilers involved, so skip it if you don't want the story ruined for you!

(SPOILERS HERE! Skip to the next paragraph to avoid them!) I really was frustrated with Emma when she let Dylan drive away after taking those pills, especially because of the accident it caused. I get that Dylan wanted her to leave him alone, but YOU DON'T LET SOMEONE DRIVE UNDER THE INFLUENCE LIKE THAT!!! If he really wants his space, fine. Take his keys before you leave. But don't let him drive away intoxicated, then go take a shower and a nap and wake up later and be like "huh, I wonder what happened to him???" Like no, girl. That isn't how it works. That's being a bad girlfriend. A bad sister. A bad friend. Just a bad person in general. Argh. That part of the book really frustrated me for sure and was probably one of the main reasons I wasn't a fan of Emma. Safe words are safe words, I get it. Dylan wanted his space. But that doesn't mean you can't swipe the keys when you leave, or at least tell someone. But instead, she just took a shower and took a nap on the couch. 

However, just because I wasn't crazy about Dylan and Emma doesn't mean that this book was bad. I enjoyed reading it, and I read almost 200 pages in a single day because I found myself hooked and unable to put it down. If Wuthering Heights is anywhere near as dramatic at this story, then it's something I'm considering picking up. This story had a lot of twist and turns that kept the momentum, and that made for a really good reading experience.

Overall, I enjoyed Wrong in All the Right Ways. If you're in the mood for a good retelling that will hook you and capture your attention until the end, then I'd definitely recommend this one! I'm incredibly grateful that Tiffany was kind enough to send me a copy to review, and I'll definitely be passing this book along to some friends of mine that enjoy retellings!