Come As You Are by Jennifer Haupt is a recommended novel that is part family drama, part coming-of-age story.

Zane and Skye meet as creative, lonely young teens, 14 and 12, and become best friends. As Zane is the lead singer for his band, the two become part of Seattle’s grunge scene in the early ’90s and dream of moving to LA. Then an accident happens to Skye's sister that totally changes their world. The two become lovers, Skye becomes pregnant and they leave their homes and any support system behind. Now, ten years later Zane has been long gone for years, Skye is a single mother to daughter Montana (Tana) and is newly engaged to Aaron. The Skye's estranged father dies, Zane calls her, and she decides to finally return to Seattle after a long absence.

The narrative unfolds through a dual timeline, alternating between the early 90's in Seattle and the present, in 2002, in New Mexico. There are also flashbacks. Often I appreciate novels that use alternating timelines, but the plot device wasn't entirely successful in this novel. Perhaps it was the number of transitions between the earlier time period and 2002, as well as flashbacks, that made this narrative device seem an overly confusing ploy rather than a good choice to propel the plot forward. After sticking with the novel, it was easier to just go along with the writing choice in order to find out what happens.

Many readers will be entranced by the depiction of the early grunge scene in Seattle. Really, much of this novel consists of characters coming-of-age while all repeatedly making bad choices and bad decisions as they deal with family drama. That can be entertaining whether you find the characters appealing or not. The characters can be a bit frustrating because of their choices, but, then, much of that is due to immaturity. The ending wasn't entirely believable for me, however, plenty of readers are going to enjoy Come As You Are.
Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Central Avenue Publishing via NetGalley.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2022/12/come-as-you-are.html ( )

This is the second book I have read by author, Jennifer Haupt. I am not disappointed. In fact, I am looking forward to reading her next book. As soon as I started reading this book, I was instantly transported back in time. It is as if I could see everyone as clear as if they were standing in front of me.

Zane and Skye shared a complex history that was filled with sorrow, heartache, friendship, and love. Yet, the way that they interacted with each other was lovely. They showed how much they grew from the teenagers that they were to the adults that they had become.

This book is very character driven and I am all for it. Thus, the reason that I enjoyed this book so much and Jennifer as an author. She really does infuse such life into her characters. This is a book you will want to check out. ( )

The protagonists are Skye Albright and Zane O’Rourke, two kids in Seattle who bond over their outsider status and their love of music and its ability to express their alienation as well as their dreams. When they meet in 1987, Skye is 12 and Zane, who lives across the street, is 14. The novel goes back and forth in time, ending up when they are both almost 30.

When Skye was 17, her older sister Lauren died in an accident. After the funeral, Skye became pregnant and left home. She told her parents in a note she needed to figure out who she was “without Lauren or my parents, or anyone.” She didn’t call home until she was seven months pregnant, only telling them about the baby then. It was also the last time she spoke to her father.

In 2002, Skye is living in Albuquerque. Her daughter Montana is nine and she is engaged to a caring Native American man from the Sandia Pueblo named Aaron. All is going well until she gets a call from Zane, the first time she has heard from him in six years. Then her mother calls as well, to tell Skye that her father died, and she knows that is why Zane called; he was hoping to see her and Montana at the funeral.

Aaron immediately gets that Skye has unfinished business with Zane - unfinished feelings about him, as well as unspoken truths that need to be uncovered.

Skye has to figure out who she is in love with, and whether the wounds of the past can be healed if she is to move forward with her life.

Evaluation: I had a hard time liking this book because I couldn’t stand either Skye or Zane. They seemed like realistic characters though, sad to say. I think they found more satisfaction at the end than I did as a reader. ( )

This beautifully written novel takes place in several locations during the years 1987-2002. It's about two teenagers who are basically outcasts at school becoming best friends and ultimately parents. They plan to move from Seattle to LA so that Zane can get discovered as a musician while Skye works on her art. They are best friends until Skye's sister dies in an accident and they make love on the evening of her funeral and Skye becomes pregnant. Life becomes uncomfortable at home when her parents find out about the pregnancy. They are still grieving their daughter's death and don't want Skye burdened with a child at her young age. Skye decides that she's had enough and runs away to Montana. Zane follows her but by then he's too hooked on drugs to be any help to her or to himself. After he leaves, Skye moves to New Mexico with her infant named Montana. She meets Aaron and his mother and they make Skye and Montana part of their family and eventually Aaron and Skye fall in love. When Zane re-enters her life after 10 years, his goal is to be a real father to Montana and both Zane and Aaron want her to make a choice between them. Skye is still in love with Zane - or maybe she's really in love with the person she wants him to be. She has to make a decision to go back to her past and try to make a life with Zane or move forward into the future with Aaron.

This is a fantastic book - Skye and Zone are real written and very believable as characters, the references to the Seattle grunge scene are right on and the ending of the book is absolutely perfect. This novel is about family and love, acceptance and forgiveness and asks the question of how much parents need to alter their lives for the good of their children.

Thanks to netgalley for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own. ( )