alindstadtcorbeax
Written on Jun 30, 2020
Devon Tennyson wouldn't change a thing. She's happy watching Friday night games from the bleachers, silently crushing on best friend Gas, and blissfully ignoring the future after high school. But the universe has other plans. It delivers Devon's cousin Foster, an unrepentant social outlier with a surprising talent for football, and the obnoxiously superior and maddeningly attractive star running back, Ezra, right where she doesn't want them - first into her P. E. class and then into every other aspect of her life. Pride and Prejudice meets Friday Night Lights in this contemporary novel about falling in love with the unexpected boy, with a new brother, and with yourself.
- ISBN10 162779235X
- ISBN13 9781627792356
- Publish Date 13 October 2015
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 18 March 2021
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Henry Holt & Company Inc
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 272
- Language English
Reviews
Sam@WLABB
Written on Nov 28, 2019
This story opened with Devon's guidance counselor encouraging her to push herself in order to pad her college resume. Though, she had always been happy with her predictable and average life, she was willing to put herself out there in the name of college, and what she found was some beautiful and unlikely human connections.
This book was about family...
Devon's family took in her cousin Foster after his father passed away and his mother was unable to care for him. Devon did not immediately warm to him, as she had spent 17 years as an only child, but the more time they spent together, the bond just began to grow and grow, and by the end of the book, they were sharing the kind of love siblings have for one another.
This book was about friendship...
Mills never fails to write brilliant friendships, and she blessed me with quite a few in this book. I loved the unlikely friendship, that developed between Foster and Ezra, the captain of the football team. Foster was so open and honest with a youthful exuberance for most things, while Ezra was very reserved and hard to read. However, after seeing some talent in Foster, Ezra decided to mentor him, and a genuine relationship developed on its own.
This book was about unrequited love...
Devon had spent years and years pining for her best friend, Cas. She watched him go through a myriad of girls, but always held onto some hope, that he would eventually reciprocate her feelings. This was part of the plot, which was tough for me. I grew to adore Devon, and I didn't want her to miss out on something wonderful, because she was holding out for something that would never happen, and unrequited love always makes my heart ache.
This book was about romance...
There was quite a bit of romancing going on in this story, with several romantic storylines woven into the plot. Obviously, my favorite was between Devon and Ezra. It was so subtle until it wasn't, and I rather enjoyed the slow burn. I was also happy to see someone recognizing how amazing Devon was, and who better than a misunderstood, grumpy hero.
This story was about change...
Devon might have been satisfied with the status quo at the beginning of this book, but by the end, she was willing to stretch herself. She grew so much. She began to see outside her little two person bubble, and she discovered there were a lot of wonderful people and things to enjoy out there. I liked snarky, self-centered, and sort of stuck Devon from the beginning of the book, but I loved caring, generous, and go-getting Devon at the end of the book.
This quote from First & Then pretty much sums up how this book made me feel:
"and there was just this pure, unadulterated, highly concentrated happy. Baking chocolate for the soul."
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melanchalina
Written on Aug 15, 2017
10 из 10
Жанр: YA, современный любовный роман, милые романы, школа
POV: от первого лица
Геометрия чувств: любовный треугольник (мнимый)
Отличительные черты: выход героини из зоны комфорта, поиски себя и своего места в мире, парни-футболисты
РЕЦЕНЗИЯ:
Перевода этой книги я ждала давно. Почему-то мне хватило лишь аннотации и пары цитат, чтобы понять, что книга определенно мне понравится и войдет в список фаворитов. И не ошиблась. Книга потрясающая. Она легкая, милая, но со смыслом. История о первой настоящей любви, семье, дружбе и поиске себя и своем месте в мире.
У автора вышли потрясающие, живые герои. Каждый со своей историей, характером и чувствами. Девон очаровательная героиня с отличным чувством юмора и адекватным поведением для девушки ее возраста. Она самая обычная девушка, которая просто хочет тихо и мирно плыть по течению. Но в какой-то миг все резко для нее меняется. К ним в дом переезжает ее несносный младший кузен, в напарники на физкультуре попался заносчивый гордец Эзра, а директриса обращает на девушку свое пристальное внимание и решает всеми силами помочь Девон определиться со своим будущим.
Я буквально не могла оторваться от книги и проглатила ее за пару часов. В «До и после» есть буквально все, что я так люблю в современных любовных романах. Понравилось, как росла и училась смотреть на мир иначе главная героиня. Девон неидеальна, она совершает ошибки, она знает об этом и старается быть лучше. Ее отношения с братом, Эзрой и другими девушками прекрасно показывают, как девушка учится выходить из зоны комфорта, смотреть на мир иначе, чем она привыкла.
Отдельное спасибо автору за мужских персонажей. Тут прям гарем на любой вкус, выбирай не хочу. Все мальчики очень разные, со своими тараканами, целями и личными проблемами. Даже "мимо проходящие" герои привлекают к себе внимание, придают свой шарм истории. Сразу верится в "реальность" романа, потому что наша жизнь полна вот таких вот совершенно разных и не похожих друг на друга людей.
За Дева и Эзру готова расцеловать Эмму Миллс. Замечательные парни, они покорили меня сразу же. Эзра полностью мой тип книжного парня. Очень люблю таких персонажей. Тихих, уравновешенных, но со стержнем.
Обязательно перечитаю книгу позже.
Jyc
Written on Nov 3, 2016
Bianca
Written on May 27, 2016
14. A reread of a favorite book
Close your eyes, real tight, and then count to three hundred. That’s all you have to do. You just count to three hundred, and when you open your eyes, five minutes will have passed. And even if it hurts or things are shitty or you don’t know what to do, you just made it through five whole minutes. And when it feels like you can’t go on, you just close your eyes and do it again. That’s all you need. Just five minutes at a time.
— A story of family & friendship, and of figuring yourself out. I still find this book the most adorable. I just couldn’t stop giggling and smiling 🥰
Kelly
Written on Jan 4, 2016
UTTER. PERFECTION.
It follows the story of Devon, the girl, not the luncheon meat. She's an only child with doting parents and no real direction throughout her senior year of school. Then fourteen year old Foster comes to stay. Oh Foster, he was such a breath of fresh air. Adorably naive and so incredibly lovely, he's been abandoned by his mother and taken in by his aunt and uncle to restore a sense of normalcy and family. Since his father died, life with his neglectful mother has left him unemotional and mentally absent. It takes a significant part of First and Then for Devon to finally accept Foster as a part of her newly formed family unit but their relationship although tentative, was beautiful to watch them both grow as individuals and as new siblings.
Hello Ezra Lynley. Ezra is the golden boy of football and a new recruit, seemingly untouchable yet takes an interest in Foster in the shared physical education class along with Devon. Although Foster is oblivious, the tension between Devon and Ezra is delicious and he begins helping Foster learn the basics of touch football and the two form a close bond. I know nothing about American football but First and Then didn't delve too deeply into the technical side of the sport thankfully, but more so the team comradery and etiquette of the game.
The bond between Ezra and Foster began as a worship type relationship and although beyond the college scouts and attention, Ezra is never comfortable with the admiration. He isn't the typical high school senior and is determined not to let his status define him. He's quiet, reserved and gives off a tortured impression. It's Devon who is yet to fall under his spell, she's in love with her best friend in Cass, who as the storyline moved forward really surprised me and I felt I never truly had a sense of who he was beyond how Devon had seen him.
The underlying storyline of acceptance and learning to trust was beautiful and lovingly written. I laughed, I cried and was utterly smitten with First and Then and in particular, Foster. Not often does a book come along that makes you feel how special it is to delve into the fictional worlds of authors, First and Them made me feel giddy as I turned the final page and gave me one hell of a book hangover.
girlinthepages
Written on Nov 6, 2015
Overall: If you're not a huge fan of Pride & Prejudice to pick up the references, the novel doesn't really offer a lot to set it apart from other contemporaries. There were some interesting family dynamics (such as Foster and Devon) and a wide range of male/female high school relationships, but I honestly wasn't really charmed by Ezra or Devon as main characters, so I wasn't really that invested in their love story.