Review: Full of Richly Flawed Characters
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 03 2, 2012
College is a time of trial and error, of learning who you are and what you stand for. Love and passion can drive people to do some morally questionable things, and people will find ways to justify themselves to get what they want. This is the focus of Relatively Honest.Right from the start, I was not a fan of Daniel, for he is cocky, arrogant and kind of a douche. His moral flexibility was a massive character flaw for me, but it is necessary for this story, and in the end I found myself rooting for him to come out on top, even though I wasn't fully sure why. One thing that I did like about him is that he has a pretty open mind and isn't judgmental of other people and the choices they make. I have to say that, in my eyes, this was his one saving grace. It's the one thing that will keep you from judging him yourself as he keeps pursuing things he probably shouldn't be.Throughout most of the story, Julie seems to be the one character on high moral ground, but even that is a bit shaky at times. Her deceptions aren't as front and center as Daniel's, but she really struggles with them right up until the end. In the end, everything comes down to her and what she thinks is the right thing to do. I liked this, because it serves to remind you that no one is perfect and that nothing worth having comes easily.There are quite a few sub characters in this story, some with larger roles than others, but there seems to be at least one character that will appeal to every type of person. All of them are in the same search for love, friendship and acceptance. Some of them find it, some don't, but no matter what, they're all very human in their quests and are what give this story great texture and depth.Relatively Honest is a well-written story full of richly flawed characters who face some tough challenges in the ongoing discovery of who they are. That is why it is a great book for teens, because they struggle with these questions on a daily basis.  By the end of the book, I still wasn't sure how I felt about the way the story ended, but it didn't matter because it tested and then helped me confirm my own beliefs. Pick it up and see if it does the same for you.