Written by Victoria Garza Aleman
One Small Thing is the newest novel by Erin Watt, the pseudonym for authors Jen Frederick and Elle Kennedy. Previously they have co-written The Royals, a New York Times Bestselling series, and a stand-alone novel, When It’s Real.
This novel follows Beth as she deals with life two years after the passing of her older sister, Rachel. Along with her own issues of struggling with a brand new family structure, overprotective parents, and senior year drama, she meets a mysterious boy who will help her distract herself and be her one well-kept secret. Or so she thinks.
While sneaking away to a party, she meets Chase, a dark figure who has his own problems to deal with at a new school. Beth and Chase will proceed to have what can be considered as a complicated and infuriating romance. It may be so infuriating to some readers that could cause them to shut the book just to take a breath from it all.
Let’s break down why I consider their romance to be so infuriating. Chase isn’t just the new bad boy fresh out of a juvenile detention center, but he is the bad boy fresh out of a juvenile detention center for running Beth’s sister over and killing her. At first, their brief hook-up at the party seems fair, both characters were out of their comfort zone and they didn’t recognise one another initially. However, when school starts and Chase and Beth start sharing classes, they discover who each other really is and Beth is very conflicted. Everyone in school is enraged that they have to go to school with Chase and all vow to protect Beth and keep her away from him. Even Chase apologises and runs away when he realises her identity and the role he played in the death of her sister. Except Beth keeps insisting that she might have feelings for Chase, mainly it has something to do with the fact that she lost her virginity to him. This seems to reinforce the standard of virginity and the value that is put on a belief of the purity involved in women’s sexuality.
Chase seems detached through a majority of the book and doesn’t seem to care about spending too much thinking about Beth. In fact, at no point throughout the novel do we get to really gauge how he feels about Beth, other than regret for her sister’s death. He just got out of juvie and therefore has other things on his mind, mostly that everyone at school hates him for killing a fellow student. It is explained further on in the book that it was, in fact, an accident and that Rachel had run out onto the street. That being said, Chase was recklessly driving a stolen car, so he’s not a super great guy to begin with.
It’s a cute romance, and I like the idea of it being an against all odds love story, but this book is very problematic. The fact that the main couple of the story start off as both being reckless and then continue on being full of regret and apprehension. For most of it, Beth has repressed emotions about her sister’s passing and feels like her parents will forever make her live in her shadow. Along with that, Chase and Beth spend a good portion of their relationship being triggered by the mention of her dead sister. This significant subject was completely avoided, although it was a very important subject in their relationship, and in fact really the only reason they connected at all. The only time Rachel’s death is addressed is during a secret meet-up between Beth and Chase. Beth breaks down about her loss and cries at the fact that her sister abandoned her. After a few minutes, Chase tries to console her, but then realises, “Your sister never left you, Beth. I took her from you.” Chase then runs away whilst Beth is left having a breakdown. This is not the portrayal of a happy long-term relationship or a relationship that can be in any way successful.
We’ve all had our guilty pleasure readings, especially when it comes to contemporary love novels. At some point though, the YA genre began to be filled with these ridiculous love dramas that are not helpful and instead portray problematic relationships and disguise it as love stories. A love story should not be a girl rebelling against her family and friends then finding happiness by completely leaving them all behind. Nor should it be a relationship built on secrets and hurt, and a lot of repressed guilt. This is the story of two characters that were damaged with a lot of emotional baggage that gets resolved by running away to another state and starting a new life together.
All in all, this book is a short nice read and this book definitely still has its moments, and they were good, funny and heartwarming at times. It might be infuriating, and definitely should make you question its problematic plot as a reader. As with all books, we want to find ourselves in the characters, especially in their flaws. Instead, what is done by Erin Watt is a transmission of two overly traumatised characters that solve their problems by being awkwardly pushed together and labelled as love. The reader is left wondering, is that really what love is supposed to look like? If the YA genre and its authors keep insisting it is, maybe we should all take a hard pass.
One Small Thing is out now and can be found on Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers.
Have you read One Small Thing? Will you be checking it out? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
Beth’s life hasn’t been the same since her sister died. Her parents try to lock her down, believing they can keep her safe by monitoring her every move. When Beth sneaks out to a party one night and meets the new guy in town, Chase, she’s thrilled to make a secret friend. It seems a small thing, just for her.
Only Beth doesn’t know how big her secret really is…
Fresh out of juvie and determined to start his life over, Chase has demons to face and much to atone for, including his part in the night Beth’s sister died. Beth, who has more reason than anyone to despise him, is willing to give him a second chance. A forbidden romance is the last thing either of them planned for senior year, but the more time they spend together, the deeper their feelings get.
Now Beth has a choice to make—follow the rules, or risk tearing everything apart…again.
