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Robyn Schneider’s The Beginning of Everything starts with a tragedy.  A tragedy that defines Ezra Faulkner, Eastwood’s golden boy, as a man. The book is unique yet stereotypical; funny yet sad.  The Beginning of Everything is a roller coaster of emotion that keeps you hooked from start to finish.

Ezra Faulkner is obsessed with tragedies.  He thinks that everyone gets one.  His tragedies were catching his girlfriend Charlotte cheating on him, getting hit by a car, and facing a near-death experience because of this.  All of this happened in one night, the night that he went from desired tennis all-star to pathetic crippled victim.  Ezra Faulkner was officially dethroned.

He spent his summer in therapy and came back to school with a bad limp and a poor attitude about life.  That was until he met Cassidy Thorpe.  Cassidy Thorpe is the stereotypical new girl – beautiful, smart and of course mysterious.  And like happens in most books, the boy falls in love with the girl in a matter of days.  Together, Cassidy showed Ezra her world, which involved debate tournaments, sneaking into random college classes, touring long forgotten shops, and in general, a carefree lifestyle.  Ezra was a new man.  He had become close once again with his old best friend Toby, sat with a new crew at lunch, and started dressing like a man, not the popular high school boy look of saggy jeans and varsity letterman jackets.  He had lost tennis, but he had gained Cassidy and was bubbling with happiness.  That was until Cassidy’s disappearance on homecoming night, the night both Cassidy and Ezra had been looking forward to for months.  The day that seemed like any other.  Ezra’s life-changing tragedy was not getting hit by a car. His tragedy was still to come on the night that was supposed to be the best of his teenage life.

The Beginning of Everything is a good read despite how predictable it was.  A new girl comes her senior year to a new school, which is a red flag in itself, but she also has a reputation of trouble but that doesn’t stop Ezra from falling in love with her.  It was too good for too long and something bad was bound to happen (Cassidy’s disappearance).  You could say The Beginning of Everything is a healthier version of The Fault in Our Stars, with its humorous main characters and sickness perks.  But The Beginning of Everything lacks the same kind of romance The Fault in Our Stars carries.

I suggest reading this book if you’re into high school drama and romances. If not, this book is not for you.