No one ever said love would be easy…but did they mention it would be freezing?
Adam Stillwater is in over his head. At least, that’s what his best friend would say. And his mom. And the guy who runs the hardware store down the street. But this pinball arcade is the only piece of his dad that Adam has left, and he’s determined to protect it from Philadelphia’s newest tech mogul, who wants to turn it into another one of his cold, lifeless gaming cafés.
Whitney Mitchell doesn’t know how she got here. Her parents split up. She lost all her friends. Her boyfriend dumped her. And now she’s spending her senior year running social media for her dad’s chain of super successful gaming cafés—which mostly consists of trading insults with that decrepit old pinball arcade across town.
But when a huge snowstorm hits, Adam and Whitney suddenly find themselves trapped inside the arcade. Cut off from their families, their worlds, and their responsibilities, the tension between them seems to melt away, leaving something else in its place. But what happens when the storm stops?
- Title: You Can Go Your Own Way
- Author: Eric Smith
- Publisher: Inkyard Press
- Publication Date: November 2nd, 2021
- Genre: Contemporary, Coming of Age, Romance, YA
- Source: Digital ARC received via Netgalley
- Targeted Age Range: Young Adult
- Content Warnings: Death of a parent, grief, strained family relationship
- Rating: ★★★★.5
There’s an old pinball museum in Seattle’s International District that I always walk by — one that I’ve always been intrigued by, but never explored. And well, after reading Eric Smith’s You Can Go Your Own Way, I’ve gotten a new fascination for pinball machines, and I’m adding it to my list of places to visit once it’s safe to do so!
You Can Go Your Own Way is everything I thought it’d be, and more. It’s a love letter to pinball machines, an exploration of grief, a story of friendship and community, and a story about two lost kids who are simply trying to figure themselves, and their world out. Told in a dual POV, You Can Go Your Own Way follows Adam Stillwater and Whitney Mitchell — childhood best friends turned social-media-rivals. After losing his dad, Adam’s determined to cling onto the last thing he has of him: the pinball arcade. He dedicates most of his time to the pinball arcade, trying to fix broken machines, reading about them, and trying to protect the arcade from being bought and turned into a gaming cafe. Whitney, on the other hand, is just trying to hold everything together after her parents’ split, breaking away from her toxic friend group, and being dumped by her boyfriend. After a series of events, Adam and Whitney find themselves trapped in the pinball arcade during a snowstorm, leading them to confront things they’ve ignored for far too long.
There were so many things that I enjoyed about You Can Go Your Own Way, but one of my favorite things was Adam and his grief. Adam’s grief is such a tangible thing. Adam’s father — and his grief, by extension — are just as big a part of him as his heart, his wit, his talent, and his passion about pinball. For me, personally, grief stories are very hit or miss — either they really resonate with me, or they don’t. Something that really stood out to me was not just how Adam’s grief seeped through his every action and thought, but how it impacted his relationships around him, how hard it is for him to let people in, how he latches onto anything he has left of his dad, and how hard it is for him to move on. From the get go, I was invested in Adam and his journey to finding himself and the right path for him. Adam realizing that he had to live his life for himself, and not his father, was something that just really resonated with me.
While Adam is trying to come to terms with the possibility that they’ll have to sell the arcade, Whitney’s trying to keep everything together by taking on social media responsibilities for her father’s business, and cleaning up her brother’s mess. In a manner that reminds me of Pepper from Tweet Cute, Whitney has taken on the role of social media manager for her father’s business so she can spend time with him. Watching Whitney struggle and feel like she had to fight for her father’s attention broke my heart a little. I love how Smith tackles familial relationships with such care and complexity, whether it’s Adam, trying to live up to his father’s legacy, or Whitney, who is dealing with the aftermath of parents’ divorce. I just really wanted to give Adam and Whitney a big hug. For Whitney, in particular, she’s also dealing with unhealthy friendships, and what makes a good friend. Learning that who she is with her “friends” isn’t someone she’s proud of is such an awful feeling, and I truly felt for her. High school is such a tumultuous time, with the added difficulties of their family situations, and everything else they had going on.
The close proximity, trapped-in situation felt like something out of fanfiction, or a very tropey romance movie, and I loved it. The cozy, winter-weather vibes in You Can Go Your Own Way were immaculate, and the vibrant community Smith describes makes it all the better. Where Whitney fails to have a strong community, Adam thrives — the other employees and neighboring store owners, his friends, and his dad’s friends, were all so supportive and wholesome. The backdrop of the winter festival, and small businesses working together and supporting one another was so heart-warming, and so neighborly.
Although I really enjoyed You Can Go Your Own Way, I felt like the storyline with Whitney’s boyfriend felt unnecessary, and made me question how much Whitney cared for him, if she was able to move on for Adam so quickly. I also wished that there were more dialogue between Adam and Whitney, as I felt like they would’ve been a stronger pairing if they had talked out what had happened while they stopped being friends, or just talked more in general. There were also a couple of timeskips, or moments that happened off-page, that I wished we got to see! That being said, I really did enjoy Whitney and Adam’s banter, and their dynamics overall.
Links for You Can Go Your Own Way: Goodreads | TheStoryGraph | Bookshop | IndieBound
ERIC SMITH is an author and literary agent from Elizabeth, New Jersey. When he isn’t working on other people’s books, sometimes he tries to write his own. He enjoys pop punk, video games, and crying during every movie. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife and best friend, Nena, and their son, Langston.
