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Okay, okay. I know. Who hasn’t written a review for Colleen Hoover, right? Well folks, this girl right here.

Though rest assured, I’m about to pop the cherry. Yep, that’s right, it’s going to happen….right now…. with Losing Hope because what better way to pop the cherry than to do it with Holder. *WINK*

Some Info on the Book:

Losing Hope is Holder’s side of the heart wrenching, devastating story that we all read in Hopeless.

Returning home from living with his father, Holder finds himself simultaneously trying to deal with the suicide of his twin sister, Les, and coming face to face with a girl who looks a lot like someone he’d never see again.

What happens when everything he thought he knew, crumbles around him and he’s left rediscovering who he is, who he knows and what really happened to that girl across the street, Hope?

Losing Hope <—- Click to check it out on Goodreads

Things not Found in the Synopsis:

The song I think I’m gonna pick is…

Too Late

By M83

Ohhhh yeah.

So I’m not gonna lie… I was totally torn between this song and: Like Real People Do by Hozier. If y’all prefer that one… I’m sorry…sort of LOL.

Anyways, I’ve decided to go with this one because… well I’m LOVING the lyrics. Here they are in case you’re curious 🙂

I look into your eyes
Diving into the ocean
I look into your eyes
FallingLike a wall of stars
We are ripe to fallAnd if you are a ghost
I’ll call your name again
And if you are a ghost
I’ll call your name…You, always.

I mean look! They even have to do with stars and ghosts… I felt like I couldn’t really turn them down LOL. I also felt the overall “vibe” of the song suited the book better – for me anyways.

Overall Rating: 5 Stars *****

I know, I know. You’re all shocked, right? A 5 stars review from the wonder that is Mrs. Hoover?! Impossible… not really.

Well the books is pretty… AMAZING! I’ll be honest, I thought I loved Hopeless –truly, I did – but Losing Hope was a fantastic companion to it. I loved seeing inside Holder’s head ( though I’m generally a Hero sympathizer 😉 ). It just made his struggle to come to terms with Les’s death that much more real. Her character itself and her struggle became so much more tangible, through reading Holder’s perspective and she became a true ‘person’ to me, not just someone I heard/ read about.

I know there were a lot of aspects that were a replay of what happened in Hopeless, but I loved it. There was so much going on in that story, I didn’t mind the replay of information from another perspective. With the subject matter and the tolls that it would take a person, while I may have already known the outcomes, I was so immersed it didn’t matter.

The books themselves are extremely character driven and yes, if you aren’t a fan of reading books, where it’s more about the plot and you like being surprised, then reading both this and Hopeless may not be your cup of tea. However as a character driven book… it’s phenomenal! Right from the start, Colleen pulls you into Holder’s head and leaves no emotion spared, no thought unthought, and no heart intact. His actions become that much clearer, while his pain becomes it’s own living breathing thing to accompany the monster that is his guilt.

I’d highly recommend this book (me along with thousands of others) if you want something different from the classic alpha-male story where things manage to magically fall into place. This story is real. It’s flawed and incredibly human.

Go pick it up

It’s a gooder!

Cheers,

Okay, this is my FAVORITE book I’ve ever read. It’s just … WOW. I feel like I just won the emotional jackpot. I’m in absolute awe.

This book touched me on so many levels. The characters had to have been the most beautifully flawed people I’ve ever read about. Great job Katja Millay…. Great job. When I know your characters so well that I can tell when they are lying and when I can tell what they truly want without having to be explicitly told… I just LOVE it.

You ALL must read this book if you’re a fan of NA/ mature YA.

Some Info on the Book:

I live in a world without magic or miracles. A place where there are no clairvoyants or shapeshifters, no angels or superhuman boys to save you. A place where people die and music disintegrates and things suck. I am pressed so hard against the earth by the weight of reality that some days I wonder how I am still able to lift my feet to walk.

Nastya Kashnikov only wants a few things from life. Keep her past a secret and make the boy who took everything from her pay.

Contrary to Nastya Josh Bennett’s past is no secret. Everyone who he’s loved has been taken away from him and now at seventeen there’s no one left.

What happens when these two lonely souls connect and somehow manage to situate themselves into eachothers lives.

The Sea of Tranquility <—– Click to check it out on Goodreads

Things not found in the Synposis:

I’ve been trying for soooo long to find a song for this book… I think I’ve finally found it…

Feel Real

by Deptford Goth

EEEP! I’m so excited. I heard this song and went YES! I think this is it! I’ve been so picky about this book, and considering it’s in my Top 5 books… I was shocked to discover none of my favorite songs really fit it. *GASP* I couldn’t help but feel like I’d let myself down. But alas, here we have it… What do you guys think?

Overall Rating: 6 Stars ******

(No, I don’t really run on a six star scale, but for this book I will make an exception).

My Nastya:

She’s pretty badass looking 😉

My Josh Bennett:

I’m sorry… But look at that hair!!! (Yes, I’m one of those girls. I have an obsession with beautiful hair OK. Don’t judge me…) I mean I’m also sold on the fact that man is just goigeous. *WINK*

Anyways, my review of the book. WOW! What an emotionally charged read. The angst I tell you, the angst. However, don’t think that this book is overly angsty, in fact for how angsty it was… it was presented the least angsty way that it could have been (You sick of the word angst yet?) LOL. Both Josh and Nastya try to steer clear of each other, but unfortunately they end up constantly colliding.

This book isn’t for those who want instant gratification. The plot is fairly slow moving – but it 100% needs to be. I would not have been as invested in them as I was if it had somehow turned into a story of ‘insta-love/lust’. Instead Katja made their connection known, but subtle. It was a wonderful awareness that had you hoping, praying and fighting for them. Their story was incredibly real. It was lightly happy, crushingly sad and deeply moving.

Both characters were flawed perfection. They rambled, they stumbled. They loved, they hurt. They tore my heart in half and then stitched it back together – albeit a bit mangled – but together none the less. I desperately wanted them both to find their HEA, but I was terrified that they wouldn’t and my definition of HEA might have been a little different than theirs.

Katja is also the master of simple, impactful sentences. I never knew two words could strike me as hard as she made them. What a beautiful ending to a beautiful book.