Review
5 shiny, Holder-loving stars!!!
Was there any doubt that I would love this book? No, there wasn’t. I LOVED Hopeless, and absolutely adore Holder! He is freaking teenage perfection! Unlike a lot of YA books out there, he’s just a normal guy. A ‘good guy’ who has been through hell, haunted by events in his past, but still trying to move on and live his life. He is caring, intelligent, fun, sarcastic, witty, and deeply loving. LOVE HIM!!!!!
And while this book is essentially the Hopeless story from his POV, it in no way feels like a repeat. And while, obviously, Sky and all that goes on between them is an important part of the story, there is so much more to Holder.
The book starts a year before the events of Hopeless all begin, and we get to see first-hand, one of the events that shapes his life, and oh my God! I was crying within the first 3%! The emotion and the authenticity of it all just broke me! And then watching him pick himself up and continue on, I was mesmerised. Utterly and totally mesmerised. And this is before the love interest even comes into the story! Usually when I read a book I’m hanging out for the hero and heroine to meet, but I loved that it was just about him. I didn’t feel there was anything missing in the story at all. The pacing of it all is perfect!
Despite all that he is going through, it never feels like a depressing read – his witty, sarcastic personality shines through. And in addition to his inner monologue, he also writes his thoughts and feelings in notes to his sister, and the depth of emotion is incredible!! Not only him trying to get over his recent loss, but also how deeply affected he was after losing Hope all of those years ago, the crushing guilt he feels, and how deeply those events have impacted on him.
“What are the chances that the only two girls in my life I’ve ever loved… I’ve lost? It’s killing me piece by piece every single day.”
And then along comes Sky to rock his world. I loved their relationship in Hopeless, the interplay and dialogue between them is sensational! And I was feeling it all over again here, but it’s a lot more rounded now that I know Holder’s take on it all.
“As soon as my fingers graze her skin, chills rush down her arms. She tightens her arms over her chest and rubs the chills away. I can’t help but grin, knowing it was my hand on her skin that did that to her. Best. Feeling. Ever.”
“I’m pretty sure it’s too soon to love her, but shit. She’s got to stop doing and saying these unexpected things that make me want to fast-forward whatever’s going on between us. Because I want to kiss her and make love to her and marry her and make her have my babies and I want it all to happen tonight”
His love for her is evident, and I read all of the moments between them with a ridiculously cheesy grin on my face.
“She’s flat-out rude to me and I love it. She’s stubborn and I love it. She’s a smartass and she’s sarcastic and every witty thing that comes out of her mouth is like music to my ears because that’s exactly what I want. She’s what I need and I don’t want her to change at all. There’s not a single thing about her I would change.”
Oh, and the ‘kiss without a kiss’ scene – HOLY GOD!!!! Absolute perfection!
The big turning point for them – Holder’s big moment of realisation – is freaking phenomenal!!! I felt it all along with him, and his reactions, emotion, and the following internal battle that he waged were heart wrenching! Watching him wrestle with the complexity of the situation puts a different spin on things again, and just made me fall even harder for him.
And then the whole thing unfolds, and while it’s Sky going through hell, Holder is right there going through it with her, and my heart broke for him! Not only for him having to watch his girl in pain, but dealing with his own pain as well. It’s so intense! But the love between him and Sky, and the way that they cling to each other, needing each other for comfort and support, is BEAUTIFUL!!!
“You know how I feel about you,” I whisper, staring into her eyes. “You know how much I love you. You know I would do whatever I could to take away your pain, right?”
She nods, never pulling her gaze from mine, even for a second.
“I need that from you so fucking bad right now, Sky. I need to know you love me like that.”
…
She lowers her mouth to mine and I drop my head back against the mattress and let her kiss me. “Keep them open,” she whispers, pulling away from my lips. I do what she says and somehow open my eyes again, looking directly into hers. “I want you to keep them open…because I need you to watch me give you the very last piece of my heart.”
This moment. Right now. It’s almost worth every ounce of pain I’ve ever had to endure.”
*sniff*.
I didn’t reread Hopeless before I read this, and had forgotten a lot of the little details, so getting all of the phenomenal dialogue, and the little moments of awesome again was sensational. While there are some scenes that are taken directly from Hopeless, (like the one above), getting them from the different perspective puts a different spin on what’s going on, and it didn’t feel repetitive to me at all. Plus there is a lot of the story that is new – not only Holder’s thoughts, but his home life, school life, and his best friend Daniel, who had me in hysterics every time he made an appearance.
I absolutely love this book!! It’s a beautiful read and rounds out Holder and Sky’s story beautifully, and although I wanted more (seriously, I could read a whole book full of the two of them bantering back and forth!) the tiny glimpse we get into their future, and Holder’s healing, is gorgeous.
Colleen Hoover continues to prove that she can do no wrong.
5 sensational stars.
The Hopeless Series
Hopeless (#1)
Review
Buy: Kindle Ebook | Paperback
Losing Hope (#2)
Buy: Kindle Ebook | Paperback
Finding Cinderella (#2.5)
Review
Buy: Kindle Ebook | Paperback