Tag: If I Stay Series

Review: Where She Went by Gayle Forman.

Posted June 28, 2011 by Rowena in Reviews | 3 Comments


Main Character: Adam Wilde
Love Interest: Mia
Series: If I Stay, Book 2
Author: Website|Facebook|Twitter|Goodreads

 

It’s been three years since the devastating accident . . . three years since Mia walked out of Adam’s life forever. Now living on opposite coasts, Mia is Juilliard’s rising star and Adam is LA tabloid fodder, thanks to his new rock star status and celebrity girlfriend.

When Adam gets stuck in New York by himself, chance brings the couple together again, for one last night. As they explore the city that has become Mia’s home, Adam and Mia revisit the past and open their hearts to the future – and each other.Told from Adam’s point of view in the spare, lyrical prose that defined If I Stay, Where She Went explores the devastation of grief, the promise of new hope, and the flame of rekindled romance.

When I finished reading If I Stay, I didn’t know that this book was coming not too long after. I remember finishing the book and wishing that I got to know Adam more and Gayle Forman gave me more Adam by writing this book and I swear that I’m going to name my next baby after her. Unless it’s a boy than I’ll probably name him like Forman or something, anyway you get my drift. I wanted this book and finally got it and I freaking loved it.

Every freaking minute of it, I loved.

This book takes place three years after Mia’s accident and it shows us what happened from the time Mia left the hospital til now. Sure, it’s strung along differently but still, we got the scoop and I ate up every word. The story is told by switching back and forth from present day to the past and Adam fills in the blanks for us. I’m a huge fan of the way that this book was written, I loved getting to know Adam, getting into his head and experiencing everything through Adam’s eyes.

I thought I loved him in If I Stay but nothing prepared me for how much I loved him in this book.

What really got to me was seeing how everything turned out. It was so different from what I thought would happen after I put down If I Stay. After If I Stay, the ending was a happy for now kind of ending and I thought that Adam and Mia would be together forever, only in this book we’re shown that they didn’t end up together and it tore Adam up.

You knew that they had that once in a lifetime love in If I Stay but to see them go through the last couple of years in this book made their journey to that true love all the more enjoyable because when you finished If I Stay, their romance made sense. Their love is what got Mia through and what kept Adam going.

But in Where She Went, Mia distanced herself from Adam. They didn’t end up together and your heart broke all over again and the feelings that you felt when you were reading about Mia’s horrible experiences from then and seeing the aftermath and what her disappearance did to Adam, it was like your heart was bleeding all over again. And damn if Gayle Forman didn’t pick those pieces up and show you that though love is real, it’s not always rays of sunshine.

Seeing where time has taken both Adam and Mia’s life and seeing how far they’ve both come was such a wonderful roller coaster of emotions. I felt it all while reading this book and I couldn’t read this book fast enough. I was so locked in Adam’s world, my heart hurting for him and putting the book down was just not an option for me. I loved every minute of this book, getting to see everyone again from the band, getting to hear about Kim and see what she’s up to, seeing Mia and Adam meeting up again – goodness, I could go on but I won’t because really, just pick this book up and see for yourself. You won’t be sorry, Gayle Forman can weave the heck out of a story and she’ll make you fall in love with her characters and before you know it, you’ll be hooked.

This book was a wonderful addition to a fantastic book and the characters that you came to love in If I Stay will warm your heart all over again. There were times when it was hard to get through this book because of all of the new people that came into Adam’s life, seeing how low Adam had gone in his grief, seeing the distance that he created for him and everyone around him because there was this huge wall separating him from the world. But reading through everything, seeing Mia again and coming to realize why she did what she did to him. It all made the reading experience that much greater to me. I loved it all. I think what I loved most of all was that Mia finally recognized that she wasn’t the only person that lost her family. Her grandparents weren’t the only people outside of her that loved her parents and Teddy. Adam lost them and loved them too. He grieved for them to and she wasn’t there for him. After everything he did for her, he needed her and she wasn’t there. Seeing them work through their problems struck me where it hurts but man did I love it all anyway.

I know that this review is all fan girly and I’m sorry but I can’t help it. I absolutely adored this book and want everyone to read and love this book too. What are you waiting for, run out and get these books and read them. You won’t be sorry!

Reading Order:

For all my Moms out there, I’d give this book a rating of:


This book is suitable for the 13 and up crowd, it’s got mature themes and lots of teenage angst and language.

..and that’s your scoop!

Buy the book: B&N|Borders|Amazon|Book Depository
Book cover and blurb credit: http://barnesandnoble.com


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Review: If I Stay by Gayle Forman.

Posted December 29, 2010 by Rowena in Reviews | 8 Comments


Main Character: Mia
Love Interest: Adam
Series: If I Stay Series, Book 1
Author: Website|Facebook|Twitter|Goodreads

A critically acclaimed novel that will change the way you look at life, love, and family.

In the blink of an eye everything changes. Seventeen­year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall what happened afterwards, watching her own damaged body being taken from the wreck. Little by little she struggles to put together the pieces- to figure out what she has lost, what she has left, and the very difficult choice she must make. Heartwrenchingly beautiful, Mia’s story will stay with you for a long, long time.

This was a short but oh so heartwrenching story about a young girl who loses everything she loves most in this world in the blink of an eye and while she’s in ICU realizes that she still has so much to live for.

This is the first book that I’ve read by Gayle Forman and I’m so glad that I read Mollie’s review of this book because it made me curious and it made me want to read it for myself so I bought it and when I finally started the book, I couldn’t put it down.

I thought it was such a good book. From beginning to end, it was good. From the moment of impact through the middle and then the way it ended, it all had me wrapped right up in this entire story. It was equal parts sad, enlightening and just flat out good. Getting to know Mia the way that we got to know her made for some good reading. My heart went out to her and while it was a sad story, I didn’t start crying until Kim made her way over to Mia’s bedside. The way that she let Mia know that she knew what she lost but that she still had things to live for, oh man I bawled my eyes out because it was so true.
There was so much more to live for outside of her grandparents, her parents friends, Adam and Kim. There was her music and then everything that Adam talked about in his impassioned bedside speech. I thought that was heartbreaking the way that Adam loved her. The way that he loved her and wanted the best for her, even if she didn’t think it was him anymore.
This was a good book, one that will pull at your heartstrings. It was sad, heartbreaking and yet so good at the same time. I totally recommend this book.

..and that’s your scoop!

Buy the book: B&N|Borders|Amazon|Book Depository
Book cover and blurb credit: http://barnesandnoble.com


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