***Review*** Where She Went (If I Stay #2) by Gayle Forman

On the Back of the Book

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.

Pre Read Thoughts

I’m choosing this because:

If I Stay is one of my all time favourite books. Maybe that’s part of why I delayed reading this for so long. I didn’t want to ruin what, to me, is a perfect book. However, I’ve decided now’s the time to try to finish all the series’ that I’ve started so I can move on to new ones. So here I am with Where She Went.  I have to admit that I’m eager to get to know Adam a little more. 

Judging a book by its cover:

Now on to the cover... ummm... yea... it’s not exactly standing out to be fair. However, with it being the sequel to If I Stay then that’s its selling point.  Thinking of positives I have to say I do like the font. It’s very pretty. And so is the model on the cover. Okay maybe the cover isn’t bad, it’s just not eye catching.

Pricing the (possible) awesomeness:

Well after looking on Amazon. I can tell you that it’s currently: £5.24 as a paperback and £4.74 on the Kindle. If you have a different eReader or don’t like Amazon then maybe check for yourself because most of my book buying is done there.

Post Read Thoughts

Wow. This book was so good, but I just didn’t love it as much as its predecessor. I tried, really I did. It’s not the fault of the book, which is, I reiterate completely awesome but I just didn’t feel it the way I felt If I Stay. The story is woven together beautifully, the prose stunning, visually I could see it so clearly but it lacked something and I can’t put my finger on what. In this book Adam is our POV and I like this. I’ve read few books from a guy’s perspective and of the ones that I have this is head and shoulders the best. Gayle Forman is just an incredible writer and I salute her.

Adam – In the years since Mia’s survival of the horrific crash that wiped out the rest of her family Adam has also gone through a transformation. I really felt for him. I’m having trouble explaining him without spoilers but don’t fret, I’m trying. He’s broken... I suppose that’s the best way to put it. He has all the success that he’s dreamed of but it feels as though it has a price for him. His vulnerability made me love him just the way his strength did in book 1.

Mia – Mia has moved on as well and in this story we see a different side to her, the side of a survivor. Some of her actions seem harsh and cruel but sometimes surviving means hurting others. I still admire her for overcoming what she has and being determined to live her life to the fullest. 

Overall this is a beautiful, wonderful book but it’s not perfect. The song lyrics at the beginning of some of the chapters were just awful. I’m sorry but they just didn’t feel like anything I’d listen to and I listen to A LOT of different music. I also didn’t feel as emotionally invested and believe me I tried. This is probably my favourite book of the year that I haven’t already read. I really do love it.

My Rating

4 stars – I’d love to give it more but I wouldn’t feel right doing it. It’s an amazing story and I really enjoyed it but for me there’s just something missing, something that stops it from being special. Don’t get me wrong though, I do recommend this and it’s a fabulous read and I think that it’s one of those YA books everyone should read at some point.

***Re-review*** If I Stay (If I Stay #1) by Gayle Forman

On The Back Of The Book

 The critically acclaimed, bestselling novel from Gayle Forman, author of Where She Went, Just One Day, and the forthcoming Just One Year.

In the blink of an eye everything changes. Seventeen ­year-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, this will change the way you look at life, love, and family. Mia's story will stay with you for a long, long time.

My Review

 I first read this book in 2011, I reviewed the book on my blog. My 3rd ever review, You can even read it here but I figure, it's been nearly 2 years and my reviewing technique has changed and I wanted to see how my opinion has evolved. So I'm re-reviewing one of my all-time favourite books.

When I finished reading this, I felt emotionally drained. Reading this takes you on a roller coaster and both times I've read this I've had no idea what to say about it. I will tell you this: In my opinion this book is flawless. While some say that there isn't much of a plot, I can tell you there's a back story. 

We follow Mia, who's in a car accident with her family. She's a sort of ghost and as she remembers what happened for her to be left in limbo and reminisces about the people she loved and lost and those that want her to stay. 

The writing is stunning, Gayle Forman has taken an idea and used her incredible storytelling talent and has moved me with this tale, not once, but twice.  As a reader you're transported into Mia's heartbreaking world and you feel so much sorrow for her. Well that's how it was for me anyway.

The characters are real and flawed and I loved them for that. I said in my first review that you need to root for Mia or the story falls apart and that's true. If you don't like her then the premise falls apart as empathy is a huge part of this. The other characters make the most perfect family and the love they have for each other radiates off the page and warmed my heart. 

This is a definite must read, not only for fans of the YA genre but for fans of good writing. What you have here is the most beautiful book and if you do decide to read it, you're gonna need tissues, LOTS of tissues. 

My Rating

  Yes - you're reading this right. This book not only keeps its original 5 star rating but has further cemented it. This story is short, sweet and as close to perfect as a novel's allowed to be. There really aren't words for me to be able to tell you that this is a book you need in your lives now and forever. 

 

Would I recommend this?

YES!!!! Now go buy it!!! 

  

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Plot

The plot of this story is simple. It's what might happen to someone in a coma, how they feel, what their existence might be like, when all they've got left is one decision, whether to live or whether to die.

The person who has to make this choice is seventeen year old Mia. One single second has changed Mia's entire life and has forced her to tread the boards between life and death.

The majority of the book is memories as Mia goes through her life deciding if she should stay

Writing

This book is really beautifully written, it's so emotional as you go through Mia's journey with her, and if you're anything like me, willing her to live.

I love how instead of chapters we rejoined the story at random points during the day. The book takes place in a little over a 24 hour period which is essentially: the lead up, the event and the aftermath. More than anything this is a story of love and loss. It's a story that needs a huge amount of emotion or it won't work, if you didn't get the emotion it would be a pointless exercise to read, thankfully the author gives us the emotions of everyone in spades.

Characters

There's only one character who truly matters in this novel and that's Mia. If you hate Mia even for the smallest of moments then the premise of the book falls apart, because if you aren't with her then what are you doing? Personally I adored her, she's so adorable and her love for her family, her friend, her boyfriend and her cello are all things that add depth to her and make her seem like an ordinary teenager who has suffered from extraordinarily bad luck.

Overall

A flawless book that made me cry it felt so real to me. I devoured the book, it only took me two hours to read it, and I couldn't help but wish that it could go on forever.

It's a five star book for beauty and the fact that I'm still thinking about it now. I can't help but feel that this is a new favourite of mine.

I got the image off Google, no copyright infringement is intended