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areadinggem's reviews
167 reviews
Remember Me Forever by Sara Wolf
5.0
"Sometimes when life kicks you in the ass, you have to kick it back.
In the nuts.
With steel-toed boots."
•••
After reading this book, I've realized that I can't really judge a character based off my likes and dislikes.
Yes, I do prefer reading books with strong and fierce female characters, but they get tired too sometimes. They can't always be strong. Or fierce. They can't always be happy. Or brave. They're just a manifestation of human beings who also become tired sometimes. Tired of life. Tired of people. Tired of themselves. And who also lose hope sometimes. Hope in life. Hope in people. Hope in themselves.
Isis Blake, Jack Hunter, Sophia, Avery, Wren... Every single character in that book is different. They have different backgrounds that have shaped them into the people they have become. They have different reasons to be who they are. And maybe they don't know those reasons. Maybe they do. But I feel like I can't quite judge any of them for the way they reacted to every single thing that has happened in the three books. I can't really call them out for their mistakes, for their recklessness, or for anything that I thought was not the right thing to do.
The books made me laugh and then cry in a matter of seconds. They made me think way too deeply about things. They made me see life in a different perspective. They made me see people in a different perspective.
•••
"And when he comes back. I will behead him," I announce.
"You'll greet him," Kayla says sternly. "With a hug."
"I will greet him with a hug. To his torso. Which will be missing a head."
•••
Some of you may think that I'm looking way too deeply into it but I'm honestly just voicing out what I felt.
I liked the books. The plot had all sorts of twists. Some of which I saw coming. But I mostly just enjoyed getting to know all the characters, who were genuinely a mess. They all had their share of problems. They all made bad choices that cost them a lot. They all had a dark past. They all had dark secrets. Secrets that kept haunting them for years.
I think such bookish characters highlight the importance of trying to understand people by not judging them too quickly. Everyone has untold stories of pain and sadness that make them live and love a little differently. It's hard to fit in and feel like we belong. It's hard to accept and love ourselves. It's all just so hard. But it's not impossible. It takes time. Especially with a dark past like Isis' and Jack's, for instance. So understanding others and not wishing them pain is really the best thing we could do.
Overall, the book made me feel all sorts of emotions. And I like books that make me feel like I'm on a rollercoaster ride. I honestly haven't laughed as much as I have or felt my heart melt as much as it had in any other book. I even cried a little. Thank you Isis Blake. Thank you Jack Hunter.
And thank you Sara Wolf for portraying how messed up life and people can be. And how any solution to any problem always comes from within.
This may not be your typical kind of review but I honestly felt like writing this somewhere. If you end up reading it, thank you.
•••
"A single flame from Isis's lips and I'm reminded of our war, our words, our bond. I want to kiss her. I want to kiss her as she turns me to ash."
In the nuts.
With steel-toed boots."
•••
After reading this book, I've realized that I can't really judge a character based off my likes and dislikes.
Yes, I do prefer reading books with strong and fierce female characters, but they get tired too sometimes. They can't always be strong. Or fierce. They can't always be happy. Or brave. They're just a manifestation of human beings who also become tired sometimes. Tired of life. Tired of people. Tired of themselves. And who also lose hope sometimes. Hope in life. Hope in people. Hope in themselves.
Isis Blake, Jack Hunter, Sophia, Avery, Wren... Every single character in that book is different. They have different backgrounds that have shaped them into the people they have become. They have different reasons to be who they are. And maybe they don't know those reasons. Maybe they do. But I feel like I can't quite judge any of them for the way they reacted to every single thing that has happened in the three books. I can't really call them out for their mistakes, for their recklessness, or for anything that I thought was not the right thing to do.
The books made me laugh and then cry in a matter of seconds. They made me think way too deeply about things. They made me see life in a different perspective. They made me see people in a different perspective.
•••
"And when he comes back. I will behead him," I announce.
"You'll greet him," Kayla says sternly. "With a hug."
"I will greet him with a hug. To his torso. Which will be missing a head."
•••
Some of you may think that I'm looking way too deeply into it but I'm honestly just voicing out what I felt.
I liked the books. The plot had all sorts of twists. Some of which I saw coming. But I mostly just enjoyed getting to know all the characters, who were genuinely a mess. They all had their share of problems. They all made bad choices that cost them a lot. They all had a dark past. They all had dark secrets. Secrets that kept haunting them for years.
I think such bookish characters highlight the importance of trying to understand people by not judging them too quickly. Everyone has untold stories of pain and sadness that make them live and love a little differently. It's hard to fit in and feel like we belong. It's hard to accept and love ourselves. It's all just so hard. But it's not impossible. It takes time. Especially with a dark past like Isis' and Jack's, for instance. So understanding others and not wishing them pain is really the best thing we could do.
Overall, the book made me feel all sorts of emotions. And I like books that make me feel like I'm on a rollercoaster ride. I honestly haven't laughed as much as I have or felt my heart melt as much as it had in any other book. I even cried a little. Thank you Isis Blake. Thank you Jack Hunter.
And thank you Sara Wolf for portraying how messed up life and people can be. And how any solution to any problem always comes from within.
This may not be your typical kind of review but I honestly felt like writing this somewhere. If you end up reading it, thank you.
•••
"A single flame from Isis's lips and I'm reminded of our war, our words, our bond. I want to kiss her. I want to kiss her as she turns me to ash."
Confess by Colleen Hoover
5.0
"She seems a lot like me. A loner, a thinker, an artist with her life."
[a:Colleen Hoover|5430144|Colleen Hoover|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1464032240p2/5430144.jpg] never seizes to surprise me. I've read - no, devoured most of her books so far and every single one holds a special place in my heart.
The story-line in [b:Confess|34324605|Confess|Colleen Hoover|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1488107498l/34324605._SY75_.jpg|42099145] caught my attention the most. How Owen, an artist, gets his inspiration from anonymous confessions people leave for him in his studio is just very interesting. He chooses a confession and based on what's written, he paints something he thinks relates to it. He basically turns words into art. I also love the fact that, in my edition of the book, there are pictures of every single painting mentioned in the chapters. This alone brings the story to life. And the fact that each confession mentioned is actually a real life one makes the plot much more realistic.
"Some secrets should never turn into confessions."
The story continues after their first encounter, revealing several secrets and new characters along the way. To be honest though, I did see most of the events coming. So you could say it was easy to put two and two together if you really want to think about it and try to analyze what might happen next. But I did still spend my time screaming at the pages of the book trying to fix everything and knock some sense into the character's heads.
When you first start reading and getting to know more about Owen, you'd for a second think he was a creepy guy with a lot of dangerous secrets. At least I did. That's how it feels like reading a Colleen Hoover book: you'd start doubting every single character, the protagonists first and foremost, then try to tie the events together to come up with a conclusion because everything and everyone end up being related in the end.
Auburn's character showed that every person faces internal battles that are sometimes hard to get through alone. But then again, no one is ever alone in this world. And no problem is left unsolved.
My favorite scenes would be the ones between Owen and Auburn because they're honestly the cutest. My favorite chapters are the last two (chapter 24 and the epilogue). Both these chapters hold the answers to every single question you might've asked yourself while reading. My favorite character would be Emory, Auburn's roommate. She has this kind of vibe that shows you she's a really good person without you even having to speak to her.
"No one deserves you like I do.
No one sees you like I do.
No one understands you the way I do.
No one makes your heart beat like I do."
In summary, the book brought me to tears, made me laugh, tested my detective skills, broke my heart into pieces, and finally brought a smile to my face.
It basically showed how fate has its ways to bring two people together. So if it's meant to be, it will be
"You deserve me, Owen."
"And you deserve me, Auburn."
[a:Colleen Hoover|5430144|Colleen Hoover|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1464032240p2/5430144.jpg] never seizes to surprise me. I've read - no, devoured most of her books so far and every single one holds a special place in my heart.
The story-line in [b:Confess|34324605|Confess|Colleen Hoover|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1488107498l/34324605._SY75_.jpg|42099145] caught my attention the most. How Owen, an artist, gets his inspiration from anonymous confessions people leave for him in his studio is just very interesting. He chooses a confession and based on what's written, he paints something he thinks relates to it. He basically turns words into art. I also love the fact that, in my edition of the book, there are pictures of every single painting mentioned in the chapters. This alone brings the story to life. And the fact that each confession mentioned is actually a real life one makes the plot much more realistic.
"Some secrets should never turn into confessions."
The story continues after their first encounter, revealing several secrets and new characters along the way. To be honest though, I did see most of the events coming. So you could say it was easy to put two and two together if you really want to think about it and try to analyze what might happen next. But I did still spend my time screaming at the pages of the book trying to fix everything and knock some sense into the character's heads.
When you first start reading and getting to know more about Owen, you'd for a second think he was a creepy guy with a lot of dangerous secrets. At least I did. That's how it feels like reading a Colleen Hoover book: you'd start doubting every single character, the protagonists first and foremost, then try to tie the events together to come up with a conclusion because everything and everyone end up being related in the end.
Auburn's character showed that every person faces internal battles that are sometimes hard to get through alone. But then again, no one is ever alone in this world. And no problem is left unsolved.
My favorite scenes would be the ones between Owen and Auburn because they're honestly the cutest. My favorite chapters are the last two (chapter 24 and the epilogue). Both these chapters hold the answers to every single question you might've asked yourself while reading. My favorite character would be Emory, Auburn's roommate. She has this kind of vibe that shows you she's a really good person without you even having to speak to her.
"No one deserves you like I do.
No one sees you like I do.
No one understands you the way I do.
No one makes your heart beat like I do."
In summary, the book brought me to tears, made me laugh, tested my detective skills, broke my heart into pieces, and finally brought a smile to my face.
It basically showed how fate has its ways to bring two people together. So if it's meant to be, it will be
"You deserve me, Owen."
"And you deserve me, Auburn."
Cain by Lane Hart
1.0
I'm not going to give this book a proper review because I didn't even finish it. I kept forcing myself to read one more chapter, hoping it would get better, but it didn't. The writing style was weak, something I wouldn't usually enjoy reading. The book is supposedly about an MMA fighter, Cain, yet the scenes with fights are barely one paragraph long. The characters I'm not a fan of. The only thing that was good-ish was the cover. So that earned the book 1 star. I feel bad for wasting my day trying to read through it.
Sorry to all those who enjoyed the book, but it was not my cup of tea. At all.
Sorry to all those who enjoyed the book, but it was not my cup of tea. At all.