Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
4 stars! I adored this book. I tend to enjoy Katie McGarry’s books and this one certainly surpassed my already high expectations. The story tugged on my heart strings and I fell in love with all the characters. I loved both Drix and Elle’s personalities and enjoyed watching them overcome their struggles together.
3.5 Stars
This was okay. I liked it. I really liked Drix and Elle in this story. Both of their characters were great.
This was okay. I liked it. I really liked Drix and Elle in this story. Both of their characters were great.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A book about starcrossed lovers. A boy born on the wrong side of town and falling prey to the sins of his upbringing and a girl with her picture perfect life and a road painted for her. It was bound to be a disaster from the beginning but sometimes beauty comes from a collision.
Ellison and Hendrix are the sweetest and cutest book couple. Not only were they able to overcome their social distance but they were able to prove everyone wrong about who they thought they were, they defined their odds and proved that they were both, together and individually, stronger and braver than what everyone thought they were.
Their relationship was so pure because it was based on learning the truth about each other and not turning away when things got ugly. The book also shows what it means to be a family by blood and by choice, what it means to truly stand for what you believe in and to take the leap of faith and courage to be who you want to be.
This was truly a book that held so much more meaning which is inevitably what live was all about. The truth about adulthood and how your choices affect who you are and who you’ll become.
Favourite quote: “Pride. I get it, because pride is my favourite sin.”
Ellison and Hendrix are the sweetest and cutest book couple. Not only were they able to overcome their social distance but they were able to prove everyone wrong about who they thought they were, they defined their odds and proved that they were both, together and individually, stronger and braver than what everyone thought they were.
Their relationship was so pure because it was based on learning the truth about each other and not turning away when things got ugly. The book also shows what it means to be a family by blood and by choice, what it means to truly stand for what you believe in and to take the leap of faith and courage to be who you want to be.
This was truly a book that held so much more meaning which is inevitably what live was all about. The truth about adulthood and how your choices affect who you are and who you’ll become.
Favourite quote: “Pride. I get it, because pride is my favourite sin.”
TW: drugs, alcohol, abuse (by parents and in a r/s), death of animal
Okay, so I’m really sad to rate this this low, but I’ve been trying to read it for MONTHS, DNFed it, and finally forced myself to trudge through it. While I would recommend a lot of Katie McGarry’s other novels, this one was just lack luster from me :(
challenging
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
*** mild spoilers ahead***
The premise was really promising however, the story went on a different direction than I had hoped. This book could have been a poignant story about second chances, innocent convicts, manipulative parents, children from broken or unstable families but it was more about the romance. There were some instances which depicted these sensitive issues in its true sense still it was not enough for me.
I loved Hendrix. His character was very well written; reader could feel his thoughts and emotions. Compared to him, Elle's character felt flat. I wish her character was more fleshed out. Personally, I really loved the ending and how it all turned out. Although, if the execution was better, this would have been one of my favorite reads of the year.
The premise was really promising however, the story went on a different direction than I had hoped. This book could have been a poignant story about second chances, innocent convicts, manipulative parents, children from broken or unstable families but it was more about the romance. There were some instances which depicted these sensitive issues in its true sense still it was not enough for me.
I loved Hendrix. His character was very well written; reader could feel his thoughts and emotions. Compared to him, Elle's character felt flat. I wish her character was more fleshed out. Personally, I really loved the ending and how it all turned out. Although, if the execution was better, this would have been one of my favorite reads of the year.
“Amazing things are going to happen because that’s what happens when you find your wings and finally fly.”
March 14th, 2020:
The day before my state went into lockdown, one of the last stores I went to was Barnes and Noble... It seemed like a typical Saturday (little did I know it would be the last normal one), just me browsing through the YA section, throwing mystery books into my shopping basket, my Mom pestering me that we'd been here for over an hour, and we had to go soon (How dare she take me out of my serenity!). I never planned on buying a romance book, only eight months ago (8 MONTHS!? Quarantine is a blur!), I read quite literally nothing but mysteries. But then, I saw this beautiful cover... Purple ombre, ferris wheel silhouette, shining on the bottom shelf. A hidden star... I bought it, based on it's cover...
But then, I made a huge mistake...
It sat on my shelf for the next 8 months, slowly accumulating dust. It wasn't until a week ago, that I finally picked it up. I decided to give it a chance.
And oh my gosh, I am so glad I did, and I'm so glad I judged this book by its cover. This is a new favorite, in fact you'll all gasp when I say this: (view spoiler)
Onto the book itself!
To start off, this is a YA novel that follows two characters, Drix, and Elle.
Elle is the governor's daughter, and she's always had to live a life planned out for her by her parents. Her parents have morphed her into someone she's not for the last 18 years. Dresses, makeup, perfect manners, bright white teeth, almost like a princess-style life. On the inside, Elle is someone else. She can still be kind, but be her smart, snarky, sarcastic, hilarious, fun-loving self. However, she pushes this side away, to please her parents. But then, she meets Drix.
Drix has had a messed up life. He was a mistake. His parents don't love him. He's made a lot of mistakes. He used to be a "bad-boy." Rude, uncaring, bitter, failing school, and mean. We all have our negative traits, but when you take all those traits together, he really wasn't a good guy. But one of the mistakes, wasn't his fault. Just a year ago, he was convicted of an armed robbery. And even though he didn't do it, the justice system is unfair. He had two choices. Plead guilty, go to rehab and go to juvie, or, tell the truth, plead innocent, go to adult prison. Drix knows he wasn't perfect, nowhere near it. But, he knows he didn't do the crime. He was framed.
However, just a year later, a year after pleading guilty, the governor of Kentucky (Elle's dad) opens a new passage-way. The Second Chance Program. An opportunity for juvenile delinquents to learn from their mistakes and turn their ways around. Drix gets this chance at a fresh start. He accepts.
And soon after, even with the consequences, Elle and Drix meet, and fall in love.
💜❤️🧡🖤💜❤️🧡🖤💜❤️🧡🖤💜❤️🧡🖤❤️🧡💜
Let's just talk about the characters. Elle was one of THE BEST characters I have ever read about, in fact, maybe the best. I could relate to her so much, and I found a lot of my personality overlapping hers, for good and bad. We both are loving, smart, and break gender-barriers. However, I know we both can get a little too carried away trying to defend ourselves, have a hard time understanding others and our own feelings, and sometimes we can say at the wrong times. Sorry, this is getting way too deep! But really, I can thank Elle for this book being placed on my favorites shelf.
Drix was so sweet. He was a perfect example on why it's not always a good thing to judge people based off only their past, instead of who they are now. You don't know their story! Drix was protective, tough, and pessimistic, but he was a true softie on the inside. He was loving, comforting, and would do anything for the people he loved. Even though i couldn't relate to him as much as I could to Elle, I felt sympathy for him so intensely.
The side-characters?
Andrew can be sent off to outer-space. He was a carbon-copy of Elle's parents... He did exactly what was told of him, even when it hurt other people.
Elle's parents... I was so angry at them. Her Mom was very sexist, snotty, and fake. She treated Elle like a toddler. Elle's Dad, the governor, definitely made his own mistakes. He had a hard time understanding how his actions would affect others, and often was too quick at making judgements. He and Elle actually had very similar personalities, and I think that's why they got so fed up with each other. But, by the end, I had respect for Elle's Dad, he developed a lot throughout the story.
Holiday was a very sweet character. She had trouble letting go of things, and was very sensitive, but she was loving, understanding, and compassionate. A perfect friend for when you feel like crying or need a hug. Elle, being a more analytical person, didn't always understand Holiday, but they got along so greatly.
Am I missing anyone? The other characters were very minor, but written well.
---
The romance... Elle and Drix were just adorable. The were similar, understood each other, and loved each other so deeply. I was afraid this was going to be a steamy romance book, but luckily I was wrong.
This was also so much more than a cutesy romance book (Sorry Tweet Cute!) Just so many themes, lessons, relationships, character-development, emotion, etc.
There wasn't one specific theme, but here are a lot of them:
♥️ Don't judge people just based off their past ♥️ Be yourself ♥️ Don't let anyone tell you you can't do something just because of your gender ♥️ Love who you love ♥️ Follow your dreams, not someone else's ♥️ Forgive those who are sorry! ♥️ Try your best to be understanding ♥️ Life's a rollercoaster ♥️
What else? The writing flowed very well, and I feel as if the author used a lot of her own experiences in this book.
And last, but not least, I have something to admit... This book... made me cry a little bit... Well, twice. One, out of overall emotion, because this was so powerful and moving, but right as I was done tearing up about that... something so heartbreaking happened. I'm not going to spoil it for everyone, but (view spoiler) So yeah, I'm not usually the person to cry in YA books, but this one broke me.
So, in conclusion, this was amazing. It made me cry, it taught me many things, the characters were so complex and relatable, the story was deep and emotional, there were some funny and cute parts, some happy and sad parts, and so much more that words cannot describe.
Every teen needs to read this!
“I understand trying to please someone you thinks loves you. To keep that love, you keep twisting and bending yourself to become who they want you to be until you eventually break. There’s a hole in them, a hole they need filled, and they want you to become the circle that will fit into them to make them complete, even though you’re a square. It’s an awful place to be, the person responsible for someone else’s happiness, because being human, we’re going to fail. And by being human, we’ll take the lashing when we never meet expectations.”
“I hate the word beautiful. Hate it. The word beautiful somehow gives the world permission to make wrongful assumptions about me, like that I don't have a brain. Beautiful somehow gives men permission to say the phrase as a secret password in my direction, and I should therefore fall at their feet. Beautiful makes people believe they can say anything they want about or to me and that I shouldn't be angry. Nothing in the universe could be more wrong.”
“What is this, Drix?” I whisper. “What is this between us?” “I don’t know,” he says against by neck. “But I’m not ready to let it go yet.”
yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
idk what to write
but this was SOOOO GOOD
so sad and cute
and a very "refreshing" read
I loved this, but I would still say that tweet cute was better ;)
idk what to write
but this was SOOOO GOOD
so sad and cute
and a very "refreshing" read
I loved this, but I would still say that tweet cute was better ;)