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cp_frey's review against another edition
2.0
I will be the first to say Ellen Hopkins always has my hands gripping her books, but this just didn't do it for me. I was very disappointed. As a best friend of an "army wife" it just didn't seem realistic at all. I felt very annoyed with the main character. It seemed her biggest concern was whether or not she should cheat on this guy who is serving our country. Not only that but with how unhappy she became with him she still said yes to his proposal!! I also hated how Ellen made him go bat shit crazy once he came home. That doesn't happen to every soldier... but if that's how she felt she wanted to end the book I would have been much happier if this was a book about him not her. I want to know WHY he came home like that. I feel more for him than I did the girl who was at home acting like a child. That being said, what he did at the end was completely uncalled for and I don't stand up for woman beaters under any circumstance.
caitlindee's review against another edition
3.0
This was pretty good. I liked the whole plot and how it kept going being present and flashbacks, and the occasional poem from Cole. I really didn't like him as a character though, and for me, his relationship with Ashley was never something I saw as healthy. They were both so different, that it seemed odd that they ended up together in the first place. I'm glad that it ended the way it did in the flash forward though.
fauvely's review against another edition
3.0
Collateral was about a woman in a relationship with a soldier. It is told in Ellen Hopkins signature verse style. It was the first adult book I've read by her and I had mixed feelings.
On one hand, I can't exactly fault her writing style. It is effective and I love how you are exposed to all the feelings of the main character. On the other hand, I found myself slightly annoyed by the verse style at times. I just felt like there wasn't enough actual style to it. I don't mind when poems don't rhyme but when you write a whole book in poem format, I kind of expect it to feel like poetry. It didn't really feel like proper poetry to me. I didn't think it was bad. I just thought it was lacking that little something extra.
I think it might be that I've read a number of this author's books and I'm so used to the style that it's beginning to seem gimmicky. However, if you haven't read anything by this author, you may adore her writing style.
I will say that it was a very interesting book. The relationship between Ashley and Cole was like fire and ice. You can see how volatile they are together and all you can do is keep reading.
I don't think this would be a good choice for women who are in a relationship with a soldier. The author seems to be showing the worst possible side to this kind of relationship. Personally, I enjoyed it for this reason because I find it hard to understand why anyone would want to put themselves through this kind of pain.
It was a pretty quick read for such a thick book because of the writing style. It was good but I think I prefer her Y.A titles. If you love Ellen Hopkins or verse style novels, you'll probably love this.
(Thanks to Edelweiss for providing me with a copy in exchange for my honest opinion.)
On one hand, I can't exactly fault her writing style. It is effective and I love how you are exposed to all the feelings of the main character. On the other hand, I found myself slightly annoyed by the verse style at times. I just felt like there wasn't enough actual style to it. I don't mind when poems don't rhyme but when you write a whole book in poem format, I kind of expect it to feel like poetry. It didn't really feel like proper poetry to me. I didn't think it was bad. I just thought it was lacking that little something extra.
I think it might be that I've read a number of this author's books and I'm so used to the style that it's beginning to seem gimmicky. However, if you haven't read anything by this author, you may adore her writing style.
I will say that it was a very interesting book. The relationship between Ashley and Cole was like fire and ice. You can see how volatile they are together and all you can do is keep reading.
I don't think this would be a good choice for women who are in a relationship with a soldier. The author seems to be showing the worst possible side to this kind of relationship. Personally, I enjoyed it for this reason because I find it hard to understand why anyone would want to put themselves through this kind of pain.
It was a pretty quick read for such a thick book because of the writing style. It was good but I think I prefer her Y.A titles. If you love Ellen Hopkins or verse style novels, you'll probably love this.
(Thanks to Edelweiss for providing me with a copy in exchange for my honest opinion.)
vtsonos's review against another edition
4.0
This book surprised me, as it wasn't what I thought it was going to be. First of all, like all of Ellen Hopkins writing, it was perfection. Her poetry is absolutely stunning, and she has the most beautiful prose I have ever read. I loved that there were little inserts of poetry written by Cole and Ashley; it made them seem more real to me. However, I was slightly disappointing by the plot. there were too many flashbacks that caused the actual present story to move along at an incredibly slow pace, and the climax that I was waiting for didn't happen until the very end, and I mean the last 10 pages, and when it did happen it was done and over in 3 pages. After that, the story just ended, which made it incredibly rushed, and I had to double check to make sure that my copy wasn't missing any pages. The ending was just so extremely unsatisfying, it made me really sad. I did not like Cole's character at all, he made my skin crawl and the things he said just made me so mad, and Ashley's reactions just made me want to shake her. I did like Ashley's transformation and growth throughout the book, and ultimately she made the right choices and redeemed herself at the end. I kind of wish that there was a sequel for this so that I could get more and not be stuck with the ending of this one. I feel like this was a very unique story of real life situations that happen all the time, and I have never been around situations like these, which made it all very unique and interesting to read about. Overall, I enjoyed it, I just can't get over that ending though!
caidyn's review against another edition
3.0
For me, this wasn't my favorite Ellen Hopkins book. The subject interested me with the army, mainly because I rarely read things focused around it. And hearing that it had to do with PTSD really sparked my interest since I've always been fascinated with things like that, anything to do with changes in the brain really. But there was too much unexplained for my liking, too much that was just left open that I didn't know how to feel about. I was wanting more from it than I had gotten.
The story was crafted well in the sense of Cole, but other than that it didn't really tie together. The mother with the story of her father and the murder-suicide didn't really seem to have too much to do with anything besides foreshadow what Cole did in the end. Darian and Spencer were there but weren't really, slightly foreshadowing with Darian talking about, more of hinting at, Spencer hitting her. The only character that I felt was full of what the story needed was Cole, but I disliked him through the whole thing because of how much the viewpoints I have differ strongly from his.
I wish that the story had been in a straight line, maybe focusing more on the present than in the past. I did love the background information that brought how their relationship was to life, but I really wish it had been in the beginning rather scattered throughout the whole book to have things that would have made sense earlier brought to light much later.
But, as always, the poetry was beautiful. The only part I personally liked of Cole was his poetry and how much it brought his character to life. I think that I would have liked this story more if it had been from his viewpoint, to really accent a soldier and PTSD, as well as maybe made him a bit more likable to me. Each poem that he wrote brought to life war to me. And I don't know a lot of war. My parents aren't in the military and neither are any of my family members that I'm specifically close to.
This is one story that I do think could have used a bit more but was, in its own way, touching to the heart in seeing a soldier trying to cope with coming back by choosing a bad and violent way.
The story was crafted well in the sense of Cole, but other than that it didn't really tie together. The mother with the story of her father and the murder-suicide didn't really seem to have too much to do with anything besides foreshadow what Cole did in the end. Darian and Spencer were there but weren't really, slightly foreshadowing with Darian talking about, more of hinting at, Spencer hitting her. The only character that I felt was full of what the story needed was Cole, but I disliked him through the whole thing because of how much the viewpoints I have differ strongly from his.
I wish that the story had been in a straight line, maybe focusing more on the present than in the past. I did love the background information that brought how their relationship was to life, but I really wish it had been in the beginning rather scattered throughout the whole book to have things that would have made sense earlier brought to light much later.
But, as always, the poetry was beautiful. The only part I personally liked of Cole was his poetry and how much it brought his character to life. I think that I would have liked this story more if it had been from his viewpoint, to really accent a soldier and PTSD, as well as maybe made him a bit more likable to me. Each poem that he wrote brought to life war to me. And I don't know a lot of war. My parents aren't in the military and neither are any of my family members that I'm specifically close to.
This is one story that I do think could have used a bit more but was, in its own way, touching to the heart in seeing a soldier trying to cope with coming back by choosing a bad and violent way.
samid12's review against another edition
2.0
This book did not suspend my disbelief. Ashley and Cole's relationship did not seem real and neither did other relationships throughout the book. Every single person she ran into had something to do with the war which I think is pretty unlikely. The narrator, Ashley, was incredibly annoying and irrational. Ughhh.
aubreysmith9412's review against another edition
5.0
Brilliant. This book is Ellen Hopkins' second venture into adult fiction. And I loved every page. It's a rare glimpse that most people don't see into the lives of those who are left behind by their loved ones who serve in some faction of the military. As with all her books, the events detailed are drawn from real-life sources, which makes the entire reading experience so much more raw and emotionally demanding. This is certainly a side I haven't seen before, nor have I really ever considered. I steer away from most things war and military related. I could not fathom the pain, anxiety, and suffering these families have to go through. I do not wish it on myself, or anyone else that I love and care about. This book definitely opened my eyes to the struggles that returning veterans must face at all times. Often, there isn't any help available for them when they need it. This book delves into that first hand. It is, indeed, a fascinating tale of the possibilities this kind of life can hold.
kellyhager's review against another edition
5.0
As with all of Ellen Hopkins' books, Collateral is a novel in verse. It's about Ashley, a young student at San Diego University. Her life is going along about like she expected until she meets Cole, who's in the Marines. They immediately hit it off (and have seriously intense sex) and manage to stay together through four deployments. Now Cole wants to get married and Ashley loves him but she also has met this other guy, someone with a similar background and could give her a life outside of the military-centered one she's currently living.
And as with all of Hopkins' books, this one is amazing. It's intense and heartbreaking and amazing. I have friends who are with people in the military (some retired, some still on active duty) and I always wonder exactly how they do it. How they handle being constantly left behind and having to run an entire household by themselves and then surrender the reins and not be the only person in charge once the soldier returns home. I'm pretty sure that it's not something I could do. But, as Ashley points out, you don't really get a say in who you fall in love with.
One of my favorite themes in literature is the idea of the road not taken. In this case, it comes down to the choice between life with Cole and life with Jonah. And, of course, there's also the idea of how war can change you---because how can it NOT?
So yes, another great book from Ellen Hopkins. I'm incredibly sad that there won't be another one until summer, but that one is a sequel to Burned so it'll be worth the wait.
And as with all of Hopkins' books, this one is amazing. It's intense and heartbreaking and amazing. I have friends who are with people in the military (some retired, some still on active duty) and I always wonder exactly how they do it. How they handle being constantly left behind and having to run an entire household by themselves and then surrender the reins and not be the only person in charge once the soldier returns home. I'm pretty sure that it's not something I could do. But, as Ashley points out, you don't really get a say in who you fall in love with.
One of my favorite themes in literature is the idea of the road not taken. In this case, it comes down to the choice between life with Cole and life with Jonah. And, of course, there's also the idea of how war can change you---because how can it NOT?
So yes, another great book from Ellen Hopkins. I'm incredibly sad that there won't be another one until summer, but that one is a sequel to Burned so it'll be worth the wait.
pages_and_procrastination's review against another edition
4.0
I am a long-time fan of Ellen Hopkins. Unfrotunately, I discovered her before all of her books were out. So, in the process of waiting, I have fallen behind. Yes, I started with her young adult novels and Collateral is her second adult book. Of course, this is written in verse. Which creates a different and intimate rhythm to the entire story. I wasn't disappointed with this one. It was a loving and heartbreaking look into the life of a soldier and the people who choose to love them. My dad was an Army man. By the time I came along he was in the reserves. I was a full fledged adult before he was pulled out of the reserves and into active duty. He was shipped overseas to Iraq, and when he came back he was different. He was still the man that I knew and loved, but his time over there changed him. But then again, the army had already changed him. He had fought in the Vietnam war when he was younger-right at 18 I believe. So I can relate with the possibilities of the effects of war, but not directly.
War changes all soldiers, young or old. There are bits of Ashley, Celine and Darian in all women who chooses to love a soldier. There are pieces of Cole, Luke and Spencer in every soldier. Yes, every soldier is capable of brutal, callous, violence. But not every soldier wraps themselves in the violence. Every soldier's story is different, no matter how similar the experiences. Ashley's story is mixed with love, beauty, pain and self-discovery. Hopkins did an excellent job of telling her story with all of the ugliness, beauty, faith and uncertainty that comes with loving a soldier.
War changes all soldiers, young or old. There are bits of Ashley, Celine and Darian in all women who chooses to love a soldier. There are pieces of Cole, Luke and Spencer in every soldier. Yes, every soldier is capable of brutal, callous, violence. But not every soldier wraps themselves in the violence. Every soldier's story is different, no matter how similar the experiences. Ashley's story is mixed with love, beauty, pain and self-discovery. Hopkins did an excellent job of telling her story with all of the ugliness, beauty, faith and uncertainty that comes with loving a soldier.
nattyj21's review against another edition
3.0
Some aspects of this book I loved. I loved how it was written and the writing style of Ellen Hopkins. However, some parts of the book annoyed me. It was definitely up and down (story wise) for me.
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