A review by pages_and_procrastination
Collateral by Ellen Hopkins

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.