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A review by cala_p
The Girl and Her Ren by Pepper Winters
5.0
It’s taken me two days to be able to write this review…and I still am finding it difficult to write a review worthy of this book. There are not enough combinations of the letters in the English alphabet to be able to do justice to either of the Ribbon Duet books.
Upon starting the first book, I had a sneaky suspicion the series would end like this..I was just hoping it wouldn’t pan out. The heartbreak I felt in book 1 was nothing compared to what I felt in this book. It begins sad, gets crazy happy, all to be brought back down again. But saying that, I wouldn’t take any of it back at all. This book—this series—is about love, loss, survival, finding oneself, and this book gives exactly that. The love that Della and Ren share is something that I can’t even describe; the loss they went through alone and together; surviving years with a child to raise, and then afterwards when she could look after herself, still being able to survive without legal papers; and lastly their ability to find themselves through all this which brought them back to each other.
When I tried to describe this book to people, I don’t praise the plot as much as the characters. And that is NOT because I do not love the plot—oh I do!—but what makes the plot are Della and Ren. The emotions that these two evoke in the reader are insane. If someone can read this book without being in tears whatsoever, I praise them for their strength, because it is impossible. Even the happy, love moments breaks your heart and brings tears for the true emotion that they bring out. It is insane how much I lost myself in Della and Ren. By the end of the book, when I lifted my head from the words, I forgot where in the world I was.
For hours after finishing, my eyes burned from the tears. Shortly after, I was exhausted from literally crying myself out. It felt like I was in Della’s place. I have read most of Pepper Winters’ other books and to be frank, I did not know she had it in her. Originally I read Unseen Messages, and that was super sad, but I got into her other novels soon after and with all the darkness, UM seemed like a one-off. The sadness from UM was NOTHING compared to these books. Sadness is actually a bad word to use. I meant emotion. The emotions brought forth in the Ribbon Duet was something Pepper has been hiding under her dark romances. Despite the journey the reader is brought through in this book, I commend her so much for the ending. While it is happy, it is full of heartbreak, and she took a massive risk in doing so, but it worked for these books. Given the journey Della and Ren went through and the years of fighting one another, it was almost appropriate to end how it did. I think what really got me was the fact that the issue was there from the beginning, so since Ren ran away from the farm it was all a domino affect.
I’ve talked so much about the writing of this book, I need to mention the actual story of The Girl and Her Ren. I loved it. The pace was so perfect, where Ren’s absence lasted long enough but did not drag out into the rest of the book. We saw familiar faces from book 1, and I was so happy they were brought back. I loved reading about the different relationships and friendships that bloomed from then on. And finally, the blast to the past. Without giving much away, I will say a lot of my questions from book 1 was answered regarding Della’s family and I was happy Pepper didn’t brush past it all and forgo bringing it to light because the past is what gave Della and Ren their future…Literally. You’ll see what I mean when reading. It allowed them to be completely together. Their chemistry through this book was even more than the first and I can’t see any author creating a more perfect couple.
I’d like to say other words than besides “I loved it” but honestly, how do you describe perfection? I can’t wait to do a back to back reread of these two in paperback. Every little while, there is a new “best ever” book that we all claim. But the Ribbon Duet is a category of its own. I don’t think no book ever will ever top the level of emotions in these books, nor drag the reader into its pages with the intensity of this one. Basically what I am saying is that I think this will be the top of the top of the top favorite books and I do not see any book topping it. I took two days to be able to put feelings into words, and even now as I write this it’s all coming back to me and I feel like crying. Della and Ren will forever be my favorite.
If there is anyone who gives these books under a 4 star, I would love to know why. If there is anyone who does not cry through these books, I’d love to know how.
Thank you to the author for the ARC of this book.
Upon starting the first book, I had a sneaky suspicion the series would end like this..I was just hoping it wouldn’t pan out. The heartbreak I felt in book 1 was nothing compared to what I felt in this book. It begins sad, gets crazy happy, all to be brought back down again. But saying that, I wouldn’t take any of it back at all. This book—this series—is about love, loss, survival, finding oneself, and this book gives exactly that. The love that Della and Ren share is something that I can’t even describe; the loss they went through alone and together; surviving years with a child to raise, and then afterwards when she could look after herself, still being able to survive without legal papers; and lastly their ability to find themselves through all this which brought them back to each other.
When I tried to describe this book to people, I don’t praise the plot as much as the characters. And that is NOT because I do not love the plot—oh I do!—but what makes the plot are Della and Ren. The emotions that these two evoke in the reader are insane. If someone can read this book without being in tears whatsoever, I praise them for their strength, because it is impossible. Even the happy, love moments breaks your heart and brings tears for the true emotion that they bring out. It is insane how much I lost myself in Della and Ren. By the end of the book, when I lifted my head from the words, I forgot where in the world I was.
For hours after finishing, my eyes burned from the tears. Shortly after, I was exhausted from literally crying myself out. It felt like I was in Della’s place. I have read most of Pepper Winters’ other books and to be frank, I did not know she had it in her. Originally I read Unseen Messages, and that was super sad, but I got into her other novels soon after and with all the darkness, UM seemed like a one-off. The sadness from UM was NOTHING compared to these books. Sadness is actually a bad word to use. I meant emotion. The emotions brought forth in the Ribbon Duet was something Pepper has been hiding under her dark romances. Despite the journey the reader is brought through in this book, I commend her so much for the ending. While it is happy, it is full of heartbreak, and she took a massive risk in doing so, but it worked for these books. Given the journey Della and Ren went through and the years of fighting one another, it was almost appropriate to end how it did. I think what really got me was the fact that the issue was there from the beginning, so since Ren ran away from the farm it was all a domino affect.
I’ve talked so much about the writing of this book, I need to mention the actual story of The Girl and Her Ren. I loved it. The pace was so perfect, where Ren’s absence lasted long enough but did not drag out into the rest of the book. We saw familiar faces from book 1, and I was so happy they were brought back. I loved reading about the different relationships and friendships that bloomed from then on. And finally, the blast to the past. Without giving much away, I will say a lot of my questions from book 1 was answered regarding Della’s family and I was happy Pepper didn’t brush past it all and forgo bringing it to light because the past is what gave Della and Ren their future…Literally. You’ll see what I mean when reading. It allowed them to be completely together. Their chemistry through this book was even more than the first and I can’t see any author creating a more perfect couple.
I’d like to say other words than besides “I loved it” but honestly, how do you describe perfection? I can’t wait to do a back to back reread of these two in paperback. Every little while, there is a new “best ever” book that we all claim. But the Ribbon Duet is a category of its own. I don’t think no book ever will ever top the level of emotions in these books, nor drag the reader into its pages with the intensity of this one. Basically what I am saying is that I think this will be the top of the top of the top favorite books and I do not see any book topping it. I took two days to be able to put feelings into words, and even now as I write this it’s all coming back to me and I feel like crying. Della and Ren will forever be my favorite.
If there is anyone who gives these books under a 4 star, I would love to know why. If there is anyone who does not cry through these books, I’d love to know how.
Thank you to the author for the ARC of this book.