Book Review: The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks

The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

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One, two, three...

Everyone, raise and clap!

“If there is a heaven, we will find each other again, for there is no heaven without you.”

(Ira Levinson; Ch. XXX, The Longest Ride)

Excuse me while I do this…

There are times when I don’t know what to put on my review because I’m afraid that my lame words would ruin the perfectness of the book. Today is one of them. Nicholas Sparks is by all odds my favorite author forever. Even though I hated him most of the time for the ‘heartless’ ending on several of his books, I could never deny my undying love for his every epic writing. No need to say more about him because we all know very well that Nicholas Sparks and love story have a really tight bound that it’s impossible sometimes to talk about romance without mentioning his name.

I watched the trailer of The Longest Ride movie and had a moment of ‘hysterically fangirling’ for a couple of good minutes (over the guy who plays Luke) before I determined to read the book first before heading to the cinema to watch it. I was anxious as hell to read it at first as I was scared that Mr. Sparks would break my heart into pieces again through this book. But holy God, this is seriously, once again, SERIOUSLY the most beautiful romance book I’ve ever read in the entire 22 years of my life.

The Longest Ride reminded me why I fell in love with all Nicholas Sparks’ books in the first place. As the cover said, featuring two couples, two love stories bounded in one epic tale, this book had a perfectly-built plot, lots of gasping-for-air circumstances, tons of heart-melting moments, and a couple of shocking-to-the-bone scenes. At first I thought I’d be drown to Luke and Sophia’s story more but turned out Ira and Ruth’s were so damn beautiful as well, even more beautiful in fact. Each couple had their own charms, each stories had their own beautifulness, and fate threaded them in a most astonishing way that made the readers believed that there was a continuance there.

“I understand that love and tragedy go hand in hand, for there can’t be one without the other, but nonetheless I find myself wondering whether the trade-off is fair.”

(Ira Levinson; Ch. XVII, The Longest Ride)

During my reading the book, my heart broke and crushed in pieces thousand times (especially when reading Ira and Ruth’s part) then healed itself only to be wrecked in millions even more tiny pieces.

I’m always a believer of everlasting love, so reading Ira and Ruth’s story just made me believe in more of those. I loved it so much the way Mr. Sparks delivered their story through reminiscent conversations of Ruth and Ira. Even after years, the way they talked about it was thick with sincere love and true affection between them both. God knows how much I want that kind of love in my life…

“You kissed me, yes, but it was not just good night. Even then, I could feel the promise in it, the promise that you would kiss me just like that, forever.”

(Ruth Levinson; Ch. V, The Longest Ride)

You got me, Ruth...

“If we’d never met, I think I would have known that my life wasn’t complete. And I would have wandered the world in search of you, even if I didn’t know who I was looking for.”

(Ira Levinson; Ch. XXVIII, The Longest Ride)

Awwwwwwwwwwww

While Mr. Sparks successfully drowned me in the sea of love and tears, he also successfully surprised me again and again near the ending. I thought I somehow figured it out. Yes, the ending was just like what I guessed from the beginning, but NEVER ONCE, really, NEVER ONCE I THOUGHT IT WOULD HAPPENED THAT WAY. I literally dropped my jaw and had a trouble putting it back up before closing my reader for a while to distract my thought.

I had no complaints whatsoever about this book.

The Longest Ride is perfection.

Beau ideal.

The best masterpiece of Nicholas Sparks.

If people ask me what book romance to read, I will always recommend The Longest Ride for them to read before listing the other favorites of mine.

Now, with no doubt, I’ll go watch the movie. Hopefully it’ll be as beautiful as the book. After all, all Nicholas Sparks’ did ;)

Love, read, and review,

Cynthia D.

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Book Review: The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend by Kody Keplinger

The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend by Kody Keplinger

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

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AMAZON | BOOK DEPOSITORY

Okay, so this is just going to be a short review. I do this sometimes when I don’t really feel like reviewing a book but at the same time I want people to know what I feel about the book. Anyway, it’s going to be a bit hurtful but I just want to lay down several points about this book that makes this book just an okay read for me. So, be ready!

First of all no offense, but I couldn’t find a thing in this story that impress me even after I turned the last page. It’s not that this book was bloody awful or what. It’s okay but not an impressive read either. Around 29%, I truthfully thought that it would finally get interesting when Jake Gaither was mentioned. Considering the past story, I thought his appearance would make a great plot twist but it ended up to be just an insignificant fling. I personally thought that Bianca’s character was pretty likeable. I could see that lots of girls would easily relate to her (or to her sarcasm, in my case). I loved the ‘Bianca at home’ much more than the ‘Bianca at school’ or ‘Bianca outside the house’ for that matter. When she’s at home, being a daughter, the only child, and such, I saw her as this terrified girl yet always tried to overlook her fear by thinking some possible positive ends in every problem she was faced. It was natural and just how I pictured 17 years old when situated in such circumstance. But once she went out, it seemed that all those side of her completely disappeared and was replaced with this bold, ignorant, and irresponsible teenager kind. As much as I wanted to sympathize of her situation, it still just did not justify her to act like that.

As a romance book lover, I don’t think their ‘relationship’ (I wouldn’t call whatever between Bianca and Wesley a romance) was sweet or lovely. It started with a rather illogical reason on Bianca’s part and some lame teenager’s lust on Wesley’s part. In fact, I was interested more on Bianca’s family issues than their story.

As much as I wanted to give this book an even lower rating, the author managed to slip a good moral lesson through Bianca’s realization of being the Duff. Wait… Duff? What was that? Here, let me lead you to the light through Wesley’s explanation about what’s Duff. This Wesley guy thought that among a group of friends, scientists had proved that they always had a weak link, a Duff it was (the less attractive girl, I might assume, from the way he talked about it). He personally thought that the vantage of Duff’s for guys was group of girls attracted more to guys who willing to socialize with their Duffs (okay, I might put it in a wrong way or what but once I done with this paragraph, I just hated Wesley more. And cheers to Bianca’s reaction for that statement of him!). Anyway, I found the moral lesson from this book about social life was good. Duff wasn’t a bad thing. In fact, everyone believed they’re the Duff in their own circles and that’s normal.

‘I was the Duff. And that was a good thing. Because anyone who didn’t feel like the Duff must not have friends. Every girl feels unattractive sometimes. […] I should be proud to be the Duff. Proud to have great friends who in their minds, were my Duffs.’

(Chapter XXVI, The DUFF)

Lots of people saying about the movie is not as good as the book (which is such a worrisome for me since my opinion about the book was…) but I think I’ll just watch it anyway in hope the movie will change my perspective about the story. Hopefully.

Love, read, and review,

Cynthia D.

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Book Review: All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

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AMAZON | BOOK DEPOSITORY

This is –HANDS DOWN- my favorite YA this year!
Why?
Because it contains a hell lot of quotes. Because the story is divided into parts and follows exact timeline. Because the two characters are flawed people who love beautifully. Because the boy has real unique characters: adorably quirky, caring, and determined. Because the girl has a really beautiful soul inside that wait to be discovered by the right person. Because the romance is damn sweet and pure. Because it made me flying all the way to cloud nine full of hopes… then threw me to the deepest part of Atlantic ocean and suffocated me to sleep… or something like that….
Because this book was inspired by heartbreaking self-experience of the author.

Once I finished this book, I actually had no idea how to rate it. The ending was kind of suffocating me, but then I realized that I always a bit fancy heartbreaking stories so that’s that. All the Bright Places is the first young-adult novel by Jennifer Niven and this is my first time reading her writing so I didn’t really expect much when I began to read. Then I found out that this book is going to movie screen soon, that’s when I became more eager to read it.

Theodore Finch’s mind was only occupied with one thing ever since God-knows-when: suicide. It might sound weird but really, even everyday Finch wanted to find a reason to stay alive that day. He might have a bunch of ideas how to end his life, but he also wanted when he died, he died for something. Something important.
Violet Markey’s mind was set to the future only. She never wanted to look back. She always wanted to skip the ‘now’. She didn’t want to be the ‘Cheerful Violet’ she used to be. That Violet was no longer there. That Violet was lost sometimes ago along with the loss of her sister. She hated the ’pity’ look of people always gave to her. She didn’t deserve a little pity. She should be the one to blame. Not vice versa.
The first time they met, it was one day on school bell tower. Both had one determined thing in minds. He wanted to jump. She wanted to try to jump. But here was the nature of things. When two negative minds meet, they’ll exert later pressure on each other, hence both repeal each other. What happened then was someone saved another from executing the plan. They never knew that that one reflexive act would later lead them to find more what was inside their own souls.
Assigned together to wander around Indiana State to discover natural wonders, Finch and Violet slowly formed an unlikely friendship. Finch, the quirky beautiful boy. Violet, the damaged beautiful girl. Their classmates obviously raised eyebrows to them getting along together. But the ones who knew the true of their friendship were themselves. With Violet, Finch could –for the first time- be his funny and soft-hearted self. With Finch, Violet could –for the first time- understand that there was no one to blame in regard her sister’s death. Not even her.

“You are all the colors in one, at full brightness”
-Theodore Finch-

Being with each other companies, they learned that like Ernest Hemingway said, ‘…many are strong at the broken places’. Violet started to see that to grief over loss was okay but to move on was a must. Finch started to find that one reason to stay alive.

“…and at some point I catch her eye and she’s smiling at me. It’s the kind of smile you smile when you’re thinking someone over and trying to decide how you feel about them”
-Theodore Finch-

Surely now they could help each other to stay strong and live, right? Maybe yes. Maybe no. Maybe the whole point of staying together was to save one’s life and to give lesson of life to people around them. Maybe.

I was truthfully scared that I’m going to cry again when I write this review. What I feel right now is the very same feeling I had when I wrote reviews for If He Had Been with Me by Laura Nowlin and Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks. I felt like crying all day, I felt like throwing things out of total madness, I felt like roaring to people to freaking look around you!
Jennifer Niven wrote this book in reference with her experiences of being affected by suicidal acts directly and indirectly. Both experiences enriched her mind to see the effect of suicidal act from a better angle than anyone. I’m really grateful that Jennifer willing to share her point of view with us so that we could understand that somehow it’s not always the suicide to blame in this type of death. It’s more complex than what people’s common judges. I, myself, admit that sometimes I short-judge them. But reading this changed my whole way to see this issue.
All the Bright Places was written very beautifully. The plot was very well built and each pages contained meaning. It is overwhelming how Jennifer could put extreme theme such suicidal along with love and friendship in one book. And damn it went along very well. Finch and Violet characters are both so unique. Nothing like I ever found on YA books. With these amazing characters, Jennifer successfully brought us to view the issue from two angles of people who directly involved on this. I totally fall in love with them.
I think it’s a very great decision to bring this book into a movie. This could be a great media to encourage people to be more aware of their surrounding and their behavior towards their surroundings.
Once I finish the book I was like,
“No”
“….”
“Really. Really? No. This is not right.”
“Oh hell THIS IS BLOODY NOT RIGHT! I’M SO GOING TO SUE THAT FAMILY AND CLASSMATES TO THE WORLD COURT!!”
I don’t remember how long I had to stay on my room until I could stop crying and sober enough to do my other activities. I felt like my heart being stabbed repeatedly out of my own frustration. When I (successfully) went through the ‘heart-ripping’ part, I thought that somehow I would slowly be okay. No. Jennifer cruelly broke my already broken heart into these nano-pieces like some laser beams. The ‘what ifs’ was definitely haunting my life for some good times. My heart ached a lot for them, Finch and Violet. Yet, I also felt thankful for both characters to give me better understanding of this life issue.
Well, I think it’s only fair to give a warning for future readers:

This book is definitely going to make you cry. Definitely going to rip your heart out and soul, too. Definitely not going to leave your mind for long times. But please don’t make this warn as a reason for you to put this book down. This book is going to change your way to see life. To make a change on your life. To act much better in your life.
Read this, if you want to help people see their life in a better way.
Read this, if you want to be the reason for someone to keep their beautiful life.
Read this, if you want to be someone who makes the world peace and more beautiful.

There are times when I feel so glad and thankful to be a book-worm. One of them is when I finish a very beautiful book and with tear streams down my face, thinking, “Wow, everyone in this world should read this book!”
That time is now. All the Bright Places is just what this world needs right now.
Thousand of thank you stars are on the way to you from me, Jennifer :)

Love, read, and review,

Cynthia D.

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Book Review: Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

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AMAZON | BOOK DEPOSITORY

I was planning to settle down my emotional feeling first before doing the review but it just hasn't subsided yet since last night so yea... where do I start from?

I am a romance-addict and always fancy ones with happy endings. There were two or three books I've read with sad ending and I ended up hating the author for weeks. But things are different with Me Before You. I know. I've been warned by the reviews that this book was about awfully heartbreaking love story. But it didn't stop me from trying it out myself. I had this thing in mind before started reading: "This is a heartbreaking love story, don't expect for an ending that you want in mind". Yet, I still did.

I had several mini heart-attacks during my reading this book, like one on prologue, another ones on every chapter endings... But I haven't stopped hoping for miracle to happen (yes, I did, I know). I was so amazed at the way Jojo played with the readers' emotion from chapter to chapter. How she suddenly changed the point of view when things got interesting on the previous chapter and we were dying to know what exactly happened from Lou's or Will's point of view. I loved how she'd created every character in this book. Like, for Will Traynor, a once passionate man having a turning-upside-down life after an accident. He became sensitive and moody yet the gentle side of him still existed inside. It was finally brought out of him by a comfort-zone-lover, Louisa Clark. I really loved it when Louisa fired back every sarcasm that was thrown at her by Will. You know, that is actually the best thing to do when you're facing sensitive person who just has a big accident that change their whole life. Don't accept their sarcasm but be sarcastic with them.

Reading Me Before You has given me so many things to rethink about in life. I found myself thinking back what I've been doing with my life these past 22 years, what things that I've been avoiding in life, what things I've actually been wanting to do in life but never done. Like Louisa, by the end of the book, I am intrigued to take a step out of my comfort zone. To do anything I want, to go anywhere I want, and never bother to think what people would say about me.

In the end, Will Traynor wasn't just helping Louisa Clark to do better in her life, but me as well.
I never really am affected this much by a book before but Me Before You has changed my point of view of life that I've been leading on these years.

So, even though the ending of this book was not kind of ending I always fancy from romance book, I am completely satisfied that I found this book and chose to read it. I also learned a lesson that this book has shown me what a real love story actually happened around us. Not everything ends with happiness, but the sad end is not always the bad kind of ending. It is not the start or the result that matters, but the process in between does.

I am so glad I came across this book and I am totally grateful for Jojo Moyes for writing this wonderful book, for creating Will Traynor who I've oddly fallen deeply in love with and Louisa Clark who's been showing me what should be done to make the person you love happy even though it means breaking your own heart (Yes, I did take out this italic sentence from the blurb of this book).

So, definitely five stars for every aspect of this book!

p.s. Here are several parts where my sobbing turned into an ugly real crying last night.

When I finally spoke, my voice was a small broken thing. What emerged was the only thing I could safely say."I missed you".

I realized I was afraid of living without him. How is it you have the right to destroy my life, I wanted to demand of him, but I'm not allowed a say in yours? But I promised.

So I held him, Will Traynor, ex-City whiz kid, ex-stunt driver, sportsman, traveller, lover.

'...I am conscious that knowing me has caused you pain, and grief, and I hope that one day when you are less angry with me and less upset you will see not just that I could only have done the thing that I did, but also that this will help you live a really good life, a better life, than if you hadn't met me'.

'You are scored in my heart, Clark. You were from the first day you walked in, with your ridiculous clothes and your bad jokes and your complete inability to ever hide a single thing you felt...'

Love, read, and review,

Cynthia D.

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