"He did give me something. Someone. You. He gave me you."
I was able to snag this ARC from Netgalley and Amazon Publishing (I <3 Amazon). So glad I got approved for this little gem, I seriously LOVED this book..
Description:
What does it take to rise from life’s depths, swim against the current, and breathe?
Weighted down by the loss of her parents, Blythe McGuire struggles to keep her head above water as she trudges through her last year at Matthews College. Then a chance meeting sends Blythe crashing into something she doesn’t expect—an undeniable attraction to a dark-haired senior named Chris Shepherd, whose past may be even more complicated than her own. As their relationship deepens, Chris pulls Blythe out of the stupor she’s been in since the night a fire took half her family. She begins to heal, and even, haltingly, to love this guy who helps her find new paths to pleasure and self-discovery. But as Blythe moves into calmer waters, she realizes Chris is the one still strangled by his family’s traumatic history. As dark currents threaten to pull him under, Blythe may be the only person who can keep him from drowning.
Weighted down by the loss of her parents, Blythe McGuire struggles to keep her head above water as she trudges through her last year at Matthews College. Then a chance meeting sends Blythe crashing into something she doesn’t expect—an undeniable attraction to a dark-haired senior named Chris Shepherd, whose past may be even more complicated than her own. As their relationship deepens, Chris pulls Blythe out of the stupor she’s been in since the night a fire took half her family. She begins to heal, and even, haltingly, to love this guy who helps her find new paths to pleasure and self-discovery. But as Blythe moves into calmer waters, she realizes Chris is the one still strangled by his family’s traumatic history. As dark currents threaten to pull him under, Blythe may be the only person who can keep him from drowning.
My Thoughts
Jessica Park did it again, she stole my heart, mind, and my tears.
I gotta admit that this book started off really weird, I wasn't sure where it was going. I thought it was going to be one of those insta-love type books where I want to scream with how fast the "I love yous" get thrown around but I was pleasantly surprised as I kept reading and LOVED
EVERY. SINGLE. MINUTE.
I loved it so much that I had a hard time deciding what exactly I wanted to say about it. There is only so many times you can say"YOU BETTER PRE-ORDER THIS BOOK...OR ELSE!!!" but how can I possibly tell you guys how amazing and fan-fucking-tasic this book is without giving away the magic??.. Well here is my attempt and I REALLY hope I do this book justice because MY GOD does it deserve amazing things!!
If you are looking for a nice beach read with fluffy characters and magic and little cuddly bunnies of adorableness...then this is NOT the book for you.
If you want REAL characters with REAL trauma, drama, love, friendship, pain, heartbreak, healing, hot sex and all the other emotions you can possibly imagine then READ THIS BOOK, it has all of that and MORE!
It's just simply amazing..
I was looking for something different and unexpected and I got just that. Hell, I should have known by the dedication that it was going to be a different kind of book
"This book is for everyone who has SURVIVED. You are not broken. You can love and be loved, despite what may feel like the eternally brutal nature of the world. Even when you're drowning and so far under, there is always time to reach for someone who will teach you how to breathe again"
Holy goosebumps batman!!!!
It starts off with Blythe being drunk stumbling into her dorm room after a night of partying. You realize in the first couple of pages that Blythe has had a hard life and something has happened to her in the past that has left some deep scars that she carries around on the inside and outside. She is a hermit that keeps to herself at school and the only time she wants to go out is if she's in need of some partying.
Then along comes Sabin who comes into her life like a tornado of flair and drama who upon meeting her for the very first time steals her coffee and makes her come to his play that he is apart of at school.
He leaves Blythe in a mix bag of emotions not knowing how to proceed with the unique character that is Sabin.
She makes her way around campus and then meets Chris, all tall, dark hair, masculine Chris that also sweeps her into a whirlwind of emotions that she has never experienced before.
They find comfort with each other and they can't explain the attractiveness and magnetic pull that they feel towards one another, it scares the shit out of both of them but they can't stay away from one another!!
It's like meeting the other half of your soul and being too scared to explore the possibilities!!!
Blythe finds out that Chris and Sabin are brothers and she is then introduced to the whole Shepherd family.
The Shepherd's are a beautifully broken family full of unique characters and love. There is no denying the amount of love the siblings have for one another and you are left in awe with the amount of perserverance this family has.
You don't know a lot of background on them until towards the end but you can tell from the very beginning that they are just as broken as Blythe.
She fits into their clan perfectly and its like broken pieces of a fucked up puzzle..but it works, it still makes a beautiful picture even with all the jagged pieces.
Blythe starts healing from her wounds of the past through the help of this dysfunctionally-functional family. Their banter with one another is funny, endearing, and just plain entertaining. They embrace, heal, and love her through all her pain and Chris is the one person that makes her feel whole but he also breaks her in another way that leaves you in a puddle of pure anxiety and sadness. I wanted to scream and throw babies because it was just awful.
"Take it from someone who is also in love with a Shepherd brother. They are easy boys to fall in love with, but hard to really, really hold on to"
(remember this is an ARC so this might be edited or changed in the final copy)
I can't say enough how much I LOVED this book!
It was different and full of unique characters that leave an imprint on your heart and mind.
I was a blubbering mess in certain parts and so glad I was reading in my dark, quiet room because my dignity would have flown right out the window when people saw how much this book affected my emotions.
Jessica Park leaves me needing therapy after her books, I swear I am never going to be the same and need an intervention by the end of them!
(And by intervention I mean chocolate and wine)
She made me believe in fate and destiny where before I was always a cynic. How can an author even do that?? How does she elicit the feelings and emotions so strong in me that I feel like I have been through the ringer by the end of it? I'm wrung out and exposed of all my emotions but at the same time I feel like she pieced me back but I'm not the same because I have accepted things that before I was so cynical about.
Seriously..
MIND=BLOWN
This story is fucking amazing and while reading you see that with the strength of love, patience, understanding, and forgiveness people can HEAL, become whole, and endure life's tragedies, while coming out the other side stronger and more resilient than before.
I give this book 5/5***** and all I have to say is Jessica Park BETTER have more in store with this family.. I NEED MORE they are my drug of choice and I need my fix!!!
This book is set to release July 16th, 2013
and you WILL buy this book and LOVE it as much as I did
You are doing your mind an injustice if you do not pre-order or BUY this book the day that it is released!!!
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