There are two sides to every love story. Now hear Will’s.
Layken and Will’s love has managed to withstand the toughest of circumstances and the young lovers, now married, are beginning to feel safe and secure in their union. As much as Layken relishes their new life together, she finds herself wanting to know everything there is to know about her husband, even though Will makes it clear he prefers to keep the painful memories of the past where they belong. Still, he can’t resist his wife’s pleas and so he begins to untangle his side of the story, revealing for the first time his most intimate feelings and thoughts, retelling both the good and bad moments, and sharing a few shocking confessions of his own from the time when they first met.
In This Girl, Will tells the story of their complicated relationship from his point of view. Their future rests on how well they deal with the past in this final installment of the beloved Slammed series.
Layken and Will’s love has managed to withstand the toughest of circumstances and the young lovers, now married, are beginning to feel safe and secure in their union. As much as Layken relishes their new life together, she finds herself wanting to know everything there is to know about her husband, even though Will makes it clear he prefers to keep the painful memories of the past where they belong. Still, he can’t resist his wife’s pleas and so he begins to untangle his side of the story, revealing for the first time his most intimate feelings and thoughts, retelling both the good and bad moments, and sharing a few shocking confessions of his own from the time when they first met.
In This Girl, Will tells the story of their complicated relationship from his point of view. Their future rests on how well they deal with the past in this final installment of the beloved Slammed series.
Title: This Girl (Slammed ~ Book 3)
Author: Colleen Hoover | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Website
Publication Date: April 30 2013
Publisher: Atria Books
Length: 256 Pages
Add it to your TBR Pile: Goodreads
Buy It: Amazon US | Amazon UK
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Cover Love: Love the new covers for this series, and this one is perfect.
Point of View: 1st person, following Will
My Rating: 5 Butterflyingly Perfect Stars
“If I took every romantic poem, every book, every song, and every movie I've ever read, heard or seen and extracted the breathtaking moments, somehow bottling them up, they would pale in comparison to this moment.
This moment is incomparable.”
This moment is incomparable.”
Genius
Exceptional intellectual or creative power or other natural ability.
Love
An intense feeling of deep affection.
Gratitude
The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.
Isn't it funny how impersonal the above definitions seem when written out on their own? No feelings or emotions to help convey the words. If I had my way, Colleen Hoover's photo would appear right next to Genius. A picture of each one of her books would be shown along with Love, and a link to every single lovely review written about her books listed below Gratitude.
I will never be able to say this enough... Colleen Hoover is amazing. The emotion she is able to pack into a novel is at times overwhelming. I freely admit that I am an emotional reader and I quite often shed tears of sadness and joy. But, even with that said, I don't think I have ever fallen so deeply in love with characters before. Will and Lake are truly something special, and Colleen has managed to bring a much loved series to a beautiful and perfect ending.
“Layken Cooper, I love you. I’ve loved you since the second I laid eyes on you and I haven’t stopped loving you for a second since.”
In the future, if anybody asks me to describe how an author can successfully re-write a story from an alternating point of view, I will direct them to This Girl. This is how you re-write a story but still manage to make it seem new and wonderful.
At the beginning of This Girl we find Will and Lake exactly where we left them, happy and in love. The retelling of pivotal moments from Slammed are told in the form of flashbacks. This is genius. This way we get the important scenes retold by Will but there doesn't have to be any filler. The filler comes from the scenes where we flash back to the present. In these scenes we get to see how Lake responds to what Will has shared and what she will ask him about next.
We are also treated to some very important moments from Will that we were not aware of from Lake's point of view during Slammed. This is what kept everything so fresh and new. I refuse to ruin anything for you but I can honestly say I found myself shocked several times. This is very impressive for a retelling.
“She deserves to be kissed by someone who loves her. Someone who spends every waking moment trying to do everything right by her. Someone who would rather die than see her hurt. She doesn't deserve to be kissed by anyone other than me.”
As if I thought going into This Girl that I could not fall more in love with Will Cooper. oooOOOooohhh how wrong I was. Will is one of the most kind, gentle, caring, and sexy characters I have ever read. He is full of so much love, and that is never more evident than in this book. It is amazing being in his head, and to see so many wonderful moments through his eyes.
“You want to know my sweet?" I ask her.
She nods.
I kiss her on the forehead. "You. Always you.”
She nods.
I kiss her on the forehead. "You. Always you.”
And, if you think all we get is a handful of flashbacks and a few present moments, you are wrong. Folks we have an epilogue. This is not just any epilogue either, this is the most perfect thing I have ever read. It not only provides us with the perfect ending for our beloved characters but it also has a new slam that is simply outstanding. To say I had tears in my eyes would be an understatement. I could hardly see through the happy tears.
“She doesn't speak, but she doesn't have to. I know in these moments, when it's just her and me and nothing else, that she truly, soul-deep loves me.”
So please, I beg you... If you have not read the Slammed series to do so as soon as possible. You will not be disappointed in the slightest. And if you have started them but not yet picked up This Girl, what are you waiting for? Get it, and start it now. It is butterflying perfect.
“I press my forehead against hers. "I'm so glad you showed up," I whisper. "You changed my life forever that night.”
Colleen, if I am lucky enough to have you read this review, I want you to know that I bow down to your writing abilities. You deserve every bit of success that is coming your way right now, and I promise you that I am a lifelong fan. You can write whatever your heart desires and without question I, and I know I would not be be the only one, will buy it immediately. I have no other way to say it other than, I love you for the characters you have brought into my life. Honestly, thank you.
My suck: Having to say goodbye to characters I love.
My sweet: Colleen Hoover for making it as perfect and painless as possible.
“Sometimes two people need to fall apart to realize how much they need to fall back together."
I take her hand and rest it between us, then stroke the back of it with my thumb. "Let's not fall apart again," I whisper.
She looks me in the eyes. "Never.”
I take her hand and rest it between us, then stroke the back of it with my thumb. "Let's not fall apart again," I whisper.
She looks me in the eyes. "Never.”
I like the new covers :) I haven't read this series yet but just because you say I won't be let down by it I'll read it ASAP.
ReplyDeleteGreat review, I can see why you like it so much
Ruty@Reading...Dreaming