Where She Went by Gayle Forman (If I Stay #2) ★★★★★ It's been three years since Mia walked out of Adam's life. And three years he's spent wondering why. When their paths cross again in New York City, Adam and Mia are brought back together for one life-changing night. Adam finally has the opportunity to ask Mia the questions that have been haunting him. But will a few hours in this magical city be enough to lay their past to rest, for good - or can you really have a second chance at first love? I wouldn't have thought a book about a rock star with a broken heart would affect me almost as much as a book about a girl whose entire family dies in a car crash. And yet, that's what I'm going to tell you about Where She Went. Although If I Stay is more tragic in the literal sense of the word, Where She Went is just as heartbreaking. Normally, Adam's lovesick, can't-let-go type of character would get on my nerves, but not this time. Although I occasionally wanted to tell him to snap out of it, I also understood why he couldn't. Forman managed to capture human emotion more than anything else in this book. I was happy to see that music remained central to the plot, but that not everything was described in terms of music. In If I Stay, the overload of musical metaphors had almost taken away from the book, but Where She Went had a better balance. I also loved the lyrics from Adam's songs before every chapter, which were as heartbreaking as everything else. Forman did an amazing job with Adam's character. I was surprised to find myself relating to him so much, having never been through such heartbreak myself. I expected him to seem overly dramatic and pathetic, but the opposite was true; Forman's prose relayed the realness of all of Adam's emotions. The best part of his character was his depth; he wasn't just lovesick, he was living a life he didn't fully want or control. It's very rare that I care about the outcome of a romance novel so much. The ending of Where She Went gets a little too fairy tale, happily-ever-after, but I'm perfectly content with it. I'd hate to discredit a well-written happy ending, and Forman really did well with it. Although the ending was kind of predictable, it felt like the perfect conclusion to Mia and Adam's stories. I highly recommend this series, especially to romance fans. Where She Went was an incredibly satisfying read and has left me eager to read more of Forman's novels.
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Once Upon a Time...As a longtime lover of stories and a believer in the power and magic of books, I've spent my life seeking out the best reads. This blog is dedicated to reviewing the books I read - good, bad, or magnificent - to help other readers find their next favorite books. Currently ReadingKing Zeno
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