Thursday 7 August 2014

Book Review - Where She Went by Gayle Forman

Where She Went

(If I Stay #2)

Author: Gayle Forman

Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction

Published: April 5 2011

Pages: 260 pages (Paperback Edition) (Doubleday)

Read: July 2014

Rating: 5 Stars


If you had a second chance at first love . . . would you take it?

It's been three years since Adam's love saved Mia after the accident that annihilated life as she knew it . . .  and three years since Mia walked out of Adam's life forever.

Now living on opposite coasts, Mia is Julliard's rising star and Adam is LA tabloid fodder, thanks to his new rock star status and celebrity girlfriend. When Adam gets stuck in New York by himself, chance brings the couple together again, for one last night. As they explore the city that has become Mia's home, Adam and Mia revisit the past and open their hearts to the future - and each other.

Told from Adam's point of view in the spare, powerful prose that defined If I StayWhere She Went explores the devastation of grief, the promise of new hope, and the flame of rekindled romance.


Where She Went is told from Adam's perspective as it follows the aftermath of a tragic accident and an even catastrophic ending of a profound relationship.

Where She Went is a book about Adam. The plot dives from his present to his past and glimpses of the future. There is tremendous heartbreak in the plot as it unfurls the three years between the events of the accident that changes Mia's life and the day, three years later, that changes Adam's life. Even though this book only takes place in the space of barely two days, there is enough of a story to keep you completely hooked, because yes it is only two days but there is the flashbacks from the past three years that are also there.

Adam has to be my favourite character here in Where She Went. Yes, I know he is the protagonist, but still, he is my favourite. Adam goes through a complete change, mentally, going from a happy life to complete rock-bottom. Gayle does a fantastic job in the diversity of this character and the way she can portray how devastating one event and the aftermath can truly be. The complete change from Adam in 'If I Stay' to Adam in 'Where She Went' is profound. 
Mia also plays a big role in this novel, and even though she has changed too, I feel it is Adam that has changed the most.

I enjoyed the way this was written and the way in which Adam and Mia meet and how they revel in the past. It is written so beautifully, that I could not think of any other scenarios in which the events of this book could have taken place.  

My dislikes are few and honestly I can't remember now what they were or it was. It was something very small anyway. Possibly something to do with the pace of the story at a certain time. That sounds sort of familiar. Anyway it was nothing that spoiled the 'enjoyment' of this book. 'Enjoyment' is in those commas because well, it's a sad book with a lot of devastation and a grimness.

Then the ending....I'm not going to tell you all how it ended because that would be a major spoiler. I'm not going to even say if it was a happy or sad ending. All I'm going to say is that the ended was perfect. And even at the very end it glimpsed forward three more years, which I found answered a lot of questions. Overall, a perfect ending to the books of 'If I Stay' and 'Where She Went'.

I enjoyed both these books and I'm usually not a fan of contemporary, so that should tell ya'll something. Yes, these are good!!! And I would completely recommend both books, and if you have read 'If I Stay' and enjoyed it and are just on the fence about the sequel, don't be, you are going to enjoy 'Where She Went' just as much, maybe even more. 

So guys, have you read Where She Went or are you planning to? Let me know in the comments :)


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