Before: Reena Montero has loved Sawyer LeGrande for as long as she can remember: as natural as breathing, as endless as time. But he’s never seemed to notice that Reena even exists…until one day, impossibly, he does. Reena and Sawyer fall in messy, complicated love. But then Sawyer disappears from their humid Florida town without a word, leaving a devastated—and pregnant—Reena behind.
After: Almost three years have passed, and there’s a new love in Reena’s life: her daughter, Hannah. Reena’s gotten used to being without Sawyer, and she’s finally getting the hang of this strange, unexpected life. But just as swiftly and suddenly as he disappeared, Sawyer turns up again. Reena doesn’t want anything to do with him, though she’d be lying if she said Sawyer’s being back wasn’t stirring something in her. After everything that’s happened, can Reena really let herself love Sawyer LeGrande again?
In this breathtaking debut, Katie Cotugno weaves together the story of one couple falling in love—twice.
Oh my God, How to Love definitely surprised me with how much I loved it! I was so excited to start this due to all my friends' love and gushing over this book, that I was a bit afraid it would fall flat--thank God it didn't!
I was definitely pulled in the moment I saw the synopsis. Usually these kinds of books aren't really my thing--but I'm a romantic at heart and I definitely believe in second chances. I was dying to know exactly how everything would turn out and desperate for the happy ending I was praying would happen. But my lips are sealed and you'll just have to suffer through this absolutely beautiful book to find out what happens and what happened "Before".
And I really loved how Katie Cotugno wrote How to Love. With "Before" and "After" sections, we get to compare and contrast how each character has changed, and how they're still changing. It was definitely fascinating seeing these alternating points in time all stemming from a moment where everything started changing. I loved getting the backstory and I loved watching both of them fall in love twice. In different ways, in different times, but still falling in love!
The biggest thing about this was that while it didn't really make me sob like a baby, it brought out so many emotions that literally hurt my heart (or, at least my chest. My chest hurt.) It was just like a buildup of emotions until I could barely breathe--oh, the feels! It's a raw story that Cotugno writes, and a hard one to write to, but she pulled it off with a flourish and just made me fall in love with her story and her characters.
Oh, the characters. There are no words that could really describe them or why I loved them. They were just such perfectly, beautifully flawed characters that I could find myself in in so many little gestures. They were so real and so fleshed out, I feel as if thousands of people are going to be able to see themselves in this book. We can't help but fall in love with each of them and we can't help but wish we could hide them from any harm. But we can't because in every page, there's some kind of raw pain there, some kind of little kink that makes everything fall just a little more apart.
I absolutely loved Reena's voice, the mistakes she made, the hurt she tried to keep buried, and the facade she tried to maintain until it finally burst. It was...heart wrenching.
Sawyer was just someone I felt like I should hate but couldn't help love. He tries to do the best he can, but sometimes it just isn't...enough, and I hated whenever he got hurt. I really just wanted to cuddle them both and never let go.
How to Love is an absolutely tragic, compelling story of what it's like to let go, and what it's like to hold on. It's brilliant and wonderful, something everyone should read. It's a perfect book about not-so-perfect people with a not-so-perfect relationship that's definitely going to hit home with most readers. Gorgeous writing, lush characters, and a heartbreakingly beautiful romance, what else can you do but read it and love it?
Pages: 320
I was definitely pulled in the moment I saw the synopsis. Usually these kinds of books aren't really my thing--but I'm a romantic at heart and I definitely believe in second chances. I was dying to know exactly how everything would turn out and desperate for the happy ending I was praying would happen. But my lips are sealed and you'll just have to suffer through this absolutely beautiful book to find out what happens and what happened "Before".
And I really loved how Katie Cotugno wrote How to Love. With "Before" and "After" sections, we get to compare and contrast how each character has changed, and how they're still changing. It was definitely fascinating seeing these alternating points in time all stemming from a moment where everything started changing. I loved getting the backstory and I loved watching both of them fall in love twice. In different ways, in different times, but still falling in love!
The biggest thing about this was that while it didn't really make me sob like a baby, it brought out so many emotions that literally hurt my heart (or, at least my chest. My chest hurt.) It was just like a buildup of emotions until I could barely breathe--oh, the feels! It's a raw story that Cotugno writes, and a hard one to write to, but she pulled it off with a flourish and just made me fall in love with her story and her characters.
Oh, the characters. There are no words that could really describe them or why I loved them. They were just such perfectly, beautifully flawed characters that I could find myself in in so many little gestures. They were so real and so fleshed out, I feel as if thousands of people are going to be able to see themselves in this book. We can't help but fall in love with each of them and we can't help but wish we could hide them from any harm. But we can't because in every page, there's some kind of raw pain there, some kind of little kink that makes everything fall just a little more apart.
I absolutely loved Reena's voice, the mistakes she made, the hurt she tried to keep buried, and the facade she tried to maintain until it finally burst. It was...heart wrenching.
Sawyer was just someone I felt like I should hate but couldn't help love. He tries to do the best he can, but sometimes it just isn't...enough, and I hated whenever he got hurt. I really just wanted to cuddle them both and never let go.
How to Love is an absolutely tragic, compelling story of what it's like to let go, and what it's like to hold on. It's brilliant and wonderful, something everyone should read. It's a perfect book about not-so-perfect people with a not-so-perfect relationship that's definitely going to hit home with most readers. Gorgeous writing, lush characters, and a heartbreakingly beautiful romance, what else can you do but read it and love it?
Pages: 320
Genre: Contemporary
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Release Date: Oct 1, 2013
Rating: 5 stars
This book sounds amazing! I've been hearing fantastic things about this book for a while, but nothing had stood out to me. This review is definitely making me want to give it another look!
ReplyDeleteGabbie @ Rampant Readers
Im about halfway through this book myself, so far I like it, glad you did too! Chloe @ http://www.mnkbooklife.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you liked this book! I'm still debating whether I should read it, My library doesn't have it yet but i'm not sure I wanna buy it either :p You do though make it sounds like an emotional book worth the money so i just might buy it! Great review :)
ReplyDeleteLily @ Lilysbookblog