Before I begin this review, I want to thank Mary for giving me the opportunity to read her book. I've never done this with an author, but it has been one of the nicest experiences I've ever had! 🥹 I also want to personally thank you, Mary, for being such a nice, caring and beautiful person; you know that when I comment on books I don't shut up even under rocks, and you've been putting up with my thousand comments and voice messages as if we were lifelong friends 🫂 Perhaps Hope and Marie are not real, but they remind me a lot of us when I don't shut up and I comment to you even the smallest detail and you answer me to all of them. So thankful to have met you!!! 🥹💙
Now, I want to go in parts ‘cause I have so many things to say that if I don't get organized it will be very chaotic!
💙 The writing: Mary, as a self-published author, has done a hell of a job with this book. We're not just talking about writing the book on her own, but also proofreading it. Some people are unaware of the work that goes into that. Obviously, there are mistakes that can slip through the cracks; this can happen to absolutely anyone, and I personally don't take them into account when the story itself has me hooked. It's true that sometimes I felt that some stuff was repeated, but that didn't take me out of the reading, and my want to keep reading remained. I find Mary's writing simple but good, therefore it’s not difficult at all to understand the book if, as in my case, you’re not a native English speaker.
💙 The characters: The way this author manages to make you feel related with several characters at the same time is something I’ve already told her that impresses me and I will keep repeating it because it’s something that’s not as simple as it seems. When I read a book or a series, I rarely feel related with more than one character, but with Marie's book? I didn’t feel related with only one but with the four of them 🫡 Hope and Heath, the main characters, Marie, their best friend, and Sebastian, their best friend, too.
About Marie: I find her to be the best character in the book and the person in whom I see myself reflected the most. We both love to talk about absolutely everything, we are excited about almost everything, and we are there for our loved ones at all times no matter what. The one thing I’m sure as hell about is that I’ll defend her no matter what! 🥹
About Sebastian: one of the best friends I’ve ever read about. Just like with Marie, I relate to him for several reasons. He's as good a friend as he is a partner. He's there for his loved ones no matter what, and despite everything he's been through — just like his girlfriend — he doesn't give up. ❤️🩹
Now, about both the main characters, Hope and Heath. I have SO MUCH things to say that this might be the longest review I’ve ever written.
About Hope: There are so many FMC I love, and Hope has now become one of them. I've loved her from the very first moment. It's not just about both of us sharing a love for reading—it goes much deeper than that. We share the fact that she longs for a love that is far more genuine and beautiful than what she's used to seeing at home. Like Marie, Hope struck me as a character with a pure and beautiful heart—someone who, despite all the pain she endures, still has enough love to give to others. Someone who, despite all the bad things that can happen, finds the good in both situations and people.
Hope is for the girls who love blindly but with hearts that beat fiercely; for the girls who feel safe between pages, with minds constantly wandering to other worlds; for the girls who prefer to avoid problems and stay in our own worlds because we know that there, no one can hurt us. Hope is for the girls who have faith despite everything, for those of us who don't give up.
I hold an unexplainable affection for her, and I wish I could dive into the book and give her the biggest, longest hug possible. She’s still a 16y old girl who suffers what someone at her age shouldn’t.
About Heath: Even though some of his actions weren't right, I'd dare to say that he's become one of my favorite MMCs. Heath is aware of his mistakes and tries to be better; he apologizes and grows, which is something I don't always see in books when the MMC behaves poorly. Just as he makes mistakes, he also treats Hope and his friends so well that I spent most of the book with tears in my eyes (I won't blame it entirely on being overly sensitive with books, even if it's true) 😭❤️🩹
There's one thing I share with him — the fact that we both blame ourselves for things we know we can't control, but we can't stand to see our loved ones doing the same to themselves. Sometimes everything becomes too much for us, and we stay silent, but we refuse to let others do the same and suffer quietly. I think that's why, when he acted based on his emotions, I could understand him, and I didn't feel any rejection toward him.
The way Heath loves Hope is absolutely beautiful; in the last chapters, he loves her so loudly that there are pages I've completely marked up! It's going to be a lot of work when I write my review for IG and I gotta look for scenes to add, but fuck it—it was impossible to not highlight it when he was (and is) so perfect!!! 😭
About their relationship: The. Fucking. Cutest. I’VE EVER READ!!! They match each other so good I spent almost the whole book crying and screaming AND ABSOLUTELY MELTED! 😭😭😭
💙 Last thoughts:
I'm so excited to read the second part (MARY, I DON'T FORGIVE YOU FOR THAT ENDING EVEN THOUGH I LOVED IT) and keep reading about my babies. I don't think one or two books will be enough, which means I don't just want—I NEED Sebas and Marie's book for yesterday. Anyway, Mary: if you decide not to write it, we’ll still love you, or if you do write it and it takes a while, we’ll sit here and wait as long as it takes, just knowing that we’ll get to read it someday 🫵🏻
I really hope all of you give these book a chance because they're so worth it and their author is just as wonderful as the book itself! You can truly feel the love she pours into her characters, and I'm so grateful to have met them and her. 🫂💙
(This is the longest review I’ve ever written, but I already said—and told Mary— I never shut my mouth whether written or verbal 🙂↔️)