Review to come....
I'm doing this spoiler free Guys!
Collateral is the third book in The Collide Series and gives us the epic conclusion we've been waiting for. I found myself loving this third book more than the previous two and I think its because it felt raw and deeper to me.
Harlow has been through so much and grown and changed so much. She's also thought of herself as strong and sort of hard, to feel any sort of weakness is just not really in her nature, but she's never been through this before. With things still fresh in her mind, its hard to simply move past it all. But Harlow also has a difficult time asking for help, even when she knows she needs it.
Collateral gives us the final answer. Iain or Jax? Who will it be? I'm not going to tell you, sorry you have to read to find that out. But I will say this, I felt there was a lot of closure all around brought forth in this novel. Harlow, I feel, dug deep into her feelings and her expectations from the past and realized things she hadn't before. I believe Iain also had done a lot of reflecting on the past. Jax is such a good guy, he is tough and the bad boy, but ultimately he wants what is best for Harlow, even if that means it isn't him. That's not to say he would be happy about it, but Jax knows that Harlow's mental and physical well being are important and whatever she needs to do to attain both is what needs to be done.
This book and these characters feel like a family, I love seeing glimpses of characters from teh Damaged series interspersed with this bunch. I love how Harlow's friends are balls to the wall honest and draw her out as well. There are even a few twists in this book that you can't see coming, pulling Harlow in another direction and spilling secrets she isn't sure she wanted out there.
Collateral is a thrilling conclusion to this trio of books and I firmly feel that the way things were and are handled during the book were real and true to the characters. If this book had gone any other way, I'm not sure it would have been as believable or made for a satisfying end. There was a distinct growth and change for Harlow, she really became solidly adult and concious of how her actions can affect her life on many levels. She's able to work harder for herself, and learn when she needs to ask for help.
I look forward to seeing these characters, however briefly, in future books.