Sunday 6 October 2013

When It Rains - Lisa De Jong

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One night changed my life forever.

Beau Bennett has been my best friend since I can remember. He was my first crush before everything came crashing down, and now he wants more, but it's more than I can give him. Things are different now. I wish I could tell him why, but I can't.

I haven’t told anyone.

I never knew how much I really needed him until the day he left for college, and I was completely alone.

Then one day, Asher Hunt rides into town with his dark, captivating eyes and cocky grin. He doesn't care who I used to be, he's simply breathing life into what’s left. People warn me to stay away from him, but he helps me forget the pain that has held me hostage for so long; something I thought was impossible before he walked into my life.

I’ve been hurt.

I’ve been saved.

And I’ve found hope.

I thought my story was written that night, but now I know it was only a new beginning. Until one secret turns my world upside down…

Again.

I have to spare a thought for the beautiful cover. I know everyone says that you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but it is a great cover and that is what drew me to it in the first place.

This book reminded me of A Walk to Remember, by Nicholas Sparks, but the roles were reversed. I have to admit that there was a lot going on in this book, a sort of love triangle, cancer, rape, death, which would seem like a lot, and some authors wouldn't have been able to pull it off, but De Jong did an amazing job. the way she writes, makes you feel as though you are a part of the characters lives. I fell in love with her after I read the Hearts Series. I think that she handled the controversial topics of this book perfectly and have high hope for her other books.

I have to say that this book was absolutely amazing. A gut-wrenching novel from beginning to about 85% in. it had its happy moments, where you just want to sigh at the cuteness of everything and say aww, but the whole concept of the book and the content, just made me cry. Seriously why do I always pick the books that make me cry, I think I just try to punish myself.

The book starts with Kate Alexander's background story, the night she was raped. This surprised me because with most stories on rape, we have to get through most of the book before we find out what happens. The way it was written truly pulls at your heart strings, and really makes you think about the horrors that the victims of rape go through. Kate is one of my favourite female characters, because she id one of the most resilient. She made it hard on those around her, when they were trying to help, and in the end it was herself who made it past the horrors of that night. Who started living her life.

For the rest of my life, I would always regret going up to that room with Drew Heston. I could never get that day back or any of the other things he took from me. The most important thing I lost was my sense of self. It took seventeen years to build my foundation and it took mere minutes to tear it down. I hate him. The old Kate is gone . . . and she’s never coming back. And I’ll always hate when it rains.
'When it rains' is the perfect title and a running theme throughout the novel. Beautiful.

What can I say about Asher Hunt? He has to be one of the bravest male characters I have ever read about. Not brave on the conventional, swooping in and saving the Damsel in Distress, but emotionally strong. It's not often you read about a male character crying so often, but Asher does, and that makes you love him even more. His persistence at not letting the cancer overtake his entire life is wonderful to read.  I love the fact that his love helped Kate through the most tragic part of her life and helped her live her life, even after he died. His story, I think, overshadowed Kate's story. Some of you may not feel like that, but his journey through the book, his past, his losing fight against cancer, his persistence in helping Kate, was the focal point of the book. I teared up when I read about the rape, but reading about his cancer really made me cry. the beauty of the writing coupled with the storyline was wonderful.

Why has my life finally become so perfect when all I have left is a date with my maker? Kate will be the last person I’ll ever kiss. She’ll be the last woman I’ll ever make love to . . . the only woman I’ll make love to. She gives me purpose in a world that I didn’t think had one for me. She gives me the chance at a life I never thought I would have, even if it has to end way before it should.
...Sometimes my body hurts so bad that I just want to get all of this over with, but then I take one look into Kate’s eyes and I regain my will to live. I’d give anything to have forever with her.
Beau was an enigma for me. I couldn't figure out whether  I loved him or I disliked him. His cheesiness when he told Kate that he loved her, made me love him, but his action later in the novel really grated on me. In the end, my love for him overcame everything else. I did feel slightly annoyed when I first read the rejection, but reading further into the book, I understood where she came from. In the end there was a happy ending for them both, so who am I to complain?

“Look at me,” he says, frustration laced in his tone. “I’ve wanted to tell you for a very long time, but I didn’t think you were ready to hear it. I’m leaving tomorrow and I couldn’t wait any longer.”
 I loved the little snippets we get into Beau's and Asher's thoughts. The rest of the novel is written in Kate's POV, and it was wonderful, but I think that we, as readers, needed the little bits of insight into the male characters. Overall, I would give this 4.5/5 stars, because I think that it was an awesome novel, but killing off Asher made me cry so I knocked off  0.5 stars. Go out and buy this, seriously, it is a beautiful novel and you will fall in love with the author is you haven't read her other series.

I thought I'd put in this song, which features throughout the novel here for you to enjoy.




When it rains:
Amazon
B&N
Kobo

Hearts Series
Plastic Hearts - Amazon
Glass Hearts - Amazon
Plastic Hearts - B&N
Glass Hearts - B&N





 
 

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