Confess by Colleen Hoover

* * * 1/2

Auburn Reed has her entire life mapped out. Her goals are in sight and there’s no room for mistakes. But when she walks into a Dallas art studio in search of a job, she doesn’t expect to find a deep attraction to the enigmatic artist who works there, Owen Gentry.

For once, Auburn takes a risk and puts her heart in control, only to discover Owen is keeping major secrets from coming out. The magnitude of his past threatens to destroy everything important to Auburn, and the only way to get her life back on track is to cut Owen out of it.

The last thing Owen wants is to lose Auburn, but he can’t seem to convince her that truth is sometimes as subjective as art. All he would have to do to save their relationship is confess. But in this case, the confession could be much more destructive than the actual sin…

Colleen Hoover is the queen of putting her characters in the worst imaginable situations ever. The kind of tear-your-heart-out, will-they-won’t-they, should-they-say-something, it’s-too-tempting positions. You feel desperately bad for them. For me the urgency in reading her books is how her characters extricate their way out of these seemingly impossible messes. It’s not always a neat and tidy ending, and lord knows the in betweens are wrought with strife and tears. No matter the outcome, the process to get there is quite the experience.

Confess is no different. I was instantly taken with Auburn and Owen and waited patiently for their secrets to come out. Both have been visited by personal tragedies and have the scars as reminders every day. Even though they have an obvious, inexplicable attraction, it’s a precarious dance for them as their attempt at a relationship is thwarted before it has even started. This is where those pesky secrets become hindrances or game-changers. Their hands are tied and it seems that Auburn has more to lose than Owen.

I liked the beautiful artwork that is included in the book. Auburn and Owen felt more accessible to me when I got to see the paintings they were seeing. And they are gorgeous paintings, too. Luckily for us, we can see the colour prints on Hoover’s website!

Confess ranks high up there for me and it solidifies Colleen Hoover as one of my favourite authors. The scenarios she writes about are not always comfortable ones – some even left me with mixed feelings – but in her hands I feel I have the open-mindedness to explore these moments despite my reservations. She's a fantastic writer and Confess is just further proof of of how much heart she puts into every word on those pages!

~ Bel

The Summer Remains by Seth King

* * * *

Twenty-four-year-old Summer Johnson knows two things. The first is that due to a quickly worsening medical condition, she faces a risky surgery in three months’ time that may or may not end in her death. The second is that she would like to fall in love before then.

As spring sinks into her namesake season on the Florida coastline, Summer plays the odds and downloads a new dating app - and after one intriguing message from a beautiful surfer named Cooper Nichols, it becomes clear that the story of what may be her last few months under the sun is about to be completely revised. All she has to do now is write something worth reading.

Tender, honest, devastating and triumphant, The Summer Remains explores a very human battle being waged in a very digital age: the search for a love that will outlast this temporary borrowing of bones. In an era when many feel compelled to share and re-share anything about everything, prepare to feel a love so special, you will want to hug it close and make it yours forever.

The Summer Remains first appeared on my radar when one of my favourite authors raved about it. I dove headfirst without realizing that it would give me all the feels and leave a bit of a hole inside me. It's taken me a while to write this review because I've had such a difficult coming up with the right words to encapsulate how this book has affected me. So please bear with me as I attempt to do it justice.

Summer Johnson wants what most anyone wants, to fall in love and be loved. Summer’s life hasn’t been easy. She was born with an extremely rare and debilitating medical condition that inhibits her ability to digest foods. As a result, she has to use a feeding tube. She also has a visible scar on her face that she tries to hide. Her dad left their family, leaving her mother alone to take care of her and her brother. With all these strikes against her you’d expect Summer to be one maladjusted young woman. While she does have a bite to her personality that took me some getting used to, she’s also spunky and straightforward. Her disability may be a hindrance but she’s managed to thrive so far. Upon agreeing to undergo that risky surgery, she promises herself that she will finally fall in love. Opening her heart might actually be riskier than the surgery but it’s a risk worth taking if she wants to feel that she has lived a full life.

Someone like Cooper with his insight and frankness is not what she expected. He is unfazed by her appearance or condition. He’s incredibly kind and sweet towards her that sometimes she wonders if there’s a catch. Falling in love is her deepest wish come true. They’re so good for each other that it’s gratifying to see them come alive.

This is about two young people who believe in love and feel the heavy weight of it. Loving someone through the turmoil of illness and a myriad of emotions isn't easy. It’s when Cooper tells the story from his perspective that I completely lost it. I was barely keeping it together up until then! 

Seth King wrote this story in memory of his brother Martin, and you can feel the love through every page. There's no sugarcoating it - The Summer Remains is simply a beautiful heartbreak of a read. You'll have a good cry after which you’re going to need a box of tissues and someone to hug afterwards. Trust me.

~ Bel

As a thank you to his fans, Seth King has recently released Autumn Rising, a novella about Summer's best friend. I'm bracing myself for more feels!

I highly encourage you to follow him because he's always sharing some amazing writing! I always look forward to his posts! 

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The Secrets Of Attraction by Robin Constantine

* * * 1/2

Set in the same world as The Promise of Amazing, this smart, surprising, and romantic follow-up to Robin Constantine's debut novel follows two New Jersey teens as they become friends and fall in love. Perfect for fans of Stephanie Perkins, Sarah Mlynowski, and Jennifer E. Smith.

Madison Pryce thinks she's got everything figured out—she's working on a portfolio for a summer art program and hanging with her friends. Plus she has her hot boyfriend, Zach. But then a visit from a family friend turns Maddie's life upside down.

Jesse McMann is still reeling from a breakup that shattered his heart and his band. Then pride (and some goading from his bass player and fellow barista) forces him to find a new drummer—and the inspiration to write music again.

Kismet arrives in the unlikely form of Grayson Barrett, who tries out for Jesse's band, and whose girlfriend is BFFs with the cute girl who orders a chai latte after yoga every Thursday: Maddie. What Jesse and Maddie thought they knew about the secrets of attraction and the rules of romance changes once they start falling for each other.

Isn't this cover just so freaking cute? There’s nothing more gratifying that reading a sweet story that leaves you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. That’s how I felt after I read Constantine’s previous release, The Promise of Amazing, so reading The Secrets of Attraction was a no-brainer.

This follow-up does feature characters from the previous book but the spotlight this time shines on Maddie. She’s just as nice as Wren but she comes with a hint of an edge to her. Trouble starts when her boyfriend says "I love you" to her. Most teenage girls would be ecstatic that their hot, popular athlete boyfriend would declare those magical three words. Not Maddie. She doesn’t feel the same at all. Not that he’s a bad guy just that she knows that she’s not in love. This makes things awkward between them especially when she strikes up a friendship with Jesse who works at the coffee shop near the yoga studio she goes to. Neither of them have any connection to each other until Grayson, Wren's boyfriend, auditions for Jesse’s band and now both groups of friends are intermingling.

Jesse's had his heart broken by his ex-girlfriend. She hooked up with his ex-best friend who was also the drummer in his band. Both betrayals hurt him badly enough that music kind of lost its luster. Enter Maddie whom he's been noticing for a while. Their friendship sparks something in him. She's delightful to be around and being in her company renews Jesse's interest in his music. He also wants to go for it with her but Maddie draws the line at just being friends. So Jesse has to come up with inventive ways to be with her. 

I like that Maddie is certain about some things yet hesitant about others. For one, I like that she knew that she wasn’t in love with her boyfriend and doesn't want to mislead him once she musters up the courage to be truthful with him. I like her devotion to her friends. I like her closeness with her mom which does get tested at some point in the book. I like that her character experiences the typical anxieties about graduating high school and moving on to college. She has her studies then she has her passion which is art. There’s the practical side of her then there’s the side of her that wants to abandon the heavy responsibilities and just take that risk in pursuing art.

Jesse is great too. He’s got a few kinks to work out like getting his ex out of his system. He’s really into Maddie but she's not ready to admit that attraction. His thoughtful gestures toward her are impressive and will woo the reader as well. While he’s not declaring undying, eternal love here, it’s interesting how he’s the one pushing for them to be an item. Maddie just needs to realize that what she’s experiencing with him is indeed falling in love for the first time.

All in all, The Secrets of Attraction is just adorable and I know that I can count on Constantine to deliver that just-right amount of sweet and angst without too much melodrama. 

~ Bel