All Your Perfects

Author: Colleen Hoover

Genre: Fiction

Rating: 4 out of 5

Pages: 305

Date Started: 16 May 2022

Date Finished: 21 May 2022

This is one of the books in the Colleen Hoover series I want to read. I liked Hoover's style of writing and so far this is one of her best books.

Their imperfect marriage threatens Quinn and Graham’s, perfect love. The memories, mistakes, and secrets they have built up over the years are now tearing them apart. The one thing that could save them might also be the very thing that pushes their marriage beyond the point of repair. Will their marriage survive? Will they find their happily ever after?

I liked the way Hoover portrayed Graham. The man who is madly in love with his wife and wants to keep her happy and yet at the same time feels helpless when he feels he is the reason for her being so unhappy! He also tries his best to give her space and feels he isn't doing enough.

The book felt like it had no twist and I could see the way it was going! But I am glad I didn't give up and continued to read. The entire time I was weighing things from both Quinn and Graham's views. I felt that both were right in their approach, yet had a soft corner for Graham. The secret of the box was something that made me keep going. I was glad when they opened the box and reading what was in the box broke my heart! Those were the perfect words from the author for the situation Quinn was in! I was happy with the way the book ended and to see Graham's love for Quinn was heartwarming!

Favorite lines from the book:

• If you only shine light on your flaws, all your perfects will dim.

• Sometimes when people change, it's not always noticeable in a marriage, because the couple changes together, in the same direction. But sometimes people change in opposite directions.

• Apologies are good for admitting regret, but they do very little in removing the truth from the actions that caused the regret.

• "Don't be so hard on yourself." he says, "Now you know exactly what to look for. When you meet someone who is good for you, they won't fill you with insecurities by focusing on your flaws. They'll fill you with inspiration because they'll focus on all the best parts of you."

• It's funny how you can be so happy with someone and love them so much, it creates an underlying sense of fear in you that you never knew before them. The fear of losing them. The fear of them getting hurt. It's probably the most incredible kind of love you'll ever know, but it's also the most terrifying.

• No marriage is perfect. There were times when she gave up on us. There were even more times when I gave up on us. The secret to our longevity is that we never gave up at the same time.

• Gratitufe is born in the struggle.

• I'm still fighting for something I don't even know that you still want me to fight for.

• I've been fighting for so long to be the strength you need, but that was the first time it occurred to me that I may not be what brings you strength anymore. What if I'm part of what brings you pain?

• Confrontation leads to action. Avoidance leads to inaction.

• My fear of not having you in my life sometimes overpowered my desire to see you happy.

• Avoidance sounds like such a harmless word, but that one word can cause some severe damage to a relationship.

Before I Fall

Author: Lauren Oliver

Published: 2010
Genre: Fiction

Rating: 3 out of 5

This is my first book by Lauren  Oliver. This book was recommended by Goodreads and after reading the description, decided to read it. "What if you only had one day to live? What would you do?" caught my attention.

Samantha Kingston (Sam), Ally, Elody, and Lindsay are a group of friends and are popular (in a mean way) in their high school. Sam has a boyfriend Rob and a good friend Kent. All the girls bully Juliet Sykes. February 12th, which is a 'Cupid Day' should have been like any ordinary day for Sam. All of them attend the party at Kent's home that night and end up in a car accident. Then Sam wakes up, only to find out, it's Friday, February 12 again. Sam goes through the same experience of the same dream six more times and tries to analyze the meaning behind her experience and the actions of everyone around her including herself.

Lauren Oliver has a keen insight and a brutal view of high school life including friendship, bullying, cruelty, and carelessness of kids. The first few chapters were not particularly interesting, but in the later chapters, as Sam tries to perfect her last day and analyze people and situations, it gets interesting. Sam tries to perfect her last day by doing things differently to her family, friends, and herself.

The plot was good but felt it was a bit draggy. The story left me thinking, that anyone could go through that, even grownups and it’s never too late to change anything. Even as grownups, we tend to hold anger and grudge towards someone, and if we really think and analyze the situation, people, and ourselves, I am sure one is able to let go of all the bitter feelings.

I would recommend this book mostly to young adults. I am interested to read more books by this author.

Forgot to mention – On page 50, it says “like when you hear thunder and know that any second you’ll see lightning tearing across the sky”. As far as I know, it’s the lightning which comes first, then the thunder! Light travels faster than sound.

Favorite lines from the book :

• Some things are better left buried and forgotten.
• Most of the time, one night blends into the next, and weeks blend into weeks and months into other months. And sooner or later, we all die.
• A good friend keeps your secrets for you. A best friend helps you keep your own secrets.
• Here’s another thing to remember; hope keeps you alive. Even when you’re dead, it’s the only thing that keeps you alive.
• That’s the best thing about best friends. That’s what they do. They keep you from spinning off the edge.
• It amazes me how easy it is for things to change, how easy it is to start off down the same road you always take and wind up somewhere new. Just one false step, one pause, one detour, and you end up with new friends or a bad reputation or a boyfriend or a breakup. It’s never occurred to me before; I’ve never been able to see it. And it makes me feel, weirdly, like maybe all of these different possibilities exist at the same time, like each moment we live has a thousand other moments layered underneath it that look different.
• So many things become beautiful when you really look.
• I shiver, thinking about how easy it is to be totally wrong about people – to see one tiny part of them and confuse it for the whole, to see the cause and think it’s the effect or vice versa.
• The scariest secret of all, the part we’re trying to forget.
• Sometimes I’m afraid of what I’m leaving behind.
• I guess that’s what saying goodbye is always like – like jumping off an edge. The worst part is making the choice to do it. Once you’re in the air, there’s nothing you can do but let go.