Review: Hopeless by Colleen Hoover

Hopeless
by Colleen Hoover
Series: Hopeless #1
Publication date: December 19, 2012
Genre: New Adult Contemporary
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 Sometimes discovering the truth can leave you more hopeless than believing the lies… That’s what seventeen-year-old Sky realizes after she meets Dean Holder. A guy with a reputation that rivals her own and an uncanny ability to invoke feelings in her she’s never had before. He terrifies her and captivates her all in the span of just one encounter, and something about the way he makes her feel sparks buried memories from a past that she wishes could just stay buried. Sky struggles to keep him at a distance knowing he’s nothing but trouble, but Holder insists on learning everything about her. After finally caving to his unwavering pursuit, Sky soon finds that Holder isn’t at all who he’s been claiming to be. When the secrets he’s been keeping are finally revealed, every single facet of Sky’s life will change forever.

In my quest for more books in the New Adult genre, I stumbled across reviews of Hopeless by Colleen Hoover and found myself intrigued by the repeated praises. Hoover took me on a journey filled with suspense, romance and intense revelations that left me breathless. From the first page I was drawn into the character's world and quickly found myself emotionally connected to them. I laughed; I cried and in the end I gave a little piece of my heart to them.

The tale begins with an intense scene and I was immediately hooked by the raw emotions. The scene is gripping and the need to know unmerciful.   Delivered from Sky’s point of view we are then propelled backward two months and each chapter is dated and timed. Sky, is seventeen and although she has done a lot of kissing she does not really feel any connection to the boys. Her best friend is going away and she will be entering public school for the first time as a senior after being home-schooled. On a shopping trip to the local grocery school she meets Dean Holder and for the first time we see her flustered and experiencing waves of emotions. The tale that unfolds is absolutely captivating and oh so much more than a romance. It is full of dark intense secrets and I loved every minute and every word as Hoover held me spellbound.

I immediately felt attached to Sky on so many levels. Despite her “kissing” promiscuity she is really a good girl and quite the homebody. She has lived a very sheltered life as cell phones; computers and televisions are not present in her home.*gasps* She is a reader and thus we connected. She is witty, brave and gives good tude'. She is complex and troubled on a deep level and I loved unraveling her.  Dean “Holder” is smexy, intense and fills a room when he enters it.  My first impression was bad boy but he constantly did things to make me question that. As the tale unfolded I quickly feel in love with this emotional, charismatic, and funny young man.  Her bestie, while not present was sweet, and true. At school she makes friends with Brecklin whom I adored. His witty humor added to the tale but I wish he were more present.  He could totally hold his own as a MC. *hint* All of the characters see growth and enhanced the others. The depth of emotion they bring had me laughing, crying and rooting for them.

Wow, where to begin explaining my feelings for this novel and author? Hopeless is complex and so much more than a romance. It reveals dark subjects, pain, lies, and secrets that took me by surprise.  Hoover reels you in and makes you live and feel each moment. My emotions went on a ride from; happy, to concerned, to anger, to tears and love. The author does a wonderful job with ebbs and flows slowly revealing things and then giving us precious moments of profound love to absorb the details. The characters became very real to me, and at times I could barely breathe.  I have said before that I am always chasing that “book high”, where the lines of reality blur and for a moment I live and breathe the world I am in; this is Hopeless! The title is perfect and I fell apart a little as I it sunk in. The plot is tight, believable and brilliant and the way the author brought it all together felt genuine and surreal.  The ending left me with hope and I closed the book feeling spent but calm. Hopeless #2 is to be told from Holder’s point of view and I am actually looking forward to getting into his head.

Fans of contemporary romances, unpredictable plots, chick-lit, life, love and loss need to read Hopeless. Hoover is the author of the popular Slammed YA series, and despite raving reviews I actually hesitated in reading it; since YA contemporaries haven’t worked for me. I can tell you, that has all changed and I will be reading them. Auto-buy list cupcakes, auto buy list.

Five cups of perfectly brewed coffee out of five