When Holly loses her virginity to Paul, a guy she barely knows, she assumes their encounter is a one-night stand. After all, Paul is too popular t...
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reviews
Nov 22, 2011
Reynje
rated it: 
I was up until the early hours of this morning devouring this, and I feel... emotionally bludgeoned and completely wrung out. Will attempt to review when I have (a) slept and (b) regained some objectivity.
Later
”You are very loved.”…”You need to work harder at loving yourself.”
I hardly know where to begin this review. The difficulty arises partly from too few hours of sleep, partly from overcompensating for the fatigue with too much coffee, and partly from the emotional contort
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May 30, 2011
BookWhisperer
rated it: 
Nothing Like You has been in my to be read pile for quite some time, and like many others I am sure I picked it out and reread the description thinking was I sure about reading this. Thank goodness I did not set it back down. I loved every minute of this novel. Not only did I love it, but I finished it in about 24 hours. Impressive is the ease at which you will find yourself sliding through the story. I was halfway done before I ever realized it. As a recently singled mother, I could have relate
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(2 people liked it)
Nov 29, 2011
Sarah
rated it: 
Nothing Like You was much different than I thought it would be, not in a bad way, just a different way. I had high hopes for Lauren Strasnick's debut, and though I did enjoy it, it didn't get five moons like I hoped it would. I first found Lauren through her bloggish website, and let me just say that she is one of the funniest people I have never met. If you haven't already, go check out her website.
Nothing Like You is told with humor as well as depth. Strasnick has grafted an addict More...
Nothing Like You is told with humor as well as depth. Strasnick has grafted an addict More...
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Dec 03, 2011
Sherry
rated it:
This book was so heartbreaking, honestly, this poor girl. As she did all these stupid things she knew what she was doing was wrong but she kept on doing it, and I kept on wanting to tell her to stop. This book deals with grieving, and not in the "sob sob cry cry" kind, just the kind where you can kind of understand why she's doing this because of it her pain. It hurt, she was self destructing and not because she really wanted to but because she felt something and she didn't really unde
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Dec 03, 2011
Sadia
rated it:
When I first started reading this I actually really liked it; I liked that Holly was cold, somewhat heartless and just... different. I liked this which is what I think most people didn't like about Nothing Like You. I guess I liked reading from the POV of 'the other woman'.
About half way through the book my opinion drastically changed. I wanted to pummel Holly and force some sense into her head.
I wanted to feel sorry for her, really, I did, but... I just couldn't. Everyb More...
About half way through the book my opinion drastically changed. I wanted to pummel Holly and force some sense into her head.
I wanted to feel sorry for her, really, I did, but... I just couldn't. Everyb More...
Jul 25, 2011
Lisa
rated it:
I loved this. It exceeded my expectations. It felt fresh to me after reading books with disappointing or flat characters. The characters in this were like the writing style, simple but deeply layered. I always seem to love characters if they are going through something difficult which makes them make bad decisions, but who learn from their mistakes and don't mean to cause the carnage they make.
I know that won't really make sense to anyone. Maybe it will. It was definitely a flawed se More...
I know that won't really make sense to anyone. Maybe it will. It was definitely a flawed se More...
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Nov 07, 2010
Phoebe
rated it:
I finished Lauren Strasnick’s first novel, Nothing Like You at 4 a.m., with a lump in my throat the size of a fist. This was strange because her book didn’t contain any of the usual tear-jerker tropes for me: dead grandparents, dead dogs. It is, of course, a story of loss—but that loss (of the narrator Holly’s mother) happens off-screen before our story even begins. Nothing Like You is in fact the story of how Holly attempts, and largely fails, to deal with her mother’s death. It opens with Holl
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(10 people liked it)
Oct 03, 2010
Arianna
rated it:
Read this book for four hours straight and can not put it down! the whole story was interesting, holly numbed herself out of the world since her mothers death and having the popular guy having a sudden interest in her was obsence. some may say she was a hoe for fooling around with paul even though he had a gf but i thnk not. she was at her all time low and needed love and he was the only one urging for her even though it mainly consisted of sex but it was not only sex i truely do believe he like
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Sep 27, 2010
Mary Ellen
rated it:
*Light spoilers*
I absolutely loved this book. it just breaks your heart and puts it back together but also leaves you wondering. I finished it in one sitting and i was blown away. The writing is beautiful && Holly's loss is so heart breaking. She moves on with her life but she's missing love...real love. Yes, she has Jeff, her father, but he's dealing with his own loss and he isnt able to move on until the end of the book. I believe that by becoming involved with Paul, Holly felt that void More...
I absolutely loved this book. it just breaks your heart and puts it back together but also leaves you wondering. I finished it in one sitting and i was blown away. The writing is beautiful && Holly's loss is so heart breaking. She moves on with her life but she's missing love...real love. Yes, she has Jeff, her father, but he's dealing with his own loss and he isnt able to move on until the end of the book. I believe that by becoming involved with Paul, Holly felt that void More...
Sep 05, 2010
Erin
rated it:
This book was sad, in the first half I found myself with that heavy weighted feeling of sorrow for Holly that I honestly had to stop and take some breaths a few times. Then as the book went on, the decisions just became sad.
I understood, the jist of what was causing Holly to make those descisions, but I didn't know why she was or more importantly why she would keep doing it. Her reasons just didn't seem concrete enough especially when the reasons not to, FAR FAR FAR out weighed the More...
I understood, the jist of what was causing Holly to make those descisions, but I didn't know why she was or more importantly why she would keep doing it. Her reasons just didn't seem concrete enough especially when the reasons not to, FAR FAR FAR out weighed the More...
Aug 24, 2010
Jordan
rated it:
I really didn't know what to expect when my niece picked up this book and said I had to read it. Usually, her suggestions hover around suicides, drugs, poem books, etc- and anyone that knows me knows I'm a paranormal girl all the way. There are only a few non-paranormal books that really have held my attention. This is one of them. There is love tension between each Holly and her best friend Nil's throughout the book, but Holly (frustratingly) continues to hook up and pursue Paul- when it's obvi
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May 24, 2010
Sara
rated it: 
If this book hadn't been short and a really quick read, there is no way I would have finished it. The main character, Holly, is feeling bad, so she throws herself into a fling with some guy at her school, who happens to have a girlfriend that Holly later becomes friends with, complicating everything.
Holly is an incredibly unlikable character. She makes bad choices and bad decisions time after time, and it's really obvious that nothing will change unless she takes action, but she More...
Holly is an incredibly unlikable character. She makes bad choices and bad decisions time after time, and it's really obvious that nothing will change unless she takes action, but she More...
Mar 31, 2010
laaaaames
rated it:
I'm kind of surprising myself giving this one three stars. It's not great. And it's a bit sex-negative which, I KNOW RIGHT? Sex is never good in this book, which is a problem. Also I hate that Saskia and Holly have basically the same conversation about sex Sharon and Angela once had in a much better written scene of My So-Called Life.
ANYWAYS. Despite that. I did enjoy how messy and complicated things were. I loved the portrayal of a controlling, semi-emotionally abusive relationship. More...
ANYWAYS. Despite that. I did enjoy how messy and complicated things were. I loved the portrayal of a controlling, semi-emotionally abusive relationship. More...
Feb 24, 2010
Kelly
rated it:
I loved getting to know Holly her mother has recently passed away from breast cancer. She hooks up with a Paul and has sex with him thinking it is a one time thing. She loses her virginity but this was her plan and finally feels something after months of being numb.
Holly continues to see Paul her "one night stand" and things just go down hill from that point. Her best friend Nils is starting to become a bit more than just a "friend" and Pauls girlfriend is n More...
Holly continues to see Paul her "one night stand" and things just go down hill from that point. Her best friend Nils is starting to become a bit more than just a "friend" and Pauls girlfriend is n More...
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Dec 05, 2009
Gabriel
rated it:
Eloquent and succinct. Written with dynamic depth and attention to character, the read engenders a heroe's journey of young woman who finds herself on the threshold of change and in the aftermath of tragedy.
The story's unique charm falls off the page into your heart as you accompany the central character's nuanced and profound experience in the emotional tumult and eventual resolve which strikes us all in young adulthood. Often the work reads very contemporary, full of cur More...
The story's unique charm falls off the page into your heart as you accompany the central character's nuanced and profound experience in the emotional tumult and eventual resolve which strikes us all in young adulthood. Often the work reads very contemporary, full of cur More...
Nov 21, 2009
Kate
rated it: 
Review cross-posted from: http://readthisbook.wordpress.com/2009/1...
Nothing Like You was an average book. The plot was interesting and unique but I did not like the main character. I could not connect with Holly. I just felt that she had too little respect for herself. I just don’t understand how you can fool around with someone else’s boyfriend and still become friends with them.
The story itself was engaging, the chapters were short so it was a quick read. I liked the ps More...
Nothing Like You was an average book. The plot was interesting and unique but I did not like the main character. I could not connect with Holly. I just felt that she had too little respect for herself. I just don’t understand how you can fool around with someone else’s boyfriend and still become friends with them.
The story itself was engaging, the chapters were short so it was a quick read. I liked the ps More...
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Sep 14, 2009
AnnaBnana
rated it:
Holly lost her virginity to Paul, a guy she barely knows. She thinks it's a one-night stand and honestly, she really just did it to kind of get the whole thing over with. She's sure Paul is too popular to like her back...and besides, he's been on-again, off-again with the lovely Saskia for ages.
Holly's wrong though...Paul does want her back. Problem is, these days he's back on with Saskia. Holly wants Paul to like her more; she wants to win. She doesn't know Saskia, so who is More...
Holly's wrong though...Paul does want her back. Problem is, these days he's back on with Saskia. Holly wants Paul to like her more; she wants to win. She doesn't know Saskia, so who is More...
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Aug 09, 2010
Jessica (Jess Hearts Books)
rated it:
I was going to get this book when it was out in hardcover but I’m so glad I waited for it to come out in paperback. Not because it’s a bad book - no quiet the contrary but because the cover for this book is gorgeous. I love it and down the side of the book there’s a beautiful paisley design. A very pretty one for on your bookshelf and what’s inside this book is just as gorgeous. It’s only a short book being just over 200 pages long but it packs a punch. I read this one last Sunday and couldn’t p
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May 31, 2011
Thebookbutterfly
rated it:
Nothing Like You was refreshing.
It was nice to just sit down and flip through a good book with no expectations, no pre-misconceptions, and no judgment. I just allowed myself to enjoy it. And I ended up adoring it, in that odd way that you love things without meaning to.
Holly's not the kind of girl that I was prepared to like. She has sass and she's funny, but sometimes when she just came out and said what she meant, I felt my heart ache. She's been shoved into the narrow More...
It was nice to just sit down and flip through a good book with no expectations, no pre-misconceptions, and no judgment. I just allowed myself to enjoy it. And I ended up adoring it, in that odd way that you love things without meaning to.
Holly's not the kind of girl that I was prepared to like. She has sass and she's funny, but sometimes when she just came out and said what she meant, I felt my heart ache. She's been shoved into the narrow More...
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Jun 21, 2010
Melody
rated it:
Holly lost her mother to cancer, so in a way this has made her worried and very conscious of her health. She does not have many friends at school, and she loves hanging around with her childhood friend, Nils, and she was glad that they went to the same school together.
While Holly thinks Nils is a good friend, she finds another Paul, another schoolmate attractive and despite they do not know each other very well, she does not mind hooking up with him though she knew he already has a More...
While Holly thinks Nils is a good friend, she finds another Paul, another schoolmate attractive and despite they do not know each other very well, she does not mind hooking up with him though she knew he already has a More...
Mar 21, 2011
Brooke (Bright Wishes)
rated it:
At first I tried reading this story and just wasn’t that into it, but then after a second attempt, I finished it in about 5 hours. Holly was a kind of person you could relate to, except for the fact that she was very naïve about Paul (one of her love interests). I mean, shouldn’t she know that if a guy is cheating on his girlfriend with you that means he’s a bad guy? That you need to cross him off your list?
Throughout the book I thought Paul was kind of creepy. He would randomly co More...
Throughout the book I thought Paul was kind of creepy. He would randomly co More...
Nov 26, 2009
Princess Bookie
rated it:
My Thoughts: We are introduced to Holly who starts having a secret relationship with Paul but Paul already has a girlfriend named Saskia. We are also introduced to Holly's guy friend. Paul makes Holly feel good, wanted even. She cares about him and has real feelings for him but he is still with his girlfriend and doesn't want to hurt her by breaking up with her. More or less he wants both of them. She seems to have somewhat low self esteem and puts up with it for a while. She figures at least sh
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Nov 03, 2010
Mariana
rated it:
When I started reading this book I immediately thought: another book about a sad girl who has only one friend at school and enough reasons to hate the world. But the reading was progressing, I was lying on my bed at Saturday night and kept repeating: just one more chapter, just one more .... And there were ten without I even notice until my eyes began to burn with sleep.
Holly is a teenager who is weakened after her mother's death. She is so confused about her emotions that has numb More...
Holly is a teenager who is weakened after her mother's death. She is so confused about her emotions that has numb More...
Apr 25, 2010
Anna
rated it:
Wow, really, really good writing. I came across this kind of accidentally and I'm really glad I did because I loved the way Lauren Strasnick let this story unfold so naturally. The book opens with Holly, a high school senior whose mother passed away recently, losing her virginity (I hate that phrase) to Paul, a popular guy with a girlfriend. You (the reader) know it's a bad choice (and it's followed by a lot of other bad choices), but somehow Holly, who's so hurt and confused and still in a de
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Jun 05, 2011
Mabel
rated it:
The first impression from this book cover will most likely be "this is probably one of those typical teenage novels", well it is.
Holly, one of the quiet nobodies in her school, experienced the death six months prior to her encounter with Paul. Paul is one of the most popular guys in school who just so happens to be in a relationship with Saskia. Holly begins a relationship with Paul while, at the same time, forming a friendship with Saskia. This experience is thrilling for H More...
Holly, one of the quiet nobodies in her school, experienced the death six months prior to her encounter with Paul. Paul is one of the most popular guys in school who just so happens to be in a relationship with Saskia. Holly begins a relationship with Paul while, at the same time, forming a friendship with Saskia. This experience is thrilling for H More...
Aug 28, 2010
Brooke
rated it:
At first I tried reading this story and just wasn’t that into it, but then after a second attempt, I finished it in about 5 hours. Holly was a kind of person you could relate to, except for the fact that she was very naïve about Paul (one of her love interests). I mean, shouldn’t she know that if a guy is cheating on his girlfriend with you that means he’s a bad guy? That you need to cross him off your list?
Throughout the book I thought Paul was kind of creepy. He would randomly More...
Throughout the book I thought Paul was kind of creepy. He would randomly More...
Jan 23, 2011
MY BOOK REVIEW ON "NOTHING LIKE YOU"
This was such a amazing book! It was reaay a eye opener this book is about a girl named holly whos mother dies from canser and holly need to feel something so she mets Paul. A popular guy (and all ready has a girfriend).Holly loses her "v'' to Paul and she truley thinks shes in loves with him . but does he feel the same way ? NO!. Holly finds her self getting closer to pauls girlfriend and they become friends so holl More...
This was such a amazing book! It was reaay a eye opener this book is about a girl named holly whos mother dies from canser and holly need to feel something so she mets Paul. A popular guy (and all ready has a girfriend).Holly loses her "v'' to Paul and she truley thinks shes in loves with him . but does he feel the same way ? NO!. Holly finds her self getting closer to pauls girlfriend and they become friends so holl More...
May 31, 2011
Carly
rated it:
This book was so different from what I expected - and so great. Holly's mother died last year, and she hasn't really dealt with it yet. She starts her senior year by losing her virginity to Paul, assuming it will be a one-night stand. But it isn't. Paul swears that he likes her and wants to be with her, and they embark on a clandestine relationship - because Paul has a girlfriend, Saskia. Things get really complicated for Holly when she strikes up a friendship with Saskia and discovers that
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Dec 09, 2009
NCPL
rated it:
Why did I do it? Who knows, really. Was I just trying to feel something? Pain, regret, hope, joy, love? An interest in someone, anyone other than Mom? What did Paul Bennett see in me? There must be something. Some reason he comes back once or twice a week, other than the sex of course. He says he won't leave his girlfriend, Saskia, but that he doesn't sleep with her. Is he telling the truth? And why does Saskia actually have to be such a great person, someone I could call a friend?
I mad More...
I mad More...
Nov 04, 2010
Holly
rated it:
Ah sometimes reading a contemporary is just what you need and Nothing Like You was awesome (and I'm not just saying that because the character's name is Holly and her favorite song is Neil Diamond's "Holly Holy"----it's like fate that I read this book). The details of each character are what make this book so interesting and the fact that it is completely relatable, just a high school girl coping with the death of her mom from cancer who gets into a relationship she knows isn't good fo
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