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February Book (Romance)
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BOTM - Confess discussion thread - spoiler friendly!
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But talking about the story, it was not enough. It was a major disappointment. Some things which really bothered me are the protagonists' instalove, the lack of events, lack of usage of art and confessions, and the story, in general. Even though the story kept me hooked from the beginning, it did not impress me. At all.
To compare it with other romance novels, I would say this one is disappointing. But I'm sure other CoHo novels will make up for it.
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message 4:
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Marianne (Boricuan Bookworms) , Marianne (Boricuan Bookworms)
(last edited Feb 21, 2016 07:15AM)
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Sure, the writing was interesting, and the artwork and confessions gave it an extra edge, but I couldn't connect with the characters at all which lead to me really disliking the story.
I wanted to slap Auburn most of the time because she made such bad decisions/let people trample her. She was a doormat waiting for Owen, her knight in shining armor, to save her. Owen started out SUUUUUPER creepy to me and I thought at the end we'd find out that he was a serial killer or something. I did start liking him at the end, though.
There were also a lot of situations where the storyline seemed incredibly forced, with the only purpose of making Owen look like a white knight, or make Auburn look as if she were the biggest victim in the world. These things made me dislike the story even more.
(P.S. Can we discuss WHY Auburn thought that reporting Trey for assaulting her was a bad idea? Her roomate was there as a witness and you could SEE the bruising on her! GAH! She could've gained custody of her kid that way, geez.)
This was my first Colleen Hoover read, and I really wanted it to be good, I loved her writing, and I thought this book will be full of mind blowing confessions, but no it didn't, . I was hooked at the beginning , then as the story picked up I kinda knew what was going to happen, which was really disappointing to me. The only thing that kept me going was that I wanted to know how Owen knew Aubrun and that was it, but it's a typical romance, kinda reminded me of Safe Haven a little. I thought this was going to blow my mind, but it didn't I'm afraid, it was a disappointment for me too, glad I didn't go through it alone
This was my first Colleen Hoover read. I'm very impressed by the setup of the storyline -- it was intriguing having the alternating points of view, and then having the clincher right at the end for the big "Ah ha!".I, too, was annoyed by Auburn. How the author set her up really well -- having her command the art show, handle everything responsibly, and then Hoover completely let us down with her in the rest of the book. She's weak, her reasons for her choices are weak, and the "instalove" she feels for Owen is a little too over-the-top.
The whole Trey situation was infuriating. I can't even.
It was enjoyable, though. I've picked up a few other of her books on Kindle just to see how they compare.
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I was actually expecting something a lot more emotional than what it was too!
Also, did anyone else think Owen was her boyfriend that died (I can't remember his name) ? I was convinced that was the secret for the first part of the book!! Haha!
Jen (Reader In A Reverie) wrote: "This was the second CoHo book I've read, and I have to say I was quite disappointed. Like most of you guys I read it super quick, because her writing style is great! But I really didn't like the ch..."I totally thought he was her first boyfriend for the first half, too!! Until Trey saw him and completely ruined that gut feeling.
One thing though didn't Trey recognize Owen from the hospital and wait, did Owen move after her or was it just a coincidence...
Like most of you, I loved Colleen Hoover's writing style (no surprise there) but I didn't care for the characters in this book. I don't know if it was because I'm not a mother and don't know the feeling of doing anything for your child...but ugh... Maybe I didn't like it as much because it was just a shitty situation and Trey gave me the major creeps but I thought the connection with Owen was too quick... not believable. I did enjoy the ending where we got to learn how he was connected to her and it made HIS affection for her seem more genuine...but hers was still pretty flimsy.
However...after reading this I had a serious feeling that I could magically be an awesome painter...like Owen :P haha was anyone else lol'ing that his first painting was, of course, amazeballs and he found his calling all because of Auburn? What a perfectly convenient destiny! The art in the middle of the book was a nice touch, though... I think it did add to the story to be able to see Owen's artwork and some of the confessions they told.
Overall, I'm not sad I read it...but I won't go around recommending it to everyone like I would with November 9. I also might eventually donate it to the library since it's pretty safe to say I won't be rereading it. I'll still keep reading Colleen Hoover, though... her books are always quick reads so you never really lose much by trying one out :D and it makes me want to pick up Ugly Love since everyone is always talking about it!
message 11:
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Marianne (Boricuan Bookworms) , Marianne (Boricuan Bookworms)
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I laughed so much at the Owen magically being an awesome painter thing! I couldn't believe it. If I were painting for the first time in my life, it would've looked like 2 stick figures, lol!
message 12:
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Marianne (Boricuan Bookworms) , Marianne (Boricuan Bookworms)
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Owen already lived there, it was a coincidence that Auburn found an apartment so close by to his studio.
Marianne wrote: "Dina wrote: "One thing though didn't Trey recognize Owen from the hospital and wait, did Owen move after her or was it just a coincidence..."Owen already lived there, it was a coincidence that Au..."
Right I totally forgot that part, wow this proves that this book didn't have an effect on me .. oh well
What affected everybody most about the book?For me, it was Trey. I could not help but hold my breath every time he appeared on the pages. I was so angry at Auburn for allowing herself to be bullied by him, and I was so angry at him for being such a creepy stalker.
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Don't get me started on Auburn. I felt like throttling her throughout most of the book. She seems to make one stupid decision after another, and not in a realistic way either - I felt like she was intentionally doing these stupid, unrealistic things to make her life more drama-filled. Her instant love for Owen REALLY annoyed me - there was no basis for it and yet she's suddenly all like, "I want him! But I mustn't. BUT I WANT HIM." Like, relax. You're not Catherine and he's not Heathcliff. Also Owen - I found him mostly creepy with very little redeeming romantic qualities.
Overall this book was a constant face-palm for me. Admittedly, I'm not usually a massive romance fan but I do enjoy dipping my toe into the genre occasionally for good books. I had hoped that this book would be one I could add to my "good romance" shelf, but alas it wasn't meant to be. I don't think I'll recommend this to people, and I kind of regret spending $10 (or however much it was) on the ebook version. Rookie mistake, Alex. Rookie mistake.
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Auburn Mason Reed as the lead female character in the book was alright. I didn't find her that remarkable primarily because she lacked her fighting spirit at the early parts of the book. I felt like she couldn't have made a decision which she actually stood for until the end of the story. Owen Mason Gentry, on the other hand, was also alright. I may have found him actually sweet and swoon-worthy at some parts of the book, but still incomparable to Benton James Kessler, Miles Archer, and Ridge. I honestly found him a bit creepy at first, but slightly predictable. And my other issue is with the insta-love in the book. I find them awful and unrealistic, all the more making Auburn and Owen very hard to reach characters.
In the end, the book proved to be a fairly good one. I had expected this to be really good because I always loved Colleen's books, but I only ended up being slightly disappointed. Colleen's writing style, did redeem the book for me, although the plot itself kinda became an issue. Plus, Trey was really creepy, and I felt awfully uncomfortable whenever he came on the scene. But, I'm still happy that I got to read this book though. Although I also won't be recommending it as much as I recommended my friends Maybe Someday, November 9 and Ugly Love.
Jen (Reader In A Reverie) wrote: "This was the second CoHo book I've read, and I have to say I was quite disappointed. Like most of you guys I read it super quick, because her writing style is great! But I really didn't like the ch..."
Yes! I thought the exact same thing about Owen and Auburn's first boyfriend. I was kind of disappointed when that didn't happen.
Yes! I thought the exact same thing about Owen and Auburn's first boyfriend. I was kind of disappointed when that didn't happen.
Marianne wrote: "Laura wrote: "Like most of you, I loved Colleen Hoover's writing style (no surprise there) but I didn't care for the characters in this book. I don't know if it was because I'm not a mother and don..."haha oh man, me too :P and hands... hands are so freaking hard to draw - I'M CALLING SHENANIGANS!!
Laura wrote: "Like most of you, I loved Colleen Hoover's writing style (no surprise there) but I didn't care for the characters in this book. I don't know if it was because I'm not a mother and don't know the fe..."Honestly I was pissed off at Auburn, even if she made a mistake and gave up her son, she should have been more stronger than that, instead of being a door mat to Trey & his mother, so no it has nothing to do of being a mother or not. Aubrun was just a week character to me
This book was a quick read (I finished it all in one sitting on a lazy Saturday afternoon), so I will give it points for being engaging. Other than that, I felt like all this book did was take shortcuts. Instadeath for Adam, Instalove for Auburn, Instapainting for Owen...no logical explanantions for anything! Even the romance parts were very quickly breezed through. Auburn is a terrible decision maker (her first interaction with Owen is a classic example of something you would never do if he looked like a creeper instead of megahot), but I almost can't blame her because her parents and Lydia have obviously never given her much guidance in that department. And I don't even want to talk about Terrible Trey!Positives: I really enjoyed being able to see the artwork. This has always been a pet peeve of mine when I have read other books that describe a person making art, but I'm so NOT artistically talented that I can never completely picture it.
I thought I'd post a few questions in case anyone isn't sure about how to start talking. These are just starting points, so if you feel like answering them, that's great! And if you know exactly how you feel about the book and just want to type it all out, stream-of-consciousness style, that's fine too.
1. How'd you enjoy the book? Did it suck you in immediately or did it take a while to draw you in? Did you like it overall, or did it leave you wanting?
2. What did you think of the characters? Did you find their motivations realistic, or did they strike you as unnatural?
3. Is this a genre/author you generally read? If it is, how does this book compare to some other romance/Colleen Hoover books you've read? If not, did this book enforce or defy any expectations you had?
As I said, feel free to answer none/some/all of these questions! This is a spoiler-friendly zone so no need to hide anything, go nuts!