I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman - Restarting April 6th 2019

[Maddie]

Around the time that Freya loses her voice while recording her debut album, Harun is making plans to run away from everyone he has ever loved, and Nathaniel is arriving in New York City with a backpack, a desperate plan, and nothing left to lose. When a fateful accident draws these three strangers together, their secrets start to unravel as they begin to understand that the way out of their own loss might just lie in help­ing the others out of theirs.

[Maddie]

10% (view spoiler)[Well this is interesting! Going into this without even reading the synopsis :p No idea what to expect. It's so cool having the 3 different POVs already, although I feel like I have no idea what anyone's background is yet. Hopefully it's explained! (hide spoiler)]

[Maddie]

Picking this back up in a few hours, and finishing it.

[Maddie]

24% (view spoiler)[Yay more background! I can tell this is going to be an intense book. Can't wait for Nat to tell Freya he likes her, and for Harun to reveal he knows Freya. (hide spoiler)]

[Maddie]

58% (view spoiler)[I love learning all about these characters.

Freya: I can't believe there are people in this world like Sabrina. When I have kids, I'll never let my children speak like that to another person. I'll discipline them properly. I hate parents who let children get away with it.

Harun: It hurts to think he's using Freya, just because he wants James back. I'm totally on James' side though, James doesn't deserve to have to hide in the shadows just because Harun isn't out yet. (hide spoiler)]

[Maddie]

65% (view spoiler)['So the assistant was awful, was she?'
'Wasn't her fault. She just wasn't you.' This right here, this openness <3 (hide spoiler)]

[Maddie]

83% (view spoiler)[Oh Nathaniel :( So glad it finally came out, but why did it have to be done like that :( I really hope Freya goes after him and they talk it out. I don't like what I feel is going to happen. (hide spoiler)]

[Maddie]

Finished (view spoiler)[I was soooo happy that the book didn't end the way I expected it to! I really thought he was going to kill himself, and then it ended with him standing at the edge of the bridge looking down at the water thinking about jumping. And then he just threw the book off, and Freya and Harun found him. Thank gosh! (hide spoiler)]

Review: This was such an interesting story! Very quick read. I loved the opening of the story, how we were introduced to the 3 MCs and what they were all doing at the same point in time, and how they all connected. I always enjoy seeing that.
Freya (view spoiler)[I really wished she had gotten her voice back. I am very pleased to see the relationship getting back on track with her sister :) And I really hope Nathaniel and Freya develop a strong relationship (hide spoiler)]
Nathaniel: I love how he showed his passions at points throughout this book, what he enjoyed doing in the past. Initially, I thought him to be a rather weird character, but I think that's the point. I'm pleased Foreman unravelled him for us so we could properly appreciate him. (view spoiler)[My heart completely went out to him when he came down the stairs and said 'you're marrying James?' I facepalmed and couldn't believe it. Of course it would happen to the most insecure of them :( Just so glad it all ended well. (hide spoiler)]
Harun: I understand how he feels, about family expectations and all of that, but I'm actually siding with (view spoiler)[James today. There's no reason why he should settle for someone who is ashamed to be who he is. I'm pleased James didn't take him back, but I really wished we'd seen his reaction to Freya's video! I wished Harun had talked to his sister about it, or vice versa, so that he wouldn't have been alone. (hide spoiler)]
I'm really pleased I got accepted for this book, and that I actually got around to reading it!

[Sarah Elizabeth]

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Date Changed. Restarting June 11th 2018. Happy Reading ☺

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[Isha]

10%

I love the poetic writing style that Forman is using with this book. It already matches the tone of the book so perfectly. So far from the three perspectives, I'm the most interested in what is going to happen with Harun. I wonder what is going on with Nathaniel and why he's made the trip to NYC.

[Isha]

17%

(view spoiler)[I like that we got to see major events that impacted all three of the main characters' lives. I have a feeling that these events are going to play a huge part in why the characters do what they do in the rest of the book. (hide spoiler)]

[Isha]

27%

(view spoiler)[I wonder how and why Nathaniel has a prosthetic eye. That was a big curveball that I definitely did not see coming. Now we know he is in NYC to see his dad, so maybe his dad left him after his grandma died? Also, I sense a romance happening between Freya and him! (hide spoiler)]

[Isha]

30%

(view spoiler)[Ok Nat's dad is horrible! I can't believe he didn't care at all when Nat's eye was bleeding. That entire scene made me feel so bad for him. He could've gotten into a great school with a baseball scholarship, but after the accident, I have a feeling that that isn't possible anymore. (hide spoiler)]

[Isha]

69%

(view spoiler)[I'm loving Nathaniel and Freya's flirting with each other! I do think it's a little bit soon though. Both of them have grown throughout the course of the book so much.

I was very interested in Harun's storyline in the beginning, but now I'm annoyed with him. I think the only reason why he's still sticking around is so that Freya can somehow help get James back for him, which is ridiculous in the first place. The only thing that would bring James back to Harun is if Harun owned who he was to his family.

I do want to see what happens from here though. (hide spoiler)]

[Isha]

80%

(view spoiler)[OMG! First off, the kiss between Freya and Nathaniel was so sweet! I love their interactions with Harun's family as well. But Harun revealing he is gay to his family was the craziest part of this chapter. I was surprised how his sister reacted to the news. Amongst all of his family, she seemed the most supportive. I could've believe Saif though. He was almost happy that Harun did something "worse" than he did. And of course, I feel bad for Nathaniel. I have a feeling that he has suicidal thoughts after how he reacted in the moment and after he told Freya that she saved him from his plan B. (hide spoiler)]

[Isha]

Such a good book and a very different read for me. Though that ending was way too suspenseful and then abrupt for my liking! I want there to be a sequel!

[Karen]

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Date Changed Restarting April 6th 2019

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[Sarah Elizabeth]

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Date changed. Restarting April 6th 2019. Happy Reading ☺

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
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[Ryn]

to p65

Can I just point out that Freya (view spoiler)[ FELL OFF A BRIDGE and didn't get hurt. Nathaniel may have broken her fall but really? (hide spoiler)]

Seriously though, very interesting start. I like the diversity of the characters, and I'm intrigued by Freya as a singer and public figure. Wasn't expecting that. Actually, I've never read a Gayle Foreman novel before, so I wasn't sure what to expect. She's got a really diverse spread of characters here though.

[Karen]

Ryn, I’ve got to finish the last 50 pages of another, then I’m starting this. Like you, I’ve not read anything by this author, but one of my students highly recommends her.

[Ryn]

No worries. I'll probably be finishing up today but I'm still following the feed. I'll have some catch up reading to do after that as well, so if we're late on Public Enemies it's not a big deal.

[Ryn]

to p 129

Well, I like the story so fare. Foreman's character development is wonderful. They're all so nuanced. I'm glad she sort of went back in this section and started digging into who they each are and how they each got started on the path they're on. Nathaniel sort of breaks my heart though -- there's something really wrong here like a mental illness and it really bothers me no one seems to be paying attention to what's happening in his home and to him. Hits a nerve for me as a foster mom.

[Karen]

Ryn, agree with you about the opening. Very different characters, but that common thread of alienation is obviously going to be important.

[Ryn]

to p 197

It's hard for me to find things to say about this book. I'm enjoying it, but it seems to be an exercise in character development, so I don't really feel like I have a lot of comments to make. It reminds me a bit of The Sun Is also a Star. I'm always hoping for a happy ending so it generally makes my reader OCD unhappy when a character sabotages their chances at something. I understand why Freya did it though, and I'm glad she took her song. I wish she had taken more of them. Nathaniel is kind of adorable.

[Karen]

19% - This is set up well. Making certain assumptions about each of the characters, and very curious to know what’s happened to Nathaniel.

[Karen]

36% - see what you mean about the background stories. Almost don’t want to know what Nathaniel’s story is. Though it’s clearly manipulated it seems to make sense at the moment.

[Karen]

55% - I’m not sure the dinner with Harun’s family makes much sense, but it does at least bring things to a head.

[Karen]

Think my version was out of kilter with the page tally as things seemed to resolve pretty quickly. No major changes in situation, but the mindsets had shifted and there was a really positive sense to the ending. Still felt as if I wanted to know more of Nathaniel’s story.

[Ryn]

Fin

Exactly! Nothing really changed... well some things did. I think each character has kind of come to terms with who they are. Freya's come to see herself in a world (view spoiler)[ that doesn't necessarily mean she's famous, Harun came out, Nathaniel... well he decides not to kill himself./> So I guess things HAVE really changed for each of them, but it definitely doesn't follow a traditional narrative line. I think my favorite story was Freya; I loved that she (view spoiler)[ and her sister were able to reconcile, and I really liked that Little White Dress ended up being about her and her sister. I thought that was lovely -- again, felt like The Sun Is also a Star. Was disappointed a bit in Harun's ending, but I felt like it was realistic. (hide spoiler)] So all in all, I really liked the book, but it wasn't at all what I was expecting. (hide spoiler)]