Release Date:   May 17, 2015

Genre:   Contemporary Romance, Mystery/Suspense, YA

Silas races against time as more truths unravel, while others twist tighter together. “Where are you, Charlie?” Never Never: Part Two is the continuation of the Never Never series.

Have you read the first book in the Never Never Series?  You absolutely HAVE to!!!  This series must be read in order.  I’m 100% hooked and cannot get enough – check out my review of Never Never Part One!

Title:   Never Never  (Never Never Series Book #1)

Author:   Colleen Hoover & Tarryn Fisher

Genre:   Contemporary Romance, Mystery/Suspense, YA

Best friends since they could walk. In love since the age of fourteen. Complete strangers since this morning. He’ll do anything to remember. She’ll do anything to forget.

 

Never Never: Part Two by Colleen Hoover

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

*ARC Given to Blog for Honest Review*

4 “Never forget” “Jamais Jamais” Kisses

It’s official…I now need to move into both Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher’s brains. I’ll split my time evenly between the two…but I’m almost positive I cannot live without the influence of their brilliance in my world. If I thought I enjoyed Never Never Part One…Never Never Part Two up’d the ante…a lot. I don’t know what kind of witchcraft or jedi mind tricks they have cast upon me…but it’s totally and completely working and I don’t know what I’m going to do with myself after the third book. FYI…in case you weren’t aware…Never Never Part Two is the second book in a series…and this is a series that absolutely must be read in order!

Silas Nash…wow…yeah, I am totally 100% in love with him now…and once again, I still don’t even know that much about him. Maybe it’s because we get more of him in Part Two then we do in Part One…maybe it’s because of everything that’s happening, he’s kind of turning into the accidental hero if you will, but everything he’s saying and doing is just wonderful and I can’t get enough of it. I definitely know it has something to do with Charlie’s reaction to him…especially at the end…that was just all I needed in the world – and in the grand scheme of things it’s relatively minor, but it spoke to me. At this point, all of the stuff I don’t know about him seems inconsequential because I know this Silas…and this Silas is blowing me away more and more.

‘It seems so natural to think thoughts that contain the word I. But each of my thought are hollow and weightless, because the world “I” is attached to no one. No name, no face. I am…nothing.’

Charlize Margaret Wynwood …her personality is totally growing on me. Charlie is a little rough around the edges…she’s not sweet or typical…she’s unique and edgy and sassy and it works for her. I’m finding how much of a perfect counterpart she really is to Silas and the balance they bring to each other is magical. And it’s funny because as much as I loved getting more Silas…I did, in fact, miss Charlie. Her chapters weren’t necessarily long but I found I got more from them then I was expecting…especially her dreams – I kind of want just a chapter of her dreams.

‘I reach up to touch my face, smiling a little. He loved me. He was so…full of life. I lie back down, wondering what happened to him and if he’s the reason I’m here. Why hasn’t he come to find me? Can a person forget that kind of love?’

How is it possible for me to fall in love with two characters that I don’t know that much about? I don’t know their histories…how they grew up…what made them who they are…I know bits and pieces and secondhand information, but all the core information that I usually get from my characters is just…not there with Never Never…and ya know what? It works. How??? I don’t know…and I don’t care. The only thing I can give credit to is the genius talent behind Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher. I bow down to their greatness and applaud them for concocting one of the best plots ever. I am still in awe of the writing…their two different styles blend perfectly and effortlessly together and they’re quickly becoming one of my favorite writing duo’s. I’ve always said that if the writing is strong enough it can make me believe anything…it’s why I’m a fan of insta-love and ass hole hero’s who redeem themselves and all the unthinkable scenarios that “in theory” should not work…but do. Add Never Never to the list…because while I may not know much, I adore everything I do know and regardless of what happens in book 3, this has been one of the most captivating series I’ve ever read.

‘Figure out what you did with the Charlie I fell in love with. And when you find her, I’ll be here. I told you before I’ll never stop loving you. I’ll never forget what we have.
But lately, it seems that you’ve forgotten’

Remember the mind fuck from Part One? Yeah…well it only magnified with Part Two…but trust me it’s getting better and better with each click of my kindle. For every clue or piece I thought I had figured out…twenty more questions popped up in its place. It was both wonderful and made me want to scream…in a good way, I promise. I really don’t know how it’s possible for someone who despises not knowing things to love how much I don’t know with this book…but it’s all part of the fantastic mind-fuck package. The build of this series is fantastic…I couldn’t love it any more if I tried because even with the list of things I don’t know, I’m still feeling the anticipation building naturally and I am quickly becoming addicted to this anticipation. The feelings it is giving me is completely overwhelming my desire to know. Once again the balance of the mystery/suspense with the romance/relationship between Charlie and Silas is perfection! Just one more reason why I can’t get enough.

‘This.
This must have been why I felt an unwavering need to find her. Because until this very second, I didn’t know Charlie wasn’t the only one missing. When she disappeared, part of me must have disappeared right along with her. Because this is the first time I feel like me— like Silas Nash— since the second I woke up yesterday.’

I am so uncontrollably into everything that is going on with this series it’s not even funny. I never want it to stop…I honestly hate the fact that there is only one book left – my stage five clinger tendencies are kicking in full force! Obviously I need answers…duh…but it’s not even about that anymore. The way everything has come together…I don’t know how everything is going to wrap up in one more book…and even once it’s wrapped up…I have a feeling I’m going to want more from Charlie and Silas. They’re absolutely amazing characters and I don’t know if I’ll ever get enough of them.

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Colleen Hoover is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Slammed, Point of Retreat, This Girl, Hopeless, Losing Hope, Maybe Someday, and Finding Cinderella. She lives in Texas with her husband and their three boys. Please visit ColleenHoover.com.

I am a real life villain, truly. I drink sick amounts of Starbucks. Most of the time my hair smells like coffee. I was born in South Africa, and lived there for most of my childhood. I moved to Seattle just for the rain. Rome is my favorite place in the world so far, Paris comes in at a close second. I read and write more than I sleep. When I was eleven, I wrote an entire novel about runaway orphans, using only purple ink. I am addicted to Florence and the Machine and will travel to see concerts. I love scary movies and giraffes. I spend way too much time on Facebook. Meet you there?…

Genre:   Contemporary Romance, Mystery/Suspense, YA

Best friends since they could walk. In love since the age of fourteen.
Complete strangers since this morning.
He’ll do anything to remember. She’ll do anything to forget.

Are you ready for the next part of Silas and Charlie’s story???  I know I am!

Title:   Never Never Part Two  (Never Never Series Book #2)

Author:   Colleen Hoover & Tarryn Fisher

Release Date:   May 17, 2015

Genre:   Contemporary Romance, Mystery/Suspense, YA

Silas races against time as more truths unravel, while others twist tighter together. “Where are you, Charlie?” Never Never: Part Two is the continuation of the Never Never series.

 

Did you see Silas’s Love Note from Valentine’s Day?

Keep reading to see the full Love Note!

 

My name is Silas Nash, and this Valentine goes out to the girl I’m trying to find. According to the information I found in her wallet, her name is Charlize. However, the notes I found in my car show that I sometimes refer to her as Charlie. Also–according to my notes–I’m madly in love with her. So Charlie, if you get this message, I miss you. I think. I love you. I think. And WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?

Never Never by Colleen Hoover

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

*ARC Given to Blog for Honest Review*

3.5 “Charlie baby” “Never never” “trees” “pearls” Kisses

I am not going to lie, from the moment I heard about this book I was beyond excited. You cannot tell me that two of my favorite authors ever are writing a book and not expect me to flip out a little. Plus the synopsis? Get out of here. My grabby hands were out of control. But I was nervous…because I didn’t want my expectations to be so high that I hyped it up past a reasonable point. I should know by now that when dealing with Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher, I should always anticipate greatness, because they never cease to amaze me.

Charlize Margaret Wynwood…such an elegant name, I like it. Charlie is…unique. For the most part I liked her…but I can’t guarantee I would have liked the old-Charlie. I don’t mean that in a bad way…I don’t have to like everybody, but there are tendencies and traits that the old-Charlie had, that the new-Charlie hasn’t picked up yet and I’m kinda hoping she doesn’t. New-Charlie is…open, inquisitive, guarded to a point but it feels like it’s more out of self-preservation than anything. Between Charlie and Silas…I’d say she’s got a rougher time of piecing herself together…even more so because of the guarded thing, but I did enjoy getting to know her. I feel the times she truly shines and I connect with her the most is when she is around Silas.

‘She’s beautiful, but in a shameful way. One I’m not sure I’m supposed to appreciate. Everything about her is captivating, like the aftermath of a storm. People aren’t supposed to get pleasure out of the destruction Mother Nature is capable of, but we want to stare anyway. Charlie is the devastation left in the wake of a tornado.’

Silas Nash…I’m so close to falling in love with Silas, and I don’t even know that much about him. This boy has an amazing personality that even not knowing as much about him as I would like to cannot stop the fact that he is just flat out wonderful. What I do know…he’s kind, sweet, genuine…determined…thoughtful, he’s not perfect but he clearly tries his best. He’s hilarious…I love his sense of humor…it was really easy to be drawn to Silas, he’s magnetic like that. Silas is…like an open book, he’s really easy to read (that was an unintentional pun, I promise!)…and the one of the few things I know about Silas is how he feels about Charlie.

“Why are you smiling?” she asks, three miles into our drive.
I didn’t realize I was. I shrug. “Just thinking.”
“About what?”
I glance at her and she’s waiting for my answer with an impatient frown. “I was wondering how the old Silas ever broke through your hard exterior.”
She laughs. “What makes you think he did?”
I would smile again, but I don’t think I’ve stopped. “You saw the video, Charlie. You loved him.” I pause for a second, then rephrase. “Me. You loved me.”
“She loved you,” Charlie says, and then smiles. “I’m not even sure if I like you yet.”
I shake my head with a soft laugh. “I don’t know myself very well, but I must have been extremely competitive. Because I just took that as a challenge.”
“Took what as a challenge? You think you can make me like you again?”
I look over at her and give my head the slightest shake. “No. I’m gonna make you fall in love with me again.”

Holy mind fuck batman…I felt like I was on the insane journey with both of them and it was amazing. I love mysteries and puzzles and trying to figure stuff out – it’s not even an intentional thing, it just how my mind works now, so reading Never Never was like discovering something I didn’t even know I wanted. I really liked the balance of mystery to romance…because they’re both so intertwined, I don’t think one could have survived without the other. I also enjoyed the way things were revealed…it’s really easy to get frustrated when you don’t know all the facts and details, so there has to be kind of a give and take with wondering WTF is happening to getting clues and piecing stuff together. The way everything worked out was spot on for me…I was hooked and eating up every detail, falling in love with Charlie and Silas individually and together.

“Let’s get out of here,” he says. “Go do something that doesn’t belong to Charlie and Silas. Something that’s ours.”
“You’re talking about us like we’re body invaders.”
Silas closes his eyes and tilts his head back. “You have no idea how many times a day I think about invading your body.”

I have been intentionally vague on a lot of the details of Never Never because it’s not an easily explainable book without revealing something and there is so much about NN that really needs to be experienced firsthand. I love this plot so much, it’s kind of ridiculous – and this is coming from a girl who hates not knowing things. A small part of me is throwing a huge tantrum wanting to figure it out and know all the answers…but I’m really enjoying the ride and the experience. There is a lot to be said for letting go and just hanging on for dear life…it’s very freeing and for the most part it’s making me appreciate the story and characters so much more. The whole story line is incredibly unique and original…I’ve read my fair share of books and I’ve never read anything like this – it’s captivating, engaging and addictive. Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher separately blow me away every. Single. Time. I read one of their books. Combined…it’s like all the planets have aligned to create this perfect book universe where my brain is in its happy place. Sometimes when two authors join forces it can feel like it…the flow is off, pacing is just not there, it’s just not cohesive. Completely not a problem with these two…everything about Never Never works brilliantly.

‘When we lock eyes, I feel like I’m meeting a brand new side of her. A side of her without resolve. A vulnerable side. A side that’s allowing herself to feel something. I want to grin and ask her how it feels to be in love, but I know teasing her in this moment would piss her off and she’d walk away and I can’t let that happen. Not right now. Not when I finally get to catalog an actual memory with all the numerous fantasies I’ve had about her mouth.’

So…the dreaded cliffy – honestly, did it make me want book 2? Yeah…duh. But…that’s the point! I mean the last 10% I couldn’t read fast enough and getting to those last few sentences when so much is coming together and I was basically holding my breath for what was going to happen next. It was awesome…and I’m so beyond ready for  Never Never Part 2…insanely excited to see what Colleen and Tarryn do with the story next and ready to continue my mind-fuck journey with Charlie and Silas. #BringItOn

View all my reviews

Colleen Hoover is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Slammed, Point of Retreat, This Girl, Hopeless, Losing Hope, Maybe Someday, and Finding Cinderella. She lives in Texas with her husband and their three boys. Please visit ColleenHoover.com.

I am a real life villain, truly. I drink sick amounts of Starbucks. Most of the time my hair smells like coffee. I was born in South Africa, and lived there for most of my childhood. I moved to Seattle just for the rain. Rome is my favorite place in the world so far, Paris comes in at a close second. I read and write more than I sleep. When I was eleven, I wrote an entire novel about runaway orphans, using only purple ink. I am addicted to Florence and the Machine and will travel to see concerts. I love scary movies and giraffes. I spend way too much time on Facebook. Meet you there?…

In the Bone there is a house.
In the house there is a girl.
In the girl there is a darkness.

Margo is not like other girls. She lives in a derelict neighborhood called the Bone, in a cursed house, with her cursed mother, who hasn’t spoken to her in over two years. She lives her days feeling invisible. It’s not until she develops a friendship with her wheelchair-bound neighbor, Judah Grant, that things begin to change.

When neighborhood girl, seven-year-old Neveah Anthony, goes missing, Judah sets out to help Margo uncover what happened to her.What Margo finds changes her, and with a new perspective on life, she’s determined to find evil and punish it–targeting rapists and child molesters, one by one.

But hunting evil is dangerous, and Margo risks losing everything, including her own soul.

Marrow by Tarryn Fisher

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

*ARC Given to Blog for Honest Review*

3.5 “eating house” “And shit.” “murderess” Kisses

I can honestly say that I have never read a book like Marrow before. I went into it like I’ve gone into most Tarryn Fisher books…with no preconceived notions that I would be able to predict or expect anything that was going to happen and what I got could possible redefine the concept of the ‘mind-fuck’ for me. I REALLY don’t know what I want to think…was it good? Was it bad? I don’t know…because as much as I feel like my brain has been chewed up and spit out, I don’t know what I want to think because I have too many thoughts and not all of them make sense, but…I can say that it was compelling enough for me to never want to put it down. It made me feel…a lot…and think way too many things…and I accept it for all of the weird and awesome craziness it brought into my brain.

Margo Moon…now here’s the million dollar question, do I like her? Strangely enough…I do…I don’t know if I should, but I couldn’t help myself…she’s one of those characters that there is just something about her that doesn’t make you let all your guards down, and yet she’s still endearing. The entire process and journey of understanding Margo and who she is was…different, eye opening…the transformation of who she is at the beginning to who she becomes by the last page is like night and day. It was really hard for me not to be drawn to Margo after all that she has been through…her life has pretty much been utter shit since she was eight years old and was forced to grow up too quickly. In spite of her mother, Margo did not grow up to be a product of her environment. When your neighbors are crackheads and recently released felons….the prospects of growing up to be intelligent and successful aren’t normally in your favor…but Margo defies the odds. I think that’s what she does best…she’s very unassuming – not many people would look at her and think much, she doesn’t stand out in the normal ways, so it’s easy to see how she could just blend in and be forgotten. But nothing Margo does is forgettable.

“I read,” I say. I look at him out of the corner of my eye to see if he’s judging me.
“I do too,” he says. I remember the book he was holding, the day I walked up his pathway. “Mostly biographies.”
“Ew,” I say. And then, “I get enough of real life in the Bone. I want to go somewhere good when I read, not into someone else’s crappy life.”
“Good lives aren’t worth reading about,” he argues. “I read about the struggle. Other people’s growing pains.”
“I like happy endings,” I say. “Real life never has a happy ending.”
“God, you’re depressing. I don’t know why we are friends.”

Judah Grant…he’s like a superhero in a wheelchair, which now that I’ve typed it, sounds incredibly strange…but that’s how he is in my head. Judah is…special…he’s kind of like Margo’s life line, he’s her best friend and they’re the most mix-matched pair ever, but they just work in this crazy, nonsensical way. Something Margo thinks about Judah early on really stuck with me… ‘He wears his wheelchair. His wheelchair never wears him.’ …and the more I got to know him…the more true that statement was. It’s a strangely simple…but the affect it had on me and how I viewed Judah was startling…it wasn’t even that his handicap was brought up constantly, but it was enough to make me never forget – but Judah’s presence and spirit are enough to make you see him for who he is, rather than a crippled boy. Judah has a very open personality…as different as he and Margo are, the way he just kind of gets her and accepts her is deeply comforting…he was the one solid part of her life, the person she could always go to and seek solace in…their relationship was unique but I have no doubt that Margo would not be who she is without Judah.

‘The chair is wearing him tonight, I think. I go to him, kneel down, and put my hands on his knees. I’ve never touched him before. Never dared. His knees are frail, thin. Not like the rest of him. Judah was born to be big, and tall, and powerful, and life stole that from him. How heavy is that burden? His head comes up a little, just so we can exchange looks. He seems…tired.
“Judah,” I whisper. “Why were you waiting for me?”
He blinks slowly, like he’s in some kind of trance, then he looks back out the window.
“I always have.”’

There is no way to really talk about everything that happens in Marrow without possibly spoiling something and honestly…with some of the things that do happen in the book, I think the only real way to base how you truly feel about them, is to read it for yourself. There are a lot of scenes and parts of books that people can describe, that you can instantly know what kind of emotional reaction you will have to them – good, bad or indifferent…it doesn’t have to be experienced first hand to perceive that reaction. With Marrow…you need that firsthand knowledge. There are details that can’t be left out because they translate to how you brain and emotions react and it’s all very necessary…at least IMO. So…how do I describe Marrow…was there romance? Ehh…kind of? I mean…very minimal, but that’s not the point of the book, so that was fine by me. Was there suspense? Well…I always had this nervousness simmering in my body the entire time I was reading. I never felt like it was safe to let myself think everything was going to be okay…cause it was never going to be okay…nothing is ever truly simple or calm or at a point where you can let your guard down for what could possibly happen. I really wouldn’t even want to classify it as anything…because this book does not deserve limits…I cannot be placed into one specific category because it doesn’t fit any mold. It’s a deep, dark, complex journey of a girl who believes in justice.

‘“I have legs, Judah, and I don’t know how to use them. Your life walks, and you’re going to walk out of the Bone and be something. The rest of us, and our working legs, are going to live and die in the Bone.”
“Margo…” his voice cracks. His chin dips to his chest, and I’m not sure if he’s crying until I hear the sniff. He grabs me, before I can grab him, and he holds me tight.
“Margo,” he says into my hair. “I’ll save you, if you save me.”
I nod, the words caught in my throat, sticky with emotion. That’s the best deal life has ever offered me.’

I’ve already said that Marrow is like nothing I’ve ever read before but that’s both the good news and the bad news because…nothing can compare to the thoughts that are running through my mind. Like…does it make me weird that I want to like someone who is possibly/probably a little dark, twisted and may or may not be crazy? Cause…I do like Margo…I don’t know if I want to, but I can accept that overall as a character, I understood her…whether what she was doing was right or wrong isn’t really the point because I got the thought process behind her actions. I kind of envied her conviction…the strength it takes to know what you’re doing is not necessarily legal or morally right…but know that it needs to be done for justice to be served is in its own way, kinda kicks ass. And once again for me to say these things, almost makes me feel like I am stating something that I should be ashamed of…but I’m not. It’s like Margo is an extension of the vigilante part of all of us…being able to do all of the things that we wish we could do but can’t. Seeking to hurt those who hurt others just because they can…giving them a taste of their own medicine…to feel the pain they inflict on the innocent…there is something very deep and powerful about that.

‘I can’t stay the way I am. I don’t remember what it’s like to be free. To be wide open without fear. I need something to break me. Just enough so that I have new pieces to work with – make them into something else. I don’t want to give anyone the right to treat me like a loser. I don’t want to be fat, I don’t want to live in the Bone, I don’t want to be without knowledge. I won’t be the girl who people laugh at. Not anymore.’

Marrow is dark in a way that I’ve never read…and I’ve read some pretty dark books…I’m not afraid of stuff that will make me cringe or the unpleasant side of life – bad stuff happens to good people every day and just because I’m reading about it in a book won’t change that. I don’t read to have the sugar coated version of life, I read to feel and Marrow definitely made me feel….not always good emotions, but once again, that wasn’t the point of the book. If you need a book that is going to be sunshine and rainbows…then this isn’t the right book for you. I’m not saying positive stuff doesn’t happen…but there’s not a lot…and for me it was also how I absorbed the events that were happening as they unfolded. If you need clear cut answers to everything…then this definitely isn’t the book for you. There are things that aren’t explained…at all, that we never get definitive answers on and…it is what is. In my opinion…there isn’t a lot in Marrow that is black and white…it’s a lot of grey and messy and it really has a lot to do with how you interpret things. Whether the way you perceive events is based on fact, emotion or a little of both…I can see a ton of different ways for what happens in Marrow to be construed. I should know because I’m feeling a least 32 of them right now and have been since I finished. But I’m strangely okay with that…or at least I’m getting to that point.

‘I told myself that I was the one pretending to fit in, but life has taught me that we are all pretenders. Every single one of us. We are born ready to cultivate ourselves, find a place where we feel comfortable. Whether that is to fit in with the geeks, or the jocks, or the cold-blooded killers. There is nothing new under the sun. Nothing new we can invent or make up. We grapple with our likes and dislikes, who we want to please, what we want to wear and drive. Our interests, whether they include drawing Italian sunsets, playing video games, or thumbing our way through erotic novels, they are all handed to us by a society that produces them. No matter how hard we try to invent ourselves, there have always been druggies, and tattoos, and ambitious men who take over the world. There have always been artists, and hippies, and meatheads, and that beautiful, single Mother Teresa, who lights up the darkness. There have always been murderers, and mothers, and athletes. We are all pretenders in life, finding a patch of humanity that we related to, and then embrace it.’

The beauty of all of this is that I truly don’t know if any other author could have written this book and made me enjoy it as much as I did. Tarryn’s writing is flat out brilliance…every time I read one of her books I feel unworthy of words. She can take the most mundane and simple things and describe them in a way that blows me away…every single time. I know not every book is for every reader…but I don’t know if every reader is ready for Marrow. This book doesn’t fit into a mold…it doesn’t do what is right or normal or predictable…it tells it like it is and I don’t think it exists for your to love it or even necessarily to like it, because it’s not even that kind of story…you just have to accept it….and that’s exactly what I’m going to do. Marrow provoked me…to think, to feel, to understand…it’s grown roots and planted thoughts in my mind that I’ll be thinking of for years after this. I’ll never forget Margo’s dark and twisty tale.

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