Monday, April 29, 2013

Review: If You Stay by Courtney Cole

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If You Stay
Courtney Cole
Series: Beautifully Broken #1
Genre: NA Contemporary
Publication date: February 5th 2013
by  Lakehouse Press

24-year old Pax Tate is an asshole.

Seriously.

He’s a tattooed, rock-hard bad-boy with a bad attitude to match.
But he’s got his reasons.

His mother died when Pax was seven, leaving a hole in his heart filled with guilt although he doesn’t understand why. What he does know is that he and his dad are left alone and with more issues than they can count.

As Pax grew up, he tried to be the kid his father always wanted; the perfect golden boy, but it didn’t work. His dad couldn’t overcome his grief long enough to notice and Pax couldn’t keep up the impossible perfect façade.
So he slipped far, far from it.

Now, he uses drugs and women to cope with the ugliness, the black void that he doesn’t want to deal with. If he pretends that the emptiness isn’t there, then it isn’t, right?
Wrong.

And it’s never more apparent than when he meets Mila.

Sweet, beautiful Mila Hill is the fresh air to his hardened frown, the beauty to his ugly heart. He doesn’t know how to not hurt her, but he quickly realizes that he’d better figure it out because he needs her to breathe.

When memories of his mother’s death resurface from where he’s repressed them for so long, Mila is there to catch him when the guilt starts making sense. Mila is the one…the one who can save him from his broken troubled heart; from his issues, from the emptiness.

But only if he can stop being an asshole long enough to allow it.

He knows that. And he’s working on it.

But is that enough to make her stay?

-Source: Gifted from Amy at Book Loving Mom–

Starting with a bang–and I mean really: check out the opening paragraph for yourself ;)–If You Stay is narrated mainly by Pax, a drug addict with a past that has led him to want to give no shits about his life. Our second POV is a sweet and innocent young girl, Mila, who meets Pax in the most unfortunate of ways. I think this is one instance where a single POV would have been much better for me. While I understand the appeal of a dual POV when it comes to a love story, especially of this nature where both characters are such opposites, I felt like one character (Pax) was much more developed than the other, more likeable, too, which might seem improbable when you first meet him, turning this book into a good read that could have been great if only I had cared for both sides equally.

Fortunately for me, it’s Pax’s story above all. We meet him in his lowest of the lows as a drug addict who just doesn’t give a f*ck. He’s the ultimate bad boy whom every girl should stay away from. He’s not created for us to “like” him as a character, not to mention a love interest, but he was created as an obviously broken character who you have the strange impulse to want to fix. This is what makes his character sympathetic. You get to understand what’s going on in his head and how badly he wants to change–which makes all the difference. I came to see him as someone very sweet who needs to be given a chance. Mila takes that risk. This girl, though, did not click with me. She is the definition of a “good girl”, but this is not the reason why I disliked her. She was simply too naive for my taste. She jumps into a relationship with this guy with the immediate belief that he will change to become the perfect boyfriend material, even after Pax tells her that “he will try not to her her”–he emphasizes on “try”. Automatically, this would have become a red flag for me, Mila seemed to be oblivious to this warning, giving her heart to him so easily. I also didn’t like how she reacted when Pax finally unfolded his past. Getting pissed at how he shut her out when he was dealing with such a traumatic memory was just not ok for me. He needed someone to understand and leave him to deal, not someone who made him guilty for it. Our personalities just did not mesh, mine and hers. Even without our clashing minds, however, I never felt like I truly understood or got to know Mila. She wasn’t as fleshed out a character as Pax, which leads me to think I would have enjoyed this book much more had we not gotten her perspective at all, and only saw her through Pax’s eyes.

The romance in the book is extremely hot and definitely R rated, they also do not lack chemistry, but on that note it’s a primarily physical relationship. Instead of taking time throughout the book to get to know each other on a more emotional level, they focus on their physical attraction; which, in reality, is fine as some couples do base themselves on their physical relationship, but as a reader I felt like the romance was more superficial.

This book, however, is more than a love story. It’s ultimately about Pax dealing with his past, and finding a way to get through it without ruining his life in the process. It was an emotional read, for sure, with some very hard to imagine scenarios where you can’t help but want to put yourself in the MC’s shoes to try to take some of their pain away. This is the part of the book that I liked the most and I think it was well executed.

Hard to read at times, but If You Stay is also an inspiring story when you consider how far Pax comes. While I didn’t love both characters, I predict that Mila will resonate with some readers better than I, making it a great reading experience all around as it’s far from being a bad book.

3.5 Hot Espressos

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Giselle

Canadian blogger, wife, mother, coffee lover, and sarcastic at heart! She has had a love for all things bookish since before Amazon and eReaders existed *le gasp*. You can also find her organizing tours and other fun things at Xpresso Book Tours.

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33 Responses to “Review: If You Stay by Courtney Cole”

  1. Mary @ BookSwarm

    What is it with these formulaic NA romances? Bad boy + good girl = NA romance. I’m not opposed to a good love story but I do get frustrated reading the same plot over and over again. Sorry. I’ll stop fussing.

    Pax sounds like a difficult character to get behind, and his journey to redemption sounds much more interesting than the romance.

  2. The Teen Book Guru

    HI GISELLE!! Woowee girl, you sure know how to pick these books… I come back after a long break and honestly, there’s nothing better than a steamy read waiting for me. 😉 All jokes aside, I don’t know if I’ll end up reading it because I’m more of a swoon-worthy, eyes/personality type of romance rather than hardcore physical attraction -although that can be enticing too sometimes 😉 I just feel like I’ve heard this story all too many times; the guy with the mysterious and hard past, the innocent, naive girl… been there, done that. But I do quite like what you said about there being more than just romance. Awesome review, girl! <3 x

  3. lilybloombooks

    From the sounds of Pax, he kind of reminds me of Travis from Beautiful Disaster. I have this on my to read shelf but I agree with Mary up there; I’m tired of the NA rinse and repeat cycle.

    Great review 🙂 (love the mini “espresso” for your .5)

  4. Nick

    Lovely review, Giselle.
    I completely agree about Mila. She was an OK character but I she way too naive. Pax was definitely the character that made him interesting. The romance was definitely more of a physical relationship than anything else. I’m so happy that you joined the NA bandwagon!
    Oh and I saw you rated Easy 4.5 stars! You’re safe then! 🙂

  5. Sirtsu

    Hahaha. It sure did start with a certain bang. LOL. I agree 100% that Mila is hard to relate to. I didn’t click with her either and as Nick pointed out, I, too, thought she was way too naive. Of course Pax was a complete a-whole at times and I thought the boat scene – what in the world? That was intense and pretty stupid on his part. Anyway, I liked the body painting scene;-) Hehe. I found it to be a tad physical more than emotional as did you but I’m glad I read it. I gave it 3.5 as well and found it enjoyable, just not the book for 100% to my liking. Lovely review as always:)

  8. Amy

    I’m glad that you still enjoyed this book even though Mila got under your skin. She was quite hard to like sometimes. I’m so glad that you are finally on a NA kick!! I am so obsessed with NA books!! Great review hon!! And I agree that Pax was a great character. I loved seeing his past unfold!

  9. Kat Balcombe

    Wowzers, that’s certainly one opening paragraph! Although I love when books jump straight in with no holds barred. Shame there isn’t a bit more an emotional attachment, but I’m definitely going to check this one out. Fab review lady!

  10. Jenni @ Alluring Reads

    Hmm I think Mila would drive me insane but then I read that first paragraph and need to have this book in my life haha that’s hilarious. I wish you had connected a bit more but am happy that you enjoyed it overall. In other news I was writing this comment and I saw the tour banner for Why My Love Life Sucks in my peripheral vision and I thought the eyes were boobies! BOOBIES!

  11. Sassy Spratt

    As always, absolutely loved your review 🙂

    This one sounds pretty interesting, even with the slightly off-putting dual point of view thing going on. I might have to give this one a chance!

  12. Allison

    I definitely agree with you, this story is more about Pax than Mila and his struggles. Mila didn’t annoy me as much, but I can see how she may get on some people’s nerves. Great reveiw!

  13. Megan R

    While Pax sounds like an interesting character, even if I might not like him, I feel a bit like this is a story I’ve heard before. Too bad it didn’t stick with the POV you preferred.

  14. Alexa Y.

    Pax sounds like the kind of character I enjoy reading about – broken and hurting, but possessing a sort of inner strength and hint of hope as well. I think, if I read this, I’d enjoy seeing HIS transformation. The romance sounds a bit superficial, if I’m being honest, but I’m sure it adds an interesting dimension to the entire story!

  16. Ali Ginger-Read

    I had read a rave review on this one and immediately downloaded the book. Then saw a bunch of not so happy reviews…so it was put on the back burner. I am leery of how physical the relationship is but so intrigued by Pax. I like flawed/damaged characters.

  19. Aman

    Damn…That opening paragraph does make me want to pick this book up right now and drop everything else. I love that it’s mostly from Pax POV because that’s rare in the first place and secondly, I love getting inside a guy’s mind. They are much fun than a girl. I’m definitely adding it to my tbr list.
    Great review, Giselle!

  20. Nereyda @Mostly YA Book Obsessed

    Asshole guys like Pax need a stronger partner than these wimpy girls or else she just comes off as weak and a pushover. I would have loved this story if we only had Pax’s POV. Why can’t there be more male-only POV’s? WHY!?!
    I’m curious to see what happens in book 2. Maybe Mia will grow a spine? *crosses fingers*
    I think for these NA Contemporaries anything more than 2 books (unless it’s a companion) is too much. Like how many problems can they possibly have? After too many books it can get old. (ie, Crush by Nicole Williams)
    Glad you liked this, even if you didn’t like Mia.

  21. Silverlight

    I purchased this one a few weeks ago and am still on the fence about when to start it. Being that this one has “deep” issues I really have to be in the mood for it. I’m kind of getting tired of the “weak, naïve chicks.

  23. Eileen

    Oh I’m glad you enjoyed this one so much! 🙂 I’ve seen rave reviews so maybe I’ll read it when I get older so nobody gives me the “WTF YOU’RE THIRTEEN!” looks when I say what I’m reading lol. (For all intents and purposes I’m still nineteen for BEA)

    Mila does sound like quite an annoying character, but Pax sounds like a really well-developed one with a lot of layers which must be really great! I’m glad this one ended up to be emotional as well as romantic (like Pushing the Limits!) And dude. Opening paragraph=me looking over my shoulder to make sure my mom didn’t see any of it when I read it O_O

    Fantastic review as always, Giselle!

  24. Jen (A Reading Daydreamer)

    At this point, I’m getting a little tired of New Adult books, and this one actually sounds kind of like a typical one. Bad boy, good girl, physical relationship. However, the fact that you enjoyed Pax’s character so much kind of makes me curious to get to know him. Ugh, Mila doesn’t sound so cool. Why would you just hand your heart over to someone like that? I may pick this one up if I’m in a NA mood, but for now, it’ll lay low on my TBR. Thanks for gorgeous review, Giselle!

  25. Jennifer Bielman

    Hmmm, not sure if this is for me. I do like that the major narrator is a man, That’s a change. But the blurb was so long, I got tried of reading it. I find that a too long blurb is a bad sign. But I am happy you enjoyed it.

  26. Candace

    Mila’s naivety may get to me, but I’m a little curious about Pax. I’m not sure if this is a book I’d enjoy or not. I’ll have to read a few more reviews before I decide.

  27. Kathy Ann Coleman

    Awesome review! I felt much the same way about Mila as you, apparently. And I totally loved Pax. Probably my favorite thing I’ve read this month. Also totally agree that the core of this book was Pax’s growth / redemption / whatever.

  29. Lauren Elizabeth

    Ok, I’m adding this to my NA wish list, because I think I would really enjoy getting to know Pax and sympathizing with him. I can’t help but root for the bad boy, especially if he seems to be on the path to redemption. Mila sounds a bit too vanilla and cardboard for me to care about her, so that might affect my enjoyment of the emotional side of the romance, but I don’t mind reading about purely physical relationships as long as the chemistry is well written. Glad you enjoyed this for the most part. Excellent review!

  31. Lisa (Lost in Literature)

    I’m reading this one right now, so I have to admit I didn’t read your review. Yes, I’m one of those weirdos that doesn’t read reviews until after I’ve written my own. 😛 But your 3.5 expressos gave me an insight into your thoughts. I’ll be back to read it after I’ve written mine next week. So far… I heart Pax. 😀

  32. Jessirae

    So sorry you didn’t click with Mila. Sometimes I wish dual POVS (though I love them) weren’t dual POVs. Especially when I love the guy more than the girl. I have a thing for broken bad boys when it comes to books and I have a feeling I will love Pax. Mila, not so sure since you describe her as naive and I freaking hate characters like that. And how she reacts? Ugh, I’d probably punch her face or something! lol. But I have this book and I do want to read it despite the sound of Mila’s good girl naive as hell nature. Hopefully I will love Pax a million times more in the end. Great review, Giselle! You think you’ll be reading the second one? If there is second one? I don’t even remember. *skips away*

  33. Melanie

    There is something wrong with my phone. It seems to disapprove me commenting on blogs.. I was SO SURE I commented a few days back… *shakes head*

    Yes that opening started off really did start with a bang.>.<
    Sad to see that Mila got annoying for you, but overall, this book looks pretty convincing! I don’t read too many contemps to this one looks like a nice one to try! Fantastic review, Giselle!

    So. I think I’ve become addicted to you rating system avi’s. Like that tiny .5 one? FREAKIN CUTE AS. I would have a cup of coffee like that any day 😀