Losing Hope by Colleen Hoover

Book #2, Hopeless
Published by Atria Books on October 8th 2013
ARC from Netgalley
321 pages

Synopsis

In the follow-up to Colleen Hoover’s #1 New York Times bestseller Hopeless, the charming and irresistible Dean Holder tells the passionate story that has melted thousands of hearts.

In Hopeless, Sky left no secret unearthed, no feeling unshared, and no memory forgotten, but Holder’s past remained a mystery.

Still haunted by the little girl he let walk away, Holder has spent his entire life searching for her in an attempt to finally rid himself of the crushing guilt he has felt for years. But he could not have anticipated that the moment they reconnect, even greater remorse would overwhelm him…

Sometimes in life, if we wish to move forward, we must first dig deep into our past and make amends. In Losing Hope, bestselling author Colleen Hoover reveals what was going on inside Holder’s head during all those hopeless moments—and whether he can gain the peace he desperately needs.

“I’ve been let down by this life one too many times and quite frankly, I’m tired of losing hope.”

Losing Hope is Dean Holder’s story, a hopeless boy who’s felt empty ever since losing two of the most important people in his life. He’s carried his own share of guilt and it’s been weighing him down, letting him drown, unable to move forward. This is Holder’s story. The story of how he finds Sky, the beautiful girl he seems to just can’t get enough of, how he finds hope in her and how he finds himself too.

If you’ve already read Hopeless, you might be thinking: “Hmm, I already know the gist of the story. It’s just Holder’s POV. Meh.” Well, this is where I tell you that you’re wrong. This is not just Holder’s POV, it’s his story. You find out Holder’s before and after. You read his emotions and thoughts and you connect with him more than you could ever do just from reading Hopeless.

Even though I knew the revelations to come from Hopeless, I didn’t get disinterested. In fact, it felt different, being told by Holder of course, and yet still partly familiar to experience them here in Losing Hope. I still cried and I still laughed and I still loved every bit of it. What’s more, there are new scenes that haven’t been told in the first book. And new people who haven’t been mentioned too! There’s Daniel, Holder’s too-funny bff, and there’s Holder’s parents.

Aside from them, we get to see a bigger glimpse of Les, Holder’s twin sister. We saw how she was before, how she a great laugh and how close she and Holder were. We saw how much Holder longed to protect her, and we saw how much he hurt when he lost her. The tragedy of Les was even more imminent here and it made me understand Holder and get in touch with a deeper side of him.

“I wonder if it’s possible for people to fall in love with a person one characteristic at a time or if you fall for the entire person at once.”

Damn, straight. I didn’t think it was possible to love Holder as much as I did when I was reading Losing Hope. I didn’t think I could LIVE a book so much. (Not the between like and love type of live. Live as in breathe and experience it.) Losing Hope was just amazing.

Before I end this review, I must say, Colleen Hoover is such a great writer. And that’s still the understatement of the year. I’ve read all of her books at this point and so far, all of them have gotten constant 5 star ratings from me. There’s just something about the way she relays a story. It’s painfully honest, strikingly witty and inspiringly profound. It’s also unique, just absolutely one of a kind and yet so damn relatable. I can’t compare Losing Hope to all her other books because they were equally awesome. All Colleen Hoover books are a must-read, for sure.

Thank you, Colleen Hoover, Atria Books and Netgalley for this ARC. :)

PS: Losing Hope will be available July 8!