By: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Growing up, Mallory Dodge learned that the best way to survive was to say nothing. And even though it’s been four years since her nightmare ended, she’s beginning to worry that the fear that holds her back will last a lifetime. Now, after years of homeschooling, Mallory must face a new milestone—spending her senior year at a public high school. But she never imagined she’d run into Rider Stark, the friend and protector she hasn’t seen since childhood, on her very first day.
It doesn’t take long for Mallory to realize that the connection she shared with Rider never really faded. Yet soon it becomes apparent that she’s not the only one grappling with lingering scars from the past. And as she watches Rider’s life spiral out of control, Mallory must make a choice between staying silent and speaking out—for the people she loves, the life she wants and the truths that need to be heard.
What originally pulled me in was the beautiful water color cover. The bright colors along with the gorgeous font of the title nabbed me into splurging a little and buying this book beauty.
The minute I opened up the first page, I was sucked in. Armentrout's writing just pulls you in and you feel like you are with Mallory and Rider on their adventure. She is descriptive in places she needs to be and her characters never say a single word not needed for the story to progress.
Mallory: Is a lovely, shy character who reminds me of myself. The anxiety of public speaking, or speaking in general, and the over analysis of every move she makes is almost a complete replica of me. She is a sweet girl with a huge heart that doesn't want to let anyone down. My favorite thing about the story was her character development. The author did such an fantastic job on slowly progressing Mallory's personality until you reach the last page and feel so proud of her and what she has achieved over the four hundred or so pages.
Rider: Okay a hottie with a past with Mallory, and an over protective side? Yes. I instantly loved him so so so so much. Though, it was hard to get past that he had a girlfriend, because the way he treated Mallory wasn't fair to either of them. But he quickly redeemed himself in the later pages with how thoughtful and patient he was with Mallory. His character development wasn't as paced as Mallory and even now I think he had a while to go to get where he needed to be. But that's the beauty of books, they allow us the imagination to think beyond the pages.
Overall this story won a 5/5 stars from me. The plot, the diction, the characters, all fit together in this harmony that allowed me to eat up the words within two days. Forever recommending this story and will always remember it. Hopefully someday I can write a story as passionate and as brilliant as Jennifer did.
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