books books books

1. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green - ☆☆☆☆
2. An Abundance of Katherines by John Green - ☆☆½
3. Matched by Ally Condie - ☆☆☆☆
4. Crossed by Ally Condie - ☆☆☆
5. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern - ☆☆☆☆☆
6. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger - ☆☆☆½
7. The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides - ☆☆☆☆☆
8. My Name is Memory by Ann Brashares - ☆☆☆☆½

I want to give this book a five, I really do. But the ending came much too quickly and left me wanting more. Yes, I realize this is a good thing, which is why I want to give it a five. But I'm left feeling more parts craving than parts satisfaction. So I'll settle for a 4.5 (maybe 4.7? 4.89?).

I JUST WANT MORE. (Though I do realize an unresolved resolution is far better than an everything-in-its-place-tied-with-a-bow ending)

Also, for the record, I hate that this book is compared to the Twilight series. Just because it's about an eternal, all-consuming love does not automatically put it in the company of Twilight. Especially because I would hesitate to call Twilight a love story. This, on the other hand... 

I read this book purely for pleasure (not to be intellectually stimulated or to sift through metaphor and allusion and blah blah blah) and was not disappointed, AT ALL. It's not just a frilly romance with no substance, but it's also not loaded with all sorts of literary weight. It's a well-written, well-felt, well-plotted book.

And I want to be someone's Sophia/Constance/Lucy. 

Okay, quick synopsis so you'll know what you're getting into if you decide to read it:

Main character #1, Daniel, can remember every past life he's ever lived.
Main character #2, Lucy, cannot.
Daniel has been in love with Lucy (also Sophia/Constance/countless other people) since his very first life, and spends every single lifetime searching for her reincarnations, hoping that one day, they will be in the same place at the same time (not just location, but age, marital status, social status, health, etc.) in order that they might be together.
Add in a bunch of exotic, beautiful locations, and some heartfelt, authentic, and heart-wrenchingly brief interactions between two people desperately in love that span centuries.

Breath-taking.