Dean Mmmm Holder

"She's flat-out rude to me and I love it. 
She's stubborn and I love it. 
She's a smartass and she's sarcastic and every witty thing 
that comes out of her mouth is like music to my ears because 
that's exactly what I want. 
She's what I need."
--Colleen Hoover, Losing Hope

Genre: New Adult Contemporary

Publisher: Atria Books, 336 pages

Publication Date: July 8th, 2013

Source: eARC via publisher from NetGalley
Goodreads
Previous Reviews in this Series: Hopeless

Goodreads Description

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.

My Thoughts

So you’d think reading a story the second time through knowing the outcome would diminish the amazing, right?...Yeah, it so just doesn’t in Losing Hope. I was emotionally wounded while reading Hopeless and absolutely fell in love with the book. The story, the characters, the writing, the romance, ALL OF IT. I wanted more, more, more! SO getting my greedy hands on Losing Hope made my whole damn week. Bonus because I am super sick while writing and when I was reading he was legit, the only thing that made me feel better. Oh Holder, I heart you times a million.

Anyways, I can’t tell you with coherent words how much I adore Sky and Holder. Holder is the kind of guy standard that all men should be held to. He worships Sky, wants to protect her, make her laugh, make her feel beautiful. He is just an amazing character. I have my favorite Holder quotes at the end because I couldn’t stop highlighting while reading. Love love love. And Sky!? She is even cooler on the second read when we see her through his eyes. She continues to be snarky, sarcastic, independent, and rude. So obviously, I loved her in Hopeless and love her even more now. Them together? Psh, I couldn’t decide whether their scenes made me want to laugh, cry, sigh, or fan myself…or do all four at once. They are just perfect! Their banter had me rolling in laughter and they are just too funny. I heart them.

Unfortunately their story is not all laughter. While reading Hopeless I was amazed at how much emotional depth Colleen Hoover incorporates into her story. It just smacks you in the face with how much you feel for these characters and their story. Their journey is not easy and it isn't pretty a lot of the times but it is real and it is beautiful and it makes me love them so much more for the strength they show. The depth of their love and their pain is palpable while reading. You just feel these characters. You want to make them happy and feel better yet are rendered helpess (hopeless?) as a reader. Breaks your friggin' heart. 

So back to Holder--because if I start to talk about all the feels from this and Hopeless I'll be here for another 7 paragraphs and you will have lost interest wise reader whom I love--cuz this is his story now. While obviously the major scenes of Hopeless are told through his POV, what I loved about this book was that we get SO much more than that. We get to see Holder through Les’s death and the aftermath of that. We finally get inside his head about the month he stayed away from Sky after he saw the bracelet. AND my FAVORITE part was him hanging out with Breckin! I LOVED this. It brought so much more to not only his character but the whole story. Daniel was an excellent comic relief as well. I also loved that we got a few more looks into their relationship that we didn't see in Hopeless. Random scenes in their relationship but it was so refreshing to read something new about them.

This was definitely a quick read. I don’t want to say I read it fast because I know what was going to happen but it just made the story flow a little better. I wasn’t so wrapped up in the agony of will they or won’t they be together. I was able to enjoy their time together and their moments of growth and understanding of one another. We also get so much more of Holder and Hope’s story that I had no idea would be coming. It lived it…I lived it so much.

Should You Read This? Yes! Obviously read Hopeless first then enjoy the amazingness (and hotness) that is Dean Holder. Dean F****** Holder.  

Favorite Quotes

"I laugh. 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. Because I think I just fell in love with her wit. And her bluntness."

"You probably faked passing out the other day, just so you could be carried in my hot, sweaty, manly arms."

"I read when I need to, which isn't a lot. But I suddenly want to know everything about everything that interest her and if reading interests her, it interests me too."

"Fuck all the firsts, Sky. The only thing that matters to me with you are the forevers."

"I know I told her that she's never really been kissed before, but until this moment I had no idea that I had never really been kissed either."