Before by Anna Todd | Book Review

Before by Anna Todd

Reading Group: Anyone who read After

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: BEFORE Hardin met Tessa he was a raging storm. DURING those first moments they met, he realized he needed to keep her for himself—his life depended on it. AFTER they got together, the world would never be the same.

Hardin and Tessa’s dramatic love affair became a vortex pulling in everyone around them. For the first time these others are given voice as they appear before, during, and after the events in original After novels. Alongside them, Hardin’s account of his first encounters with Tessa—which will change what you thought you knew about the brooding boy and the angel who loved him.

Cover: The cover of this book is yellow and very bright.  It looks almost as if someone tried to take a picture of the sun.

My Review: I bought this book when it was released and I only just now finished reading it.  It took me so long to reread the first four books, but I finally did it.  I loved Before because I love Hardin and his point of view.  As many of you know, I got annoyed with Tessa pretty easily, but I have such a soft spot for Hardin.  I love how half the time he doesn't even know how he offends Tessa and when she gets mad, he gets so confused.  I also liked that the book incorporated more than just Hardin.  It gave insight on Molly and Steph and so many others and it was nice to see where all of the characters came from.  The 'After' section was also something I really enjoyed.  I love Smith, I think he's a funny kid and I love the future Hessa stuff because that's when they're always happy and it's great.  One thing I do wish was in Hardin's section was the "I love you" scene, even if it started when Tessa went to find him at the soccer field.  I loved that part of After, so it would have been nice to get it from Hardin's point of view.  I think this book really ties up Hessa's story nicely and hints at Landon's books enough to get everyone excited for them.  If you loved After and were able to make it through the entire series, this book is definitely a great way to finish it off.     

I also really wish Anna would write something about the two years when Hardin lived in Chicago, even if it's just something short and on Wattpad.

Smile!  I'll talk to you soon!xxx

Stay Connected:

Main Twitter: juliann_guerra

Second Twitter: writerjewels

Instagram: juliann_guerra

Tumblr: juliann-guerra

Goodreads: Juliann Guerra

Wattpad: writerjewels

Pinterest: Juliann Guerra

Spotify: juliann.guerra

Bloglovin: Juliann Guerra

Blogger: Juliann Guerra 

After Ever Happy by Anna Todd | Book Review

After Ever Happy by Anna Todd

Click Cover to Purchase

Reading Group Rating: M for Mature

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Tessa and Hardin have had enough surprises.  Their bond is stronger than ever, but ever new challenge they face shakes their foundation-and Hardin's impenetrable facade-to the core.  As the shocking truth about each of their families emerges, it's clear that the two lovers are not so different from each other.  Tessa is no longer the sweet, simple, good girl she was when she met Hardin-any more than he is the cruel, moody boy she fell so hard for.  Tessa understands all the troubling emotions brewing within Hardin, and she knows she's the only one who can calm when he erupts.  He needs her.  But the more layers of his past that come to light, the darker he grows, and the harder he pushes Tessa-and everyone else in his life-away.  After all this time, Tessa's not sure if she really can save him-not without sacrificing herself.  Is love worth losing identity?  She refuses to go down without a fight.  But who is she really fighting for-Hardin or herself?   

Cover: I think the cover of this novel is so cute, with it's pretty colors and sunshine.  It's just so happy, which makes sense given the title and the fact that this story does have a lot of happy moments to it.

My Review: This is definitely my favorite of the After books because this is the one where everything falls into place.  Tessa brakes, but then finally realizes that she needs to be more independent and figure out what she wants out of life.  (Plus, she's less annoying and whiney in this book which makes me very happy)  Hardin reverts back to who he was before Tessa when he finds out about his family, but then he is able to bring himself out of it and finally change to be the man he kept saying he wanted to be.  It was kind of sad that it took Richard killing himself for Tessa and Hardin to figure all this out, but at the same time it had to be something dramatic because the two of them had already gone through things where they said things would be different.  Tessa needed to go through the emotions, or lack thereof, of what she went through when her dad died, as sad as it was.  It brought so many things to light and allowed her to realize that she didn't need Zed (finally, am I right?) and that as much as she loved Hardin, she needed space.  And the space was a good thing because obviously they were going to end up together it was just a matter of when they would be 100% together.  Can you imagine if after 4 books they ended up breaking up?  I would have been so mad.  Also, the epilogue is the greatest thing.  I loved everything about it.  Except I am very confused as to whether they actually ended up getting married or not, but I feel like I read somewhere that Anna Todd explains it better in Landon's books, I don't know though.

Smile!  I'll talk to you soon!xxx

Stay Connected:

Main Twitter: @juliann_guerra

Second Twitter: @writerjewels

Instagram: juliann_guerra

Tumblr: juliann-guerra

Goodreads: Juliann Guerra

Wattpad: @writerjewels

Pinterest: Juliann Guerra

Spotify: juliann.guerra

Bloglovin: Juliann Guerra

After We Fell by Anna Todd | Book Review

After We Fell by Anna Todd

Click Cover to Purchase

Reading Group Rating: M for Mature

Personal Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Just as Tessa makes the biggest decision of her life, everything changes. Revelations about first her family, and then Hardin’s, throw everything they knew before in doubt and makes their hard-won future together more difficult to claim.

Tessa’s life begins to come unglued. Nothing is what she thought it was. Not her friends. Not her family. The one person she should be able to rely on, Hardin, is furious when he discovers the massive secret she’s been keeping. And rather than being understanding, he turns to sabotage.

Tessa knows Hardin loves her and will do anything to protect her, but there’s a difference between loving someone and being able to have them in your life. This cycle of jealousy, unpredictable anger, and forgiveness is exhausting. She’s never felt so intensely for anyone, so exhilarated by someone’s kiss—but is the irrepressible heat between her and Hardin worth all the drama? Love used to be enough to hold them together. But if Tessa follows her heart now, will it be…the end?

Cover: The cover of this book has grass, which I think makes sense because the book is called After We Fell and when you fall you end up on some type of ground so grass makes sense.

My Review: Hurray for this post finally going live when it's supposed to!! (For those of you who are confused this blog post has gone up at least three times with only a picture of the book cover and the given summary)

Anyway, I love this series of books and basically everything Anna Todd stands for as a human being. One of the big things I don't like about this book though is the Lake House 'scene' I guess you could call it.  Basically I can't stand the whole lake house vacation.  I think that it's too long and both Tessa and Hardin are just so annoying the entire time.  I even remember when I was reading it on Wattpad I would get so excited for an update and then so disappointed because they were at that house for so long.  When Tessa and Hardin are good, they are so good.  And they are so cute and funny and everything else.  However, when they're fighting it's so frustrating because 8 times out of 10 they're fighting over something stupid, like a miscommunication, and they're both just so proud that as a reader it's easier to see the solution, but neither of them will apologize.  I also think that Tessa and I are just so different that I often get frustrated with her, because I would do things so differently than the way she does them.  She just pushes Hardin's buttons and I get so annoyed.  To me, Hardin Scott is coming from a pretty messed up childhood and he's a very angry and overprotective/possessive guy and yes, he does need to learn to lighten up, but it would be easier for Tessa to cut him some slack and ease him into being less controlling.  I think that a lot of times he has valid points and Tessa disregards them because she doesn't want to be told what to do.  Like with the Zed thing.  Zed was the other participant in 'The Bet' and he makes it known that he has feelings for Tessa, so Hardin doesn't want her hanging out with him, and it takes her so long to understand his reasoning and agree that she would flip out if Hardin spent as much time with Molly as she did with Zed.  I get the point that Hardin can't tell her who to be friends with, but I think it's okay for your boyfriend to be like, 'I don't want you hanging out with someone who likes you and fought against me to take you virginity' because obviously there's tension between these two men and why would you go out of your way to make more when all you do is complain that your boyfriend is angry?  I do really like the ending of this book because the truth is starting to be revealed about Hardin's family and it's kind of hard to imagine what the last book will bring (even though if you're like me and you read it online you already know).

Smile!  I'll talk to you soon!xxx

Stay Connected:

Main Twitter: @juliann_guerra

Second Twitter: @writerjewels

Instagram: juliann_guerra
Second Instagram: writerjewels

Tumblr: juliann-guerra

Goodreads: Juliann Guerra

Wattpad: @writerjewels

Pinterest: Juliann Guerra

Spotify: juliann.guerra

Bloglovin: Juliann Guerra

After We Collided by Anna Todd | Book Review

After We Collided by Anna Todd

Click Cover to Purchase

Reading Group Rating:  M for Mature

Personal Rating:  4 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Tessa has everything to lose. Hardin has nothing to lose…except her. AFTER WE COLLIDED…Life will never be the same. #HESSA

After a tumultuous beginning to their relationship, Tessa and Hardin were on the path to making things work. Tessa knew Hardin could be cruel, but when a bombshell revelation is dropped about the origins of their relationship—and Hardin’s mysterious past—Tessa is beside herself.

Hardin will always be…Hardin. But is he really the deep, thoughtful guy Tessa fell madly in love with despite his angry exterior—or has he been a stranger all along? She wishes she could walk away. It’s just not that easy. Not with the memory of passionate nights spent in his arms. His electric touch. His hungry kisses.

Still, Tessa’s not sure she can endure one more broken promise. She put so much on hold for Hardin—school, friends, her mom, a relationship with a guy who really loved her, and now possibly even a promising new career. She needs to move forward with her life.

Hardin knows he made a mistake, possibly the biggest one of his life. He’s not going down without a fight. But can he change? Will he change…for love?

Cover: The cover of this novel depicts a wave colliding onto the shore.  It's purple and I'm not really sure why, I don't think there is any significance in that.  Water is known to be a symbol or rebirth, which is maybe why it's chosen for this cover.  Hardin and Tessa do reconcile and rekindle their love for each other.    

My Review:  I know this novel is supposed to show that in the real world couples fight more than just once before they're able to live happily ever after, but it bothers me that every fight between Hardin and Tessa is the same.  It's always because of a misunderstanding and one of them would rather jump to conclusions than hear the other one out.  It also bothers me that Tessa kisses other people.  The one in the club when she's drunk is whatever, but the New Years party and Zed where uncalled for.  She knows that Hardin hates Zed and they had been away from each other for less than 11 days.  I just think that it was really rude of her to do something like that.  Those parts really bothered me.  The rest of the book is great.  It's a little bit of a cycle where they're together, they break up, they hook up, they're back together...etc. and at some points I found myself wishing Anna Todd had just cut an entire scene out when she went from her digital story on WattPad to the printed story, but there probably would have been an outrage from her fans.

Smile!  I'll talk to you soon!xxx

Stay Connected:

Main Twitter: @juliann_guerra

Second Twitter: @writerjewels

Instagram: juliann_guerra

Tumblr: juliann-guerra

Goodreads: Juliann Guerra

Wattpad: @writerjewels

Pinterest: Juliann Guerra

Spotify: juliann.guerra

Bloglovin: Juliann Guerra