Stay by Deb Caletti
"Clara’s relationship with Christian is intense from the start, and like nothing she’s ever experienced before. But what starts as devotion quickly becomes obsession, and it’s almost too late before Clara realizes how far gone Christian is--and what he’s willing to do to make her stay.
Now Clara has left the city—and Christian—behind. No one back home has any idea where she is, but she still struggles to shake off her fear. She knows Christian won’t let her go that easily, and that no matter how far she runs, it may not be far enough...."- summary from Amazon
It took me a while to get through this book. Like, a LONG time. If you saw my GoodReads progress, you would tsk at me. It does not take me a month or so to read a book but it took a while for this to really grab my attention. The prose just didn't hook me- it just kind of meandered along until things got interesting around page 100. I did like how Caletti structured the book, going between past (Clara's time with Christian) and present (living elsewhere after everything went downhill).
What kept me going was the summary- the idea that we would get somewhere juicy. I wanted to see what had happened between Clara and Christian. Caletti doesn't hold back or romanticize obsession- she paints a realistic picture of what being in an emotionally abusive relationship means. It's a harrowing story.
I know a lot of people didn't like the romance that happened in the book but I actually liked it. I thought she was cautious enough and it helped her to realize not all guys are like Christian and to become herself again. She didn't jump right into it. I thought Caletti handled it realistically; it was very sweet too.
This is my first Caletti novel and for me at least, it was probably a 3 star kind of read. I may read more Caletti in the future, but I'm not exactly dying to, like I was when I finished my first Sarah Dessen or Meg Cabot novel.
FTC: Received eGalley from Simon and Schuster's Galley Grab. Link above is an Amazon Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.
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I agree, I thought the romance was very realistic- she's a young girl, attraction to others doesn't normally disappear just because you've been in a bad relationship. I think it's a good message- because she took control of her life, and didn't allow her insane ex to influence her entire world.
ReplyDeleteThe book cover is really wonderful. Amazing review! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThanks for this thoughtful review! Deb Caletti only recently landed on my radar, which surprises me because she's often compared to Sarah Dessen, who I LOVE. The subject of STAY intrigues me, too. I'll definitely check this one out.
ReplyDeleteIt's a bummer that Stay was hard to get into. I've heard kind of mixed things about it, so I'm not sure whether I'd like it or not. Abuse situations kind of freak me out.
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