Review: Now THAT is how you do it!!!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 28, 2013
Without mentioning names, there have been quite a few novels released lately from an alternate characters point of view. I always have high hopes for these stories but more often then not, I find myself rereading a story I already heard without gleaning much new information or perspective.NOT THIS TIME, FRIENDS!!I should state that I absolutely loved Ruined. I didn't love it for a big chunk of it because I thought the author was so incredibly vague with the details of who Angel was. It wasn't until the end when my questions were answered that I fully understood why. But reading this book from Angel 's pov definitely filed in a ton of blanks as well as forcing me to rethink Ruined all over again.When it finally came out who Bailey's secret love was in Ruined, I was of course shocked, but only because I never saw it coming. I was not so much appalled by the idea of her falling in love with her adopted brother... I just chalked it up to 'well they're not blood related, so what's the problem?' I didn't quite get why he pushed Bailey away so forcefully all that time. But having read this story, hearing it all from Angel' pov, especially seeing where he came from, the very crucial steps of his adoption, I really looked at the whole situation from a very different view. It really was an incredibly taboo, incredibly forbidden relationship and I could see that Angel really did make all the right choices. They may not have ever seen each other as siblings, but their parents certainly had two children that should never be in this sort of relationship. They were schoolmates too. How do you explain this to an entire community?I thought Shelly Pratt did a phenomenal job of painting this picture. A perfect job of creating exactly what a POV novel should be. Too often I've come out of reading POV novels and I felt like I was cheated, paying for a story I already read. Not this time. Your given a completely different beginning. A more in depth ending. And in between, a drastically different version of a story that you thought you already knew... but absolutely did not. Exceptional job, Ms. Pratt!!