Review: Raw emotion, loss, love and the power of hope! ~ 5 Stars!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 02 19, 2014
Reading ‘This Much Is True’ was such a heartfelt and stunning experience. From the beautiful writing style that blew me away from the first page, to the fantastic character and story development that kept me hooked throughout, this really was a very special book, but beware, you are in for a hard, long, tear-jerking, rage-filled, heartbreaking journey. But I would not have missed it for the world!I connected immediately to the characters whose story I would be following. Katherine Owen very cleverly crafted this novel so that we witness the pain of the past alongside our heroine Tally Landon. I never felt any anger or annoyance towards Tally throughout the years that the novel covered. She loses her twin sister in a car accident, an accident of which Tally escapes with her life, but broken from the loss of her other half. I knew that it would be a hard, long road for Tally to become her own person. I loved how Tally escaped her pain by pretending to be her sister. It really made me think of the psychological trauma that Tally suffered, and how pretending to be Holly helped keep her alive, as well as helped Tally feel more confident and more perfect by acting like the sister she thought was always the better one.Our introduction to Linc was superb. I loved the instant connection they shared, the way that they opened up to each other, even whilst keeping an emotional distance. The relationship that they built, and the way it continued on through every day of their life, even when they were parted, with other people, and fighting their own battles, as they thought of each other, and felt bereft at having lost something so wonderful before it could ever really start.There is some real emotional issues that are raised in this novel, and I don’t want to spoil any of them for potential readers because they really held a huge wow factor. There were so many times that I cried and felt my heart ripping in two. There was times that I really debated putting the book down, knowing that as I suffer from depression, this extraordinary but emotional journey may just be too much for me to cope with. I was constantly tempted to check goodreads reviews to see whether Tally and Linc would get their happily ever after (This is from the girl that lined up for the last Harry Potter book at midnight with her fingers in her ears to avoid any of the buyers in front of her telling her the ending!).But I persevered, and boy was it worth it! Even in the darkest parts of the books, when Tally and Linc’s lives became so far removed from each other, the powerful writing style just kept me reading, determined to get through this journey and see the outcome of these characters.There were characters I loved, characters I empathised, characters I admired, and there were those that I loathed. I was always firmly on Tally’s team throughout the novel even when her decisions broke my heart. I felt angry at those who took advantage of Tally’s pain, and used guilt-trips to get to her. Rob in particular was a character that I disliked from the get go. Being Holly’s boyfriend before she died, I felt ashamed of him when he began a relationship with Tally, a girl identical to his dead girlfriend. Whilst Tally grieved for her sister, I understood her desire to be with Rob, as though her being with him would keep Holly alive, and would give Holly the chance at a future with Rob through Tally. It was Rob’s insistence that it had ‘always been Tally’ that upset and infuriated me, insinuating that Holly was an unimportant part of his past. I felt so desperate for Tally to escape from his grasp, and wished more than anything that Tally could be with Linc, if only to see how much she was worth, and that Rob’s desire to keep her to himself, made her less able to be the amazing person she had the potential to be.This story was a rocky one, with highs and lows, moments of pure bliss, and then utter heartbreak, but throughout it all I kept hold of the hope I had that Tally would be reunited with Linc and that as a family they could overcome anything. This book really is a gem, and it is one that has wowed me in so many ways. There are some beautiful storylines entwined within Tally and Linc’s journey to find themselves, and each other, and I haven’t even hinted at one of the monumental storylines that will break your heart and take your breath away. I wouldn’t want to spoil that amazing story for anyone.If you are looking for a book with raw emotion, loss, love and the power of hope, then this is the book for you! A 5 star read!WARNING: Have a box of tissues handy…