Book Review: Where She Went

I have not often found that the second book in a series is better than the first but that is the case in Where She Went, the sequel to If I Stay by Gayle Forman.

It’s been three years since the devastating accident… three years since Mia walked out of Adam’s life forever.

Now living on opposite coasts, Mia is Juilliard’s rising star and Adam is LA tabloid fodder, thanks to his new rock star status and celebrity girlfriend. When Adam gets stuck in New York by himself, chance brings the couple together again, for one last night. As they explore the city that has become Mia’s home, Adam and Mia revisit the past and open their hearts to the future – and each other.

Told from Adam’s point of view in the spare, lyrical prose that defined If I Stay, Where She Went explores the devastation of grief, the promise of new hope, and the flame of rekindled romance.

I absolutely loved this excerpt before the first chapter:

It well may be that in a difficult hour,
Pinned down by pain and moaning for release,
Or nagged by want past resolution’s power,
I might be driven to sell your love for peace,
Or trade the memory of this night for food.
It well may be. I do not think I would.
Excerpt from “Love is not all: it is not meat nor drink.”                                             BY EDNA ST. VINCENT MILLAY

With that at the beginning, one would expect a captivating book. And captivating it was. Unlike the previous book, written from Mia’s point of view, this sequel is written from Adam eyes and nobody dies this time. Even though it mainly focuses on what is happening now (that is, three years after the accident) it fills in the blanks for the  reader as to what has happened over those three years with both Mia and Adam. I liked Adam from the get-go and this book made me like him even more. You will find yourself wondering what happened between them and if and when they are going to get back together considering the fact that they now lead quite different lives. You will not be disappointed. The book was well-written and it is quite a sweet story.

My favorite quotes:

“Letting go. Everyone talks about it like it’s the easiest thing.”

“It’s just one day, one twenty-four-hour period to get yourself through.”

“And if I’m not forgiven, then at least I’m understood.”

“She holds me until I recover my Y chromosome.”

I would recommend this book to:

• Persons who have read If I Stay (required)
• Young Adult fiction fans

My rating:
Really liked it – 4 out of 5 stars