Scott Reads It!

Seen at Scott Reads It! Prior to reading Collateral, I had only read one Ellen Hopkins book. I'm not a fan of realistic fiction but I'd rather be in some fantastic paranormal or sci-fi world. Reality is way too harsh and I'd rather read something unrealistic. Collateral is the story of Ashley who falls in love with a soldier named Cole. Collateral may not be for everyone as there are a few sex scenes, scenes in which the characters curse, and tons of heartbreaking moments. Collateral is an poignant novel that will break your heart a thousand times. Ashley's love story isn't sugarcoated at all and it is extremely realistic. Her story perfectly captures the hardships that military wives have to deal with on a daily basis. I'm not a military wife; I'm about as far as you can get from one (I'm just a teenage guy!) but I have a feeling that this is a pretty accurate book. Ellen Hopkins's prose is truly something spectacular and it perfectly embodies all the emotion and tension within Ashley. Hopkins's writing is extremely fluid and easy to read yet it is so thought-provoking. Never in my life would I have thought that I would enjoy a book about military wives yet Hopkins made me form connections with her characters. The only character that I felt that was pretty flat was Cole, I didn't really get a sense of who he was enough. The reader never truly gets a chance to understand how he feels except for a few short emails. Collateral is an extremely well-done novel but I definitely it could have been edited better. At 512 pages, Collateral is a pretty daunting book that could have been shortened. There were some moments in Collateral where I felt like the same thing kept on recurring, I felt like sometimes the plot was a bit stagnant. The pacing in Collateral felt a bit sluggish to me; I'm not sure if it was just me or if it's just really slow-paced. I'm not used to reading such depressing books and I had to put this book aside multiple times. After reading Collateral, I'm definitely interested in reading more of Ellen Hopkins's books. Collateral is a gut-wrenching book that is filled with an emotional punch. This is not a book you will be able to easily forget due to the immense, poignant emotion that Hopkins is famous for. Thank you to Atria Books for an ARC of Collateral in exchange for a honest review.