ARC Review ~ The Edge of Always by J. A. Redmerski + Excerpt

eARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: 7th November 2013

Publisher: HarperCollins UK

Description:
The hotly anticipated sequel to the bestselling New Adult novel, THE EDGE OF NEVER – a New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestseller

Camryn Bennett and Andrew Parrish wanted a life less ordinary – and together, against the world, it’s only getting better. But out of the blue, their perfect life together is rocked by tragedy…

Struggling to cope with a different future, Andrew soon realises that Camryn is hiding a world of pain. Desperate to bring her back to life, Andrew is sure that if they can get out on the road again, everything will fall into place. If only he can convince Camryn that their love is worth fighting for…

My Opinion

It was receiving an email from HaperCollins with an invitation to review this book in advance that gave me the much needed to kick to start The Edge of Never and if you've read my review of that then I loved it so much I couldn't wait to start The Edge of Always. In fact I started this book an hour after finishing the first and I'm so thankful I was able to get an advanced copy - this book didn't disappoint!

The Edge of Always is just as good as the first. I was a little worried with how the author was going to continue the series due to the way she left The Edge of Always but I was thankful that Camryn and Andrew didn't loose any of the carefree spirit and rebellion against conforming to societies wishes. Personally I felt the start was incredibly predictable and there for I spent the first few chapters waiting for something to happen rather than just read the book. I was turning pages and just hoping I was wrong - I wasn't - and therefore it was a little slow to get into. 

However the writing soon picked up and I was once again thrown into the romance that Camryn and Andrew share and the relationship I have come to adore. I didn't find The Edge of Always as emotional as the first book but for me it was more on the sweet side. Maybe that was because it was written more from Andrew's point of view and therefore it was about him trying to help Camryn - I don't know - but at least it didn't make me cry this time! I still felt for the characters and connected with them however I just didn't feel so emotional which I think was a nice change of pace from The Edge of Never.

Once again, I love the message of not conforming and the desire to travel. I could relate to it well, having my on list of countries I want to visit. The whole section on the road and travelling I loved and it was great to see Andrew return to his normal self. I just loved the carefree attitude and spontaneity the characters had, it was unique and original for me.

Finally I just love the romance between the two. The love they feel for each other is believable with becoming one of those sickly romances that is full of cliches. I like how the trust each other enough and neither of them was ever possessive or jealous. It was a nice change.

Overall The Edge of Always is a brilliant sequel to The Edge of Always and the author did a great job of following up on their story. I also liked the ending - it rounded things off nicely. If you haven't read The Edge of Never yet, go out and buy it before the Edge of Always is released! You won't be disappointed so don't make the mistake I did of putting off reading it. They are beautifully written and full of emotion.

You can pre-order The Edge of Always here: Amazon and because I am on HarperCollins' mailing list I have an extract to run alongside my review so enjoy!

***WARING***

If you haven't read The Edge of Never yet do not read on as the extract contains spoilers to the ending of the first book!

Excerpt:

Review ~ The Edge of Never by J. A. Redmerski

ebook received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: November 15th 2012

Publisher: Harper Collins

Description:
Twenty-year-old Camryn Bennett had always been one to think out-of-the-box, who knew she wanted something more in life than following the same repetitive patterns and growing old with the same repetitive life story. And she thought that her life was going in the right direction until everything fell apart.

Determined not to dwell on the negative and push forward, Camryn is set to move in with her best friend and plans to start a new job. But after an unexpected night at the hottest club in downtown North Carolina, she makes the ultimate decision to leave the only life she’s ever known, far behind.

With a purse, a cell phone and a small bag with a few necessities, Camryn, with absolutely no direction or purpose boards a Greyhound bus alone and sets out to find herself. What she finds is a guy named Andrew Parrish, someone not so very different from her and who harbors his own dark secrets. But Camryn swore never to let down her walls again. And she vowed never to fall in love.

But with Andrew, Camryn finds herself doing a lot of things she never thought she’d do. He shows her what it’s really like to live out-of-the-box and to give in to her deepest, darkest desires. On their sporadic road-trip he becomes the center of her exciting and daring new life, pulling love and lust and emotion out of her in ways she never imagined possible. But will Andrew’s dark secret push them inseparably together, or tear them completely apart?

Due to sexual content and language, this book is recommended for 17+ – Adult Contemporary Women’s – New Adult Fiction

My Opinion

Wow, talk about an emotional roller coaster! This book went from light-hearted flirting, playful teasing and a hot romance to flipping and turning into a dramatic, torturous ending that made me cry. I'm still shocked by how many different emotions it brought out of me as I write this now and I've had nearly two days to try and digest this amazing read.

I think the main reason I got so emotional with this book was because of the characters - I just fell in love with them and their story. They were believable, easy to relate to and made me both smile, laugh and cry. I could sympathise with them and connect really well which is what made this book so different from a lot of New Adult books I've read - I actually cared what happened to them!

I also loved the fact that they weren't perfect. They had bad mouth (brilliant), a playful and witty sense of humour and they weren't afraid to challenge each other. Camryn was a bit more reserved and held back with what she thought but I loved how Andrew brought out her confidence and she developed. As well as this I could just tell I was going to enjoy this book when they first met. Camryn was not automatically swept of her feet and was stand-off-ish with him which just made me laugh.

Another thing I really liked about this book was the message about not conforming with society and doing whatever you want that brings you happiness rather than those around you. I could relate well to the message and thought it was a nice change to see characters who actually wanted to follow their own desires. I don't know why but I really like the line "Coincidence is just the conformist term for fate." I think for me it summed up the message that Camryn and Andrew were choosing their own path.

I did see the ending coming a few chapters before the reveal was made, which made it a bit predictable. However saying that it still made me cry, especially Andrew's letter. Oh my God, my eyes just teared up which is something that doesn't happen often. The book just did a one-eighty and my emotions couldn't cope - it was just great and mind boggling.

Overall I can't believe I waited so long to read this. It has been sat on my Kindle for months and having forgotten the blurb that initially interested me I put it off as the cover always looked slightly depressing to me. How wrong was I? I wish I had started it sooner but at least I don't have to wait for the sequel now (which I started earlier today)! I would highly recommend this book.