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Nothing Else Matters (2012)

by Leslie DuBois(Favorite Author)

3.78 of 5 Votes: 4

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Little Prince Publishing

review 1: I appreciate that the author did their research, but it was melodramatic, unbalanced, and forced. The lack of a HEA also was annoying.This book started off interesting enough--star athlete with obsessed parent is in love with his childhood friend. Problem is, Scott's body is starting to fail him, and he's worried about whether Reyna will still like him if he can't be an athlete anymore. Worse, the fact that he's white and she's mixed race complicates their attempts at a relationship, along with the usual "but we can't date bc you're my best friend."The use of first-person POV for Scott and third for Reyna struck me immediately as odd, but I should have trusted my instinct in being suspicious of the author. It's very rare for a book to mix first- and third-person, and I hav... moree seen it done, but here it seemed to serve no purpose. Scott's portions should have been third-person as well, as the first did nothing for the book other than make it odd when we switched to third for Reyna.This may seem like a niggling point, but it's symptomic of how many fundamental problems there are with this book. While I liked Scott and Reyna (and Stu especially), this book felt almost as if the author either unsure of the story she wanted to tell or was afraid.The racial aspect was a potentially significant portion of the story, but after about halfway through was dropped/quickly fixed like a hot potato the author was scared would burn her. The forced "metaphor" (I use the term loosely) of La Cienega didn't help, nor did the blatant foreshadowing. Romeo & Juliet? Really?While the story had serious potential--Scott dealing with an identity crisis once he realizes he can't be an athlete anymore; the two of them struggling to be together as an interracial couple; Scott confronted with his issues with his crazy mother--none of these were developed. The book fizzled at the end with more ridiculous melodrama than a soap opera, and worse, it left the Scott's character arch hobbled (ha, punny).I don't need an HFN or HEA to enjoy a book, but I do need to feel like the character had the space to make their journey. That did not happen here. The twist felt like a betrayal to the reader, a slap in the face. Very little of what followed made sense, in terms characters' actions.At least the medical research was done. But I can't really recommend this book at all. Despite its potential, it was just an ultimate mess.
review 2: - I wanted to see more of what happened in the epic ending that no one expected! - How racism goes into play after the accident? That could have been an epilogue. I wanted more! - Yes, sometimes this book is sappy. Its teenage love, of course sometimes some teens get overly dramatic but that doesn't mean the love wasn't real. I wouldn't down play the love between the main characters. - I wanted someone like, Reyna's father to slap some sense into Sam in the beginning and middle - Stop trying to live out your dream through your child and be a mother!!- Did anyone else find it annoying that the author wanted to remind us in every chapter that Reyna doesn't sleep well ?! ha! I think we got it! For a free book, I was pleased. less

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