Series Review: If I Stay series by Gayle Forman

Grade:

If I Stay| 4 Butterflies

Where She Went| 4.5 Butterflies

Series| 4.25

Book 1- If I Stay

Review

Goodreads Summary

 On a day that started like any other,

Mia had everything: a loving family, a gorgeous, admiring boyfriend, and a bright future full of music and full of choices. In an instant, almost all of that is taken from her. Caught between life and death, between a happy past and an unknowable future, Mia spends one critical day contemplating the only decision she has left. It is the most important decision she'll ever make.

Simultaneously tragic and hopeful, this is a romantic, riveting, and ultimately uplifting story about memory, music, living, dying, loving.

Warning: There will be spoilers in book two's summary. There isn't any in the review, but there are some in this summary.

Book 2 - Where She Went

Review

Goodreads Summary

It's been three years since Mia walked out of Adam's life.

And three years he's spent wondering why.

When their paths cross again in New York City, Adam and Mia are brought back together for one life-changing night.

Adam finally has the opportunity to ask Mia the questions that have been haunting him. But will a few hours in this magical city be enough to lay their past to rest, for good - or can you really have a second chance at first love?

Book 1---

If I Stay was a beautiful story of grief, hope, death, and love. It was just so captivating that I finished it in a day and a half. I just got so invested with Mia's life and her choice. I was terrified to keep reading because I was afraid of her decision. I don't think I could come back from that. If my whole family died in one blow I don't think I would be able to function. I cried a few times when reading this book, because it was just all so tragic. So, I was so afraid that Mia wasn't that strong, because you have to be a freaking strong person to came back from that.

Gayle Forman knows how to make a reader feel connected with her characters. I was just so invested in Mia's story. I couldn't put it down because I wanted to read more about Mia, her life, her family, and Adam. I just got so invested and I feel in love with these characters!

The one big problem I had with this book, and series, was the flashbacks. Gayle Forman had a good concept with the flashbacks going, but I don't think it was well delivered. Some of the flashbacks were necessary in my mind because they added depth to the characters and told us more about Mia and her family. However, there were just to many of them. About 50 percent of these flashbacks could have been cut because they added no value to the book and where placed at such random spots that I got really confused in some parts. So, if Gayle Forman just didn't use so much flashbacks this would have easily been a 5 Butterfly book.

Book 2 --- 

This book starts 3 years after the events in If I Stay and its from Adam's POV. Adam is in a really bad place, even though he got, mostly, what he ever wanted. He was in self-distract mode and it was so hard to see him like that because I got so invested in him as a character during the first one. I wanted him to have a happy life, not a painful one.

This book was just so full of the emotions. I loved it!! I felt that it was a really great ender to this series. If you loved or even liked If I Stay you will love this book. It answers all of your questions you have in the beginning of the book, were of course you are suppose to piece together the painful truth of what happened between Mia and Adam. It was so great to understand why Mia did certain things. It was also great to see Adam grow, or rather move on, throughout this book.

This book is not without its faults. While I loved it and thought it was a really good conclusion for this story, I still thought it had so many dang flashbacks! The flashbacks in this one mostly have a good purpose; they are there to tell the readers what happened between Mia and Adam three years ago. However, there where also a lot of flashbacks that I felt could have been cut out. There were just to many. A chapter would end and you would want to continue the story, but the next chapter is a flashback and that would mess with the flow of the book. If she just put all of the flashbacks about what happened between Mia and Adam at the beginning and left the last half, or at least the last quarter, free of flashbacks it would have been so much better. 

-Overall-  
The only major problems I had with these books were the amount of flashbacks that the author used. Some I felt were necessary, but most others weren't and they messed up with the flow of the books and left me frustrated. So, if you like flashbacks, or at least want to tolerate them, then I would highly recommend these books. They are full of emotions; hope, pain, grief, and love and I got so invested in these character's story. 

Recommended if you like, the Leaving Paradise series, contemporaries, and the Pushing the Limits series.

So, what did you think of this series?

Happy reading