Release Week Blitz & Review: Breaking Nova by Jessica Sorenson

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BREAKING NOVA

by Jessica Sorensen

Publication Date: September 3, 2103

Genre: Contemporary, New Adult

ISBN: 9781455582723

Grand Central Publishing

Source:  Publisher
Mature Content:  18+

Summary:

Nova Reed used to have dreams-of becoming a famous drummer, of marrying her true love. But all of that was taken away in an instant. Now she's getting by as best she can, though sometimes that means doing things the old Nova would never do. Things that are slowly eating away at her spirit. Every day blends into the next ... until she meets Quinton Carter. His intense, honey brown eyes instantly draw her in, and he looks just about as broken as she feels inside.

Quinton once got a second chance at life — too bad he doesn't want it. The tattoos on his chest are a constant reminder of what he's done, what he's lost. He's sworn to never allow happiness into his life ... but then beautiful, sweet Nova makes him smile. He knows he's too damaged to get close to her, yet she's the only one who can make him feel alive again. Quinton will have to decide: does he deserve to start over? Or should he pay for his past forever?

Lindy's Thoughts:

Jessica Sorenson's Callie and Kayden series is one of my absolute favorites!  I learned from this series that Ms. Sorenson has a beautiful writing style, vivid imagery, authentic characters, and a brilliant insight in to the human condition.  That series was dark, gritty, and angst-filled, but I loved it, because if made me feel so deeply for the characters.  Therefore, when I had the opportunity to read and review Breaking Nova, I  was excited and anxious to start right away.  I was expecting an emotional, and somewhat dark story, but I was in no way prepared for where this story would take me.  Breaking Nova was extremely intense, angst-filled, dark, depressing, and painful.  

From the very beginning of the story, when I was introduced to Nova, there was foreshadowing of what was to come, and a deep sense of foreboding.  My heart broke right along side Nova's.  The deep rooted pain, endless abyss of hopelessness, and devastation, were clearly and effortlessly portrayed.  Once the tears began sliding down my face, I could not get them to stop.  Literally.  For hours on end, I mourned right along with Nova.  The subject matter was heavy, and somewhat taboo in our society.  I'm glad that Ms. Sorenson brought it to the forefront, and gave us an inner look, and perspective into the subject matter.

Quinton blames himself for a devastating accident that brought about a lot of painful loss.  He is plagued by feelings of guilt, self-hate, anger, and just wants to escape all feeling.  He is self-destructive, and will do anything to bring about numbness, and anything that will help him forget what happened.  His choice of escape is a combination of alcohol, mindless sex, and drugs.  He starts out using hard liquor and weed to numb the pain, but eventually begins using stronger drugs to escape.  He moves in with his cousin Tristan, and Tristan's friend, Dylan, in to a rundown trailer.  He meets Nova when she comes over to the trailer with her best friend, Delilah, who is dating Dylan.  Quinton instantly connects with the deep sorrow that he sees in her eyes, and a part of him wants to take away her pain.  Simultaneously, Quinton reminds Nova of her loss, and feels like this is an opportunity to do things differently this time.  She fears for him, and wants to help him.  

Together, these two connect with one another through their sorrow, pain, and inner demons that haunt them daily.  As Nova and Quinton become friends, they develop deep feelings for one another, when they never thought that they'd feel for someone again. They make each other feel better by have a calming effect on one another.  Yet, there are also a lot of feelings of guilt when they are together, because they feel like they are betraying their former loved ones.  Quinton doesn't think he deserves happiness and love.  He thinks Nova is a better person than he is and deserves better than him.  Nova herself is spiraling out of control, and cannot help herself, much less Quinton.  The ending just about killed me.  It was a to be continued, and I want the sequel right now.  I need to see what the future has in store for Nova and Quinton.  If anyone deserves a happily ever after, these two do!  I just hope that they can heal, and let go of all of their pain.      

My Rating:

I give Breaking Nova, 4.5 Heartbreaking, Soul Shattering, Touching, and Unforgettable Stars.  You have to mentally prepare for a story like this.  The subject matter is very heavy and dark. Breaking Nova deals with suicide, death, hopelessness, devastation, and drug addiction.  My heart was heavy, and I cried from the very beginning to the very end of the story.  I could feel the desolation, and emotional breakdowns of Nova and Quinton.  They were completely broken, and lost.  There was no hope in sight for either of them, and honestly, I could completely understand why.  Just trying to picture myself in either of their situations made me feel sick to my stomach.  Yet, there was a beauty to how Nova and Quinton connected on a soul deep level.  They truly understood one another, empathized with the other, and were each other's only source of light and comfort in a completely dark place.  Jessica Sorenson is an amazingly talented author.  She has the ability to completely pull you in to her story, and before you know it, you have completed it.  The prose were beautiful, and flowed seamlessly.  The characters had depth, were three-dimensional, and typical people with typical problems.  I connected with them and cared about them.  Read Breaking Nova for a heart-breaking and beautiful story that you will never forget.  

My Favorite Quotes:

"You're like my favorite song, Nova.  The one that I never want to forget.  That I want to play over and over again."  (eARC, Loc. 817)

~Landon


"To see something like that-to see death.  It's the kind of thing that scars people on the inside.  And not just small scars, but long, thick, jagged ones that never go away.  The kind of scars that alter the appearance of things, change people.  Ruin them."  (eARC, Loc. 1646)

~Quinton


"Nova is beautiful, interesting, a good person, and she makes me feel things I thought I'd never feel again.  On some level I think she understands me, even though I haven't told her anything about me.  She gets pain and loss, and that's pretty much what exists inside me.  I think in a different life I probably could have loved her, been with her, made her happy.  But this is this life, and I can't love anyone or be loved.  And that's the way it will always be--should be."  (eARC, Loc. 3408)

~Quinton

The Way Ria Sees It

Pain, hurt, anguish OMG!! I am so muddled... My feelings, my heart, my hopes and my desires for these characters. Talk about a roller coaster of emotions. I recommend this book for ADULTS... mature ones...This book is so dark, full of pain and anguish. My soul actually feels heavy. Okay, there was light at the end, but not enough! I’m gonna need boat-loads of flipping sunshine for the NEXT book!! 

BOAT!! LOADS!! 

Ms. Sorenson covers 2 very dark subjects that teens have to face all of the time. My heart breaks.

B-ereft, life does not seem worth living. Nova’s true love will make the most permanent decision there is. 

R-eturn, Nova has tried to move on but life has taken so much from her. All her efforts leave her devoid.

E-vaporated, Quinton has always had everything planned out and he knows who he is and what he wants. Life shows Quinton that everything can change in an instant.

A-lone, both Nova and Quinton feel as though all they’ve known and loved has been ripped away.

K-ind, upon meeting Quinton, Nova is shocked by all the similarities and all of the memories that come flooding to her. Quinton is drawn to her eyes that seem to pierce into his soul.

I-rritating, Dylan and company begin to show their true colors. It seems Delilah (Nova’s Best Friend) is beginning to get sucked in by Dylan.

N-othingness, Quinton longs to never feel again. Nova longs to understand why she has lost so much and why the pain is so unbearable. 

G-ames, though it's all unintentional, Nova & Quinton are playing a dangerous game. Leading them down a dangerous road. 

N-aive, life keeps moving. Nova is getting more lost and more confused. Quinton doesn’t know what he is getting himself into.

O-pportunity, life shows Quinton and Nova love is possible caring for someone proves to be unbearably painful to Quinton.

V-oice, it has taken to long and so much pain, but Nova decides to listen to her love. After hearing what he says it reaches her heart and she knows what she must do.

A-nguish, Nova has learned that goodbyes are important, after some time has passed she decides she has one more task to complete. The question is will she be on time?

Wow, so as you know these characters have broken my heart. Nova makes several mistakes, BUT by the end I was totally on her side cheering her on. 

OH MY ROTTEN MOLDY CHEESEBALLS!!! 

Cliffhangers give me nightmares. 

I will not be getting much sleep until the next book comes out in FEBRUARY?! 2014! WTF! That's so far away :( I’m dying to know what happens, and to share with y'all what I thought about all said happenings. 

My Rating

4.0 Grassy Hill, College, Trailer, Novamentary, Concert, Kiss, Secluded River, Pink Drum Set, Second Chance filled stars... For a heart wrenching read that will pull deep emotions from you, go get this book!!

Purchase At:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes

Picture Teaser:

Book Excerpt:

I get caught up in it all—in her—and suddenly I’m pressing my lips against hers. I’ve done this a lot before, as a way to distract myself from my life. But this isn’t the same. This means something, but I’m still trying to figure out what and if I want it or even deserve to get it.

At first she stiffens, but then she hooks her arms around the back of my neck and inches closer, opening her mouth to me as she spreads her legs open and my hands travel higher toward the bottom of her shorts. She tastes like beer and smells like pot. Tristan’s gone but he could come back at any moment. I should stop this. I should care enough to stop Tristan from seeing this, but my will to care about doing the right thing at this moment has died. My thoughts are blurred by the lingering high and the scent and feel of Nova. All I seem to care about is caressing her tongue with mine and feeling her skin because it’s soft and soothing and in another life I’d touch it all the time.

I’m about to pull away, because emotions are prickling inside me, when she swings her leg over me so she’s straddling my lap, then she grips the sides of my neck and pulls me closer. She kisses me fiercely, to the point where it feels like my lips are going to bruise, then she’s crushing her chest against mine as she gently rocks her hips. I dig my fingers into her waist, bringing her even closer, before I push her back, breaking the connection of our lips.

She’s panting, wild-eyed, her hair falling out of the braid. She glances to the side at Tristan’s empty chair and then looks back at me.

“We should stop,” I say, but it sounds like a lame attempt, my voice drifting off at the end.

“W-why?” She stutters a protest and I have to admit that it’s nice there are no tears in her eyes. “I don’t want to.”

I brush her hair back from her eyes and let my fingers linger on the bruise on her cheek. “You don’t even know me, Nova. I’m no good for you… you deserve so much better.” Please run away. Because I can’t seem to do it myself.

Her jaw tenses, like I struck a nerve. “I think I should get to decide that.”

“Whether I’m good enough for you?” I ask.

“Yeah, which I can only decide if I get to know you,” she says.

I motion my hand in front of myself, pressing the point. “This is pretty much it. What you see is what you get.”

“That’s never the case,” she disagrees, flattening her palms onto my bare chest right over the scar and my body goes rigid. “In fact, most of the time people hide who they really are.” Her throat bobs up and down as she swallows hard. “Most of the time you think you know someone, but you really have no clue.”

Author Bio:

The New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, Jessica Sorensen, lives in the snowy mountains of Wyoming. When she's not writing, she spends her time reading and hanging out with her family.

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