Tuesday 9 September 2014

Reveal & Review - What If by Rebecca Donovan



Title: What If
Author: Rebecca Donovan
Release Date: September 16, 2014



A new novel by REBECCA DONOVAN the USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Breathing Series . . .

What if you had a second chance to meet someone for the first time?

Cal Logan is shocked to see Nicole Bentley sitting across from him at a coffee shop thousands of miles from their hometown. After all, no one has seen or heard from her since they graduated over a year ago.

Except this girl isn't Nicole.

She looks exactly like Cal's shy childhood crush, but her name is Nyelle Preston and she has no idea who he is. This girl is impulsive and daring, her passion for life infectious. The complete opposite of Nicole. Cal finds himself utterly fascinated-and falling hard. But Nyelle is also extremely secretive. And the closer he comes to finding out what she's hiding, the less he wants to know.

When the secrets from the past and present collide, one thing becomes clear: Nothing is what it seems.




WHAT IS A WHAT IF MOMENT?

Live the life you want, not the one you're given.

What's your "What If"? A moment of choice. A decision that changed the course of your life. What positive result came from that choice? Even if it happened years later. This isn't about regret. It's about embracing those moments that change everything. Every choice is a chance to start again!




Give Me Books are excited to reveal the first 
"College Confessional" video montage for What If




We would like to invite you all to submit your own 
'What If moment'.

Every fan who submits a What If Confessional VIDEO or PHOTO can submit the URL of their confessional on the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post for the chance to win a Kindle Fire HDX. 

For more details go to: whatif.rebeccadonovan.com


There is also a chance to win a

What If Swag Bag including a t-shirt, sunglasses, drawstring bag, sports bottle, stickers, pen, e-book + more





PRE-ORDER NOW FOR SEPTEMBER 16







Rebecca Donovan has done it again. She has created a story so emotionally captivating you cant quite figure out what is going to unravel next. This story will keep you intrigued till the very end. At some points you may feel the mystery drags on, but push through, I promise you every stretch of a POV or scene has its purpose in order to help the puzzle pieces fall into place for the secret to be exposed.

Starting from the prologue we immediately know the narrator, Cal is taking us on the journey that is What If. We get a glimpse at the drift between himself and his best friend Rae from the rest of their small town ex-classmates. And who is Cal searching for, no other than the ice princess, the head mean-girlNicole Bentley. Yet, she is nowhere to be found, her click has moved on as if they never revolved around her. Thus, begins our first question from the first couple of pages, who is this Nicole?

Cal Logan, is a sophomore at Crenshaw University. He has the whole boy-next-door, boy-take-home-to-parents charm going for him, girls come to him asking for dates, yet he never fights for the girls to stay. He lets them walk away or he breaks it off before it could get too serious. Until he runs into Nyelle. A feisty, openly opinionated, free-spirited, whirlwind of mystery. The only thing is, Cal is convinced this Nyelle is a girl from his past, a girl he regrets never taking a chance with, a girl he has crushed on since the 4th gradeNicole Bentley.

Im looking for the girl Ill regret if I let her go.
Nyelle ponders thoughtfully for a moment. Your what if girl. I like it.
My what? I ask with a bite of the sandwich in my mouth.
Your what if girl. You serial date so you dont regret passing these girls up, in case one of them is her.

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For a good portion of the beginning of the book Cal is determined to prove this girl Nyelle is his Nicole. His best friend Rae does not believe him nor does she care, for she still holds a grudge against the friend (Nicole) who abandoned her and Cal all those years ago to hang out with the snobs of their community. While Cal takes us through the present, past memories are retold from both Nicole and Richelles POV. Reading multiple POVs can get confusing, however Rebecca Donovan does a phenomenal job not overwhelming the reader. Rather, each recap from the past adds to the intrigue as well as offering insight into the friendship dynamics that are Cal + Rae, Cal + Richelle, Cal + Nicole, Nicole + Rae, Nicole + Richelle, Nicole + Cal. Dont worry it may seem like a lot but the bonds are easy to follow. The bond that hooked my attention was between Richelle and Nicole. Two girls as opposite as friends can get, yet a friendship so deep, it will have you reminiscing a childhood/life-long friendship you have maintained in your life.

Even though we do not receive a POV from Nyelle, the descriptions we see through Cals POV help the reader recognize and feel the emotion pouring out of Nyelle, causing your heart to crack while your mind continues to fumble with what happened to this girl?

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While I was invested in the relationship between Cal + Nyelle, the friendship portrayed between Nicole + Richelle was a tie for me. You will feel a sense of a love triangle as the past is revealed between the 3Cal+Nicole+Richelle. Rebecca Donovan does an excellent job offering you a bread crumb and just when you think you know the path the story is going to take another piece of information or a scene takes place making you scratch your head once again. As the past POVs progress from elementary to high school, it becomes easier for the reader to comprehend the painful past Nicole Bentley endured as well as how 4 best friends fell apart.

The Aha moment is as shattering as you would expect. Tears will spill down your cheeks without you even noticing because you wont be able to stop reading. Once all the secrets are out in the open you will reflect on parts of the story and it will make sense why certain things played out the way they did over the course of the book. I would have liked a little more insight into the gap from the end of the story to the epilogue though. Overall, this book exceeded my expectations. Rebecca Donovans writing is beautifully moving. She has a way of portraying the love between characters in such a tasteful manner, emotions flow off the page.

~ Review by Tori







Optimism seeps from every pore of my body. I truly believe that what's supposed to happen... will! In that regard, I don't know how to give up; it's not part of my biological make up.

I'm a passionate (and some would say, overly enthusiastic) person. I learn by doing (and have been burned more times that I'd like to admit), but I will always throw my entire self into whatever I do - fail or succeed.

I think this is evident when I write, leaving nothing behind and spilling it all out on the pages. I give it all to my readers - love it or hate it.

The path I'm on is very often my own, veering off the beaten path at the sight of something more interesting or captivating, getting caught in the vines and thorns in order to experience the beauty and intrigue others often pass by. And I always meet the most interesting people along the way...






WIN a What If Swag Bag including a t-shirt, sunglasses, drawstring bag, sports bottle, stickers, pen, e-book + more

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Submit your own 'What If' moment here
 

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