Kari Guerrero

I recommend this book if you like: Modern fairy tale retellings, books about books, celebrity stories, books with extreme emotions.

What a better way to start my book blog than with a book about a book blogger?! 

Brief:

Ellamara Rodriguez is facing a very hard time in her life; she was in a car accident that not only took her mother from her, it also gave her a lifelong disability. While she’s adapting to her new reality, she now needs to live with her father, the man that abandoned her when she was only eight years old, and with his picture perfect family.

The only person that keeps her from going insane is her online best friend, someone he knows as Cinder458. But what she doesn’t know is that Cinder is actually Brian Oliver, a world famous Hollywood actor who happens to be as much as a book lover as she is. 

What can I say? I love this book! It’s a rollercoaster of emotions.

The story starts with Ellamara and her mom going on a trip for Ella’s birthday and we instantly get to know the good relationship they have, as well as her thrilling interactions with Cinder 458, Ella’s online best friend. But the excitement soon gets overshadowed by tragedy, as Ella and her mom get into an accident where only she survives, but with both physical and emotional scars.

From there, the book takes a darker turn, for which I won’t give spoilers, but I’ll say I was on the verge of tears at the end of the first chapter (and I am an emotionless person that never cries with books!). But the book gets to the bright moments again when Brian (Cinder) and Ella reconnect. They’re both in dark times in their lives, but that gets forgotten when you see the chemistry between them. They act like true friends that care for each other (and fight each other), but in a way that you can’t wait for them to meet in person and kiss (no spoilers, though). 

THE CHARACTERS

Ellamara Rodríguez is the typical I’m-not-like-the-other-girls girl, but not so much that it gets annoying, just the right amount. She’s also a narrator that not only results entertaining, but has enough intrapersonal intelligence to give the story the depth it needs without it being overwhelming.

Besides, Ella is not the only one that matures through the story, after all, she is thrown into a life change that affects her as well as her new family, so it’s interesting to see how each one of the characters learns to adapt to this situation. This is something that makes Ella a really refreshing character because, even if at the beginning of the story she gets understandably upset with everything that happens, through the story she learns to see how her change in circumstances is also affecting everyone around her and how this is challenging to the people around her as much as it is for her. 

Sometimes characters in literature help us deal with real life circumstances and Ellamara is definitely a good example to follow. 

As for Brian, he’s also one of my favorite characters. But what I like the most about him is not that he’s handsome, smart, rich and says things no man would say in real life (as Ella would say, definitely not my type), but it’s his hidden yet omnipresent way of being a nerd as well as his deep caring for Ella. He’s everything romance leads should be and more, but he also has enough flaws so he doesn’t become just a romantic interest, he feels like reading a person should (maybe a bit unrealistic and from a woman’s standpoint, but he’s still great). At first he lets other people take control of his life, but when it really matters he isn’t afraid to go after what he really wants, he has clear passions and, most importantly, even with his secret identity, he doesn’t let lack of communication evolve into misunderstandings. 

As for the supporting characters, they all feel like real people as well, each one adds their own flavor to the mix, creating very diverse and meaningful interactions, from the rocky relationship Ella has with her father to her few but wholesome friendships, either with one of her step-sisters or with the crazy Vivian she mets at school (and please let’s not forget about Cinder/Brian). Ella has a very unique relationship with each one of the characters, making the story feel like it follows the interactions of real people, with both qualities and flaws. 

I like all of them, but I would like to mention Scott. He’s not that important to the story, but I love that he’s there. What an amazing man.

THE NARRATIVE

With most of the books I’ve read from Kelly Oram, I can say one thing: once I pick a book, I can’t leave it until I’m finished. I’ve revisited this book several times and it’s one of my favorites, but I’ve never read it. Because I don’t read it, I devour it. 

The narrative is interesting at all times, either because of the sassy conversations Cinder and Ella have or because something new (usually bad) happens during her rehabilitation journey. I don’t know enough about physical disabilities, but I do know that they are as diverse as any other human group is, so this story does a great job in presenting a person learning to live with a disability without her becoming deprived of her personality. 

The whole book is a rollercoaster where you don’t know which emotion you’ll be feeling next, but can’t wait to find out. 

Like I mentioned at the beginning, this is a book about books, so there’s also a background story that reflects Ella and Brian’s journey, a fantasy book that not only made them meet, but also affects their relationship. It’s a shame that The Chronicles of Cinder is not a real book, because I would love to read it. 

THE BAD SIDE

I still love the book despite this, but there are little details that I think are worth mentioning. They’re usually small things, like how a psychologist offers service to two emotionally related people, which I know shouldn’t happen in real life. Also, Ella has ancestry from Chile, but at times it feels like the country is used as a synonym for Mexico (I know because I’m Mexican). There are other little details around the book, but they’re small enough they don’t make the reading any less enjoyable.

It’s definitely a book that I would recommend to book lovers and love lovers all the same. And one I’ll keep reading over and over again.