Entangled

Review Time! Firstly, I have to say this is one review that I would love if you guys would read it. To me, this review is special, I invested a lot of time into it because it was a life-changing moment for me. Thank-you to Pan Macmillian for the review copy, truly I am so grateful for this copy!

( Goodreads) The same questions whirl round and round in my head:

What does he want from me?

How could I have let this happen?

AM I GOING TO DIE?

17-year-old Grace wakes up in a white room, with a table, pens and paper - and no clue how she got here.

As Grace pours her tangled life onto the page, she is forced to remember everything she's tried to forget. There's falling hopelessly in love with the gorgeous Nat, and the unravelling of her relationship with her best friend Sal. But there's something missing. As hard as she's trying to remember, is there something she just can't see?

Grace must face the most important question of all. Why is she here?

The Short Story? - Wow, for the most part I just have to say - it blew me away. I don't even like dark contemporary and I'm speechless. Truly beautiful writing, best protagonist I have read about in a long time, moving story and one amazingly talented author!

The Long Story? - For me, reading Entangled was a life changing moment. It's common knowledge that I avoid dark contemporary when possible. I hate depressed teenagers whinging about how life in unfair but I truly loved Entangled. I wouldn't say that it changed my perspective on dark contemporary but it certainly made me doubt myself. Doubt myself about whether there are actually some good dark contemporary out there.

I loved Grace. Best protagonist I have read about in a long time. Someone I felt I could really connect to even when we are worlds apart. Grace is one tough cookie. She's had the worst and while she's slowing breaking on the inside, she can still put on a happy face and get on with her life. To me Grace was realistic, she has practically no family, a not-so-best best friend and a boyfriend who keeps secrets and slowly her life starts to unravel even more but in the end she say ' I keep on trying' to me that's a major part of the novel. Unlike most dark contemporary where the protagonist starts whinging from the start, Grace is trying her best to hold herself together but some time by the end she starts to break down, realistic, could happen to anyone. To me, Grace was real, could have been the girl I passed on the street today, she wasn't perfect, far from it but she made the best she can, she had her flaws and was annoying at times but it all went back to being realistic. And for me that was a highlight, best protagonist in a long time.

Something else I loved was the plot. For someone like me who *dislikes* dark contemporary is was just right. Not too depressing, not too dark, something that I could stomach. One of the reason I avoid dark contemporary is because of gory descriptions of accidents, cutting etc. Blood, blood, blood something I can't stomach, luckily blood played a minor major part in this novel.  Did I mention how realistic this novel was, characters and plot both believable. I loved how the novel was written in a way like a recount but not quite, it's rather confusing to follow until the very end where EVERYTHING is revealed but just go with the flow because it was worth, trust me.The complexity of the plot is really admirable, I'm not sure whether a lot of planning went into it but it was simply very clever.

Which leads me to my next point. Cat Clarke, the YA community is very lucky to have such a talented newcomer. Some of the best writing I have seen in a long time. Unique writing style, particularly for this genre. People don't often associate humor and 'normalness' with dark contemporary but you have done it in a way that is natural! I ranking you right up there with Richelle Mead and Cassandra Clare, some of the best talent I have read, I simply can not wait to read more of your writing!

Overall, Entangled was a truly remarkable novel. Deep, moving, dark but yet filled with hope. Beautiful writing that can only be described as pure talent and one of the best protagonists I have met in a long time. Entangled is a novel about staying strong even when you're secretly falling apart. It's about hope and never giving up. It's AWESOME!!!! Rating 5/5 ( nothing less and beautiful cover btw)

Badass Bookie xx