Maybe Someday by Collen Hoover

Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I couldn't get a visual of Sydney in my mind.
Ridge:

This is one of those stories you love to hate. I've read one other book by this author and I didn't like it because of the repetitiveness. This book had similar issues (aka, repeating perfectly 6 times in one paragraph ect...) but I pushed it away and forged ahead. I gave it a shot.

Things I couldn't stand
1) Maggie. Oh lawd I know this girl isn't to blame. I get it. But even with the illness and deafness I couldn't find it in my heart to sympathize with her when the truth about Syd and Ridge finally came out. Honestly, she was annoying as hell. "I will never leave Maggie for you"... "He will never leave Maggie for you..." I know how bad this is going to sound, but I have to say it: I feel like her disease was the one thing she had over Syd.

At first I thought Ridge had a connection with Maggie because she was deaf too. (To a certain degree.) But then after reading a few more chapters, I just knew there was more to it. And when it was revealed that she had Cystic Fibrosis, I was mentally telling Sydney to pack it in. Maggie had 5 years on her, a disease, deafness-basically, a long laundry list of sympathy and history that no one could compete with.
And yea, I know that's not how I'm supposed to think, but I can't help it. It's one of those moral dilemmas, understand? You want the lead guy and lead girl to be together, but there's this sweet, innocent, person standing in the way...And as innocent as that person may be, you see them as nothing but a problem, which is how I saw Maggie.
POINT BLANK: It's almost like Maggie's situation was created to justify the cheating.


2) The repetitive writing. I knew her style going into this, but still I cringed every time I read certain paragraphs that were meant to be emotional breakthroughs. Example: I liked such and such. I liked that he was this or that way...I liked that he could run and jump....ect...
Those sentences damn near killed me.
3)The speeches that would last up to 3 pages. Or as I like to call it: info dumping/E! True Hollywood Story material. I know you have to ask questions to get to know someone, but the way it was done in this book...Damn. After a while I just started skimming through pages.
4) The songs. In this case I think it would've been better to let the reader imagine what the lyrics were.

All and all the story wasn't bad. I liked Ridge and Syd in the beginning. But as the story progressed I found myself reading just to see how this author was going to make it all work. FYI: How she was going to bring Ridge out of this looking like the good guy.
Honestly, I never believed Ridge when he wrote that letter to Syd telling her she had his heart. I couldn't. If he had dumped Maggie I would've had a different opinion. But since he didn't, the audience is left wondering if Syd was second best/spare. Ridge breaking up with Maggie would've proved something to me. Loyalty, perhaps? I'm not sure. I do know if I had been in Syd's shoes and found out that my lovers girlfriend didn't accept his apology, I would've been iffy if he showed up at my door and claimed he wanted me.

No matter what Ridge says, it will always be in the back of Syd's mind. Would he still be with Maggie had she not broken up with him? Yes. Is he always going to love Maggie? Yes. No matter what these questions will always be in the back of Syd's mind. Whenever it got to the ending and he professed his love I didn't believe a word of it. Could've been because the ending was rushed, but I doubt it.

In the end I wound up disliking Ridge, hating Syd, despising Maggie for simply breathing. (I'm just being honest here, okay?)
There were times when I wanted more for certain characters and the author didn't deliver. (Primarily the ending.) I just never felt like Ridge cared about Syd as much as he claimed. I didn't believe it. This is where the Maggie thing comes into play. When I read the chapters were he's talking about Maggie, there was such passion...And then when he talked about Syd it seemed like she was more of a problem.
It was a clusterfuck ladies.
Conclusion: 3 stars for the plot and Warren. It would've been 4 had the ending been better. Was this redemption for "Hopeless". No. But I wouldn't knock reading something else by this author.

UPDATE:
I've had time to digest this book and I'm taking away a star. Just knowing that Syd was Ridge's second choice doesn't sit well with me. And I'm kinda starting to question what the purpose of this book was in the first place. What was the point?

View all my reviews