pages: 334
read: 2/7-12/2019
rating: good second book.
book: 13 in 2019
SYNOPSIS
Nina has always known who she's supposed to be. But is that who she truly is?
Nina Gregory has always been a good daughter. Raised by her father, owner of New York City's glamorous Gregory Hotels, Nina was taught that family, reputation, and legacy are what matter most. And Tim--her devoted boyfriend and best friend since childhood--feels the same. But when Nina's father dies, he leaves behind a secret that shocks Nina to her core.
As her world falls apart, Nina begins to see the men in her life--her father, her boyfriend, and unexpectedly, her boss, Rafael--in a new light. Soon Nina finds herself caught between the world she loves, and a passion that could upend everything.
More Than Words is a heartbreaking and romantic novel about grief, loss, love, and self-discovery, and how we choose which life we are meant to live.
MY THOUGHTS
SHORT VERSION
good read.
LONG VERSION
its been a while since I've read this book. and the entire time since I've been done reading it, all i can keep telling myself is that it does not compare to her first book. and i know that i shouldn't compare because it'll never be the same but....
this was a good read.
and even though i kept telling myself "it's whole new story", i still felt like it was missing a little something. it's missing the umph her first book had for me.
maybe because i saw myself in her first book. maybe because i connected with Lucy more when it comes to love vs Nina who is discovering who she is.
(why the fuck am i comparing myself to these 2 fictional women? especially when i am nowhere near where they are.)
Nina is doing her thing but has to step into her father's shoes once he falls ill. she thought she had more time but it turns out she didn't.
her personal life family wise has just fallen apart because of her father's death.
her personal life relationship wise is falling apart because not only did she lose her boyfriend but she lost her best friend.
her personal life, her life, life is falling apart because she needs to find a middle between who she wants to be vs who she's meant to be vs who she's supposed to be because of her last name.
she's all over the place.
but even then.....she's no Lucy. I don't feel for her like i did with Lucy. (i know. i hate myself for comparing them but its how i feel!)
Nina is trying to figure herself out and then comes across family secrets once its too late to confront her father about them. of the 2, the first one is pretty fucking huge. and i don't think she gave it the "proper" amount of grief, anger, wtf'ness that it deserved. i know if i was ever in her shoes with that secret, it would rock my fucking world.
the second one...well, had she done her research like her father had asked her...well she could have discussed that with him.
All decisions were affected by the time in which they were made. nothing existed in vacuum.maybe Santopolo's intentions weren't to focus on the negative and more on the whole Nina discovering who she is meant to be and if that's the case, then good. she did a good job there.
eventually, after the continuous self doubt, Nina finally figures out who she is meant to be.
at times i found myself yelling at Nina internally because on page as you read the dilemma, you can feel what she wanted to say but it was never the case.
one of my favorite scenes has to be where she is with Tim and she needs release. and she shows him her actual sexual side. she's been with him under a year but sex with him was safe and in this scene she's raw and energized and so sure of herself and she gives him a glimpse of who she is (that wasn't really a spoiler...but sorry) and you start getting glimpses of who she is meant to be.
that was the Nina that I liked. and I'm glad that in the end, that is who she gets to be.
of course, in the end it works out as its meant to....and it is a good story. i know i make it out to seem like its not BUT IT IS. i think all of me is just hung on a beautiful story that i personally think might be hard to recreate or i mean, follow up, come close to (?). but still, if this is what Santopolo is giving us, then i can safely say that I will continue to read as she publishes. she's not someone whose book's i want to miss out on.
Love was complicated. It didn't disappear because someone did something horrible. Something you didn't agree with. It lived there with the disappointment, the disapproval. You had to figure out how to hold both in your heart or you'd lose everyone, everything. (pg 178)
have you read it?
whatcha think?
spoilers as always! down below.
thx!
SPOILERS
straight to the point.
once Nina's father passes away, she learns that:
a) he was having an affair and (obvs) cheating on her mother. apparently it was an ongoing thing and her mother knew. the last time they were at her mother's house was most likely the last straw. (her mother had been talking to her about visiting her side of the family.)
b) the day her mother passed away, was on xmas. she passed away because of a car accident. she was on the road because Nina gave her father a present that a door man had given her to give to him. that gift was from his lover. he opened it in front of Nina and her mother unbeknownst to him who it was actually from and that's when she left for a drive. had it not been for any of that, her mother might still be here. (but its a story so there was no chance).
c) her father created a company and used it to filter money or some shit like that. i wont even try to get into the technicality of it cause I'll get it wrong. because he was all about money and not running shit properly to save, he was losing more money than he was making. so he was committing fraud to keep afloat. luckily no one ever caught it.
Tim's father, her dad's best friend was the only other person in on it. he didn't even tell his wife. which, when she found out caused her to leave him. (that was a shitty thing to do and then not tell his wife but i feel like she overreacted? she didn't even talk to him she just up and left to be on her own after YEARS of marriage.)
anyway, those were her dad's secrets.
Nina works in an office for Rafael who is running for mayor or governor or something in office. at this moment she is dating Tim (and they're actually engaged for a bit even though only Leslie (no not me! lol) knew). but her relationship with Tim even though they are best friends is just bland. her and Rafael end up falling for each other. in the end, she finally grows the guts to tell Tim that she wants him only as her best friend and he loses his shit. he actually disappears from the story and she ends up living her best life with Rafael who won!
she takes over the hotel but she's going to be doing it her way. as a way to pay back the company the money her father stole without making a big deal about it.
and it ends with her doing that sex in the city thing in Central Park that Lincoln recreated in Broad City where she swings off a thing and lands on a net.
that trapeze thing!!!! lol they did it on Bobs burgers. (season 8 episode 8. its a pretty great episode!)
i left a shit load out. i just wanted to do the basics cause i gotta return the book but its a good read even if i make it seem like its not.
Post a Comment
thanks for taking the time to read my blog. (: