Scan barcode
brendaguilarb's review against another edition
4.0
El libro me gusto mucho, en algunos momentos al principio del libro lo senti un poco flojito pero fue mejorando bastenta,hasta me saco un par de lagrimas.
<< La gallina roja salio del gallinero >>
<< La gallina roja salio del gallinero >>
kippins's review against another edition
4.0
CLIFFHANGER WARNING
I have to say I enjoyed this more than I was expecting & more than the [b:Perfect Chemistry|4268157|Perfect Chemistry (Perfect Chemistry, #1)|Simone Elkeles|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1385251992s/4268157.jpg|4315675] series.
A good tale of teenage angst with some good twists & turns.
Going straight onto [b:Return to Paradise|7797874|Return to Paradise (Leaving Paradise, #2)|Simone Elkeles|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1271357819s/7797874.jpg|10770784] :)
I have to say I enjoyed this more than I was expecting & more than the [b:Perfect Chemistry|4268157|Perfect Chemistry (Perfect Chemistry, #1)|Simone Elkeles|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1385251992s/4268157.jpg|4315675] series.
A good tale of teenage angst with some good twists & turns.
Going straight onto [b:Return to Paradise|7797874|Return to Paradise (Leaving Paradise, #2)|Simone Elkeles|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1271357819s/7797874.jpg|10770784] :)
radfemme22's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
La evolución de los personajes y de su relación no es orgánica. Hay ciertas conductas que son red flags. Por qué no sale más Leah? Me daba la sensación de estar leyendo una historia a trompicones. Mucho telling y poco showing.
Típica representación de las mujeres como superficiales y enemigas. Y chicos idiotas.
Cover: 1/5
Writing: 2.5/5
Plot: 2/5
Characters: 2/5
No volvería a leerlo ni lo recomendaría.
Típica representación de las mujeres como superficiales y enemigas. Y chicos idiotas.
Cover: 1/5
Writing: 2.5/5
Plot: 2/5
Characters: 2/5
No volvería a leerlo ni lo recomendaría.
vanybunny's review against another edition
4.0
An incredibly beautiful story between two young people who were once like family. But not only the relationship between the two of them was familial, but between the two families who have lived right next door for quite a few years. The accident destroyed everything and they avoided each other as much as they could. The relationship between Maggie and Caleb was like a roller coaster ride. From friendship to strangers and then to lovers. The love between them is very intimate, but ultimately not stronger than their own problems.
I am very curious to see how they find each other again in volume 2.
I am very curious to see how they find each other again in volume 2.
storyflowsolutions's review against another edition
5.0
Leaving Pradise was a very touching story about love and forgiveness. Caleb and Maggie show that everyone needs a friend in the best and the worst of times. However, I cannot believe that Caleb just left town like nothing else mattered.
lorilaws's review against another edition
4.0
What can I even say about this book? The book is about two people on different sides of the same tragedy. Maggie was hit by a car and left for dead. Now she walks with a limp and everyone stares. Caleb was driving that car. He was drunk and left Maggie lying in the street. Before the accident Maggie and Caleb were neighbors maybe even friends. There might have even been some unrequited love in there but now Caleb is an ex-con and Maggie is a freak.
Simone Elkeles is proving to be one of my favorite authors. I don't know what it is about her writing but it grips you and doesn't let go until the very end. If it even lets you go the. She has a way of making you feel the emotions of the characters. Emotions you have never even felt. Leaving Paradise is full of strong emotions. Guilt, insecurities, hate, and eventually forgiveness and love. You go on this journey with Maggie and Caleb weather you want to or not. There is a lot of hard times along the way and some twists and turns but I enjoyed the trip.
The reason I'm rating this book 4 stars instead of the 5 stars it was going to get is because of the ending. You will just have to read it to see what I'm talking about. Thank the universe there is a sequel coming out later this year!
http://www.pureimaginationblog.com/
Simone Elkeles is proving to be one of my favorite authors. I don't know what it is about her writing but it grips you and doesn't let go until the very end. If it even lets you go the. She has a way of making you feel the emotions of the characters. Emotions you have never even felt. Leaving Paradise is full of strong emotions. Guilt, insecurities, hate, and eventually forgiveness and love. You go on this journey with Maggie and Caleb weather you want to or not. There is a lot of hard times along the way and some twists and turns but I enjoyed the trip.
The reason I'm rating this book 4 stars instead of the 5 stars it was going to get is because of the ending. You will just have to read it to see what I'm talking about. Thank the universe there is a sequel coming out later this year!
http://www.pureimaginationblog.com/
alyssa_joyce's review against another edition
4.0
Absolutely love Elkeles' ability to create a bad boy... I mean Caleb Becker! This book was amazing and heartbreaking and I cannot wait to read the sequel. Only complaint was that the story was a little all over the place regarding the main problem. Otherwise, fell in love with these characters and the way they were so real and relatable to all kinds of people.
shubba_the_emo_reader's review against another edition
4.0
Orginal Post: http://thoughtsofamadhatter.blogspot.com/2011/04/leaving-paradise-leaving-paradise-1-by.html
I have been looking at this ever since I read Perfect Chemistry and Rules of Attraction. Having loved them both I wanted to read some of Simone's work. So I finally got Leaving Paradise and even though I did like it, it just didn't grab me like the Perfect Chemistry books.
Leaving Paradise follows the story of two characters. Caleb who after spending a year in Juvinille Jail for a hit and run he finally comes home and everything has changed in his family home. Maggie is the girl who was involved in the accident. She used to be an tennis superstar school. However, even after a year and surgery she still in pain and walks with a limp. Caleb and Maggie and thrown together working for Mrs Reynolds and soon the two are helping each other deal with the pain.
I was drawn to both Caleb and Maggie in this story. Caleb is the "tough guy" but deep down you know that even though he has been in jail its isn't harden him. He still cares for his family even though his family are mess. As the story continues the truth involving the accident is revealed and I was just sitting with my mouth wide opened. And it really makes you think and care for Caleb even more. Maggie, well its hard not to feel for her. She is been through much her life has been turned upside down. At the start Maggie sometimes does come across as playing the "Victim" letting the accident control her life. However, thanks to Mrs. Reynolds and Caleb, she starts to take control of her life. I have to say I think Mrs Reynolds was my favourite character. She doesn't beat around the bush about things she just tells you like it is.
The story I found it quite slow to start but about a quarter way into the book it picks up and flows very nicely. Simone really is a genius when it comes to story telling. She has a way with words that really make the feelings going through the characters really believable.
Leaving Paradise really is a must read for those who like contemporary fiction. I really wished I picked with up alot sooner and can't wait to get started on Return to Paradise. However, just a little warning have some tissues handy I was crying like a baby at one point I couldn't even see.
There is a some bad language in this story and some sexual references so I feel it would be for those who are aged 14 and upwards.
I have been looking at this ever since I read Perfect Chemistry and Rules of Attraction. Having loved them both I wanted to read some of Simone's work. So I finally got Leaving Paradise and even though I did like it, it just didn't grab me like the Perfect Chemistry books.
Leaving Paradise follows the story of two characters. Caleb who after spending a year in Juvinille Jail for a hit and run he finally comes home and everything has changed in his family home. Maggie is the girl who was involved in the accident. She used to be an tennis superstar school. However, even after a year and surgery she still in pain and walks with a limp. Caleb and Maggie and thrown together working for Mrs Reynolds and soon the two are helping each other deal with the pain.
I was drawn to both Caleb and Maggie in this story. Caleb is the "tough guy" but deep down you know that even though he has been in jail its isn't harden him. He still cares for his family even though his family are mess. As the story continues the truth involving the accident is revealed and I was just sitting with my mouth wide opened. And it really makes you think and care for Caleb even more. Maggie, well its hard not to feel for her. She is been through much her life has been turned upside down. At the start Maggie sometimes does come across as playing the "Victim" letting the accident control her life. However, thanks to Mrs. Reynolds and Caleb, she starts to take control of her life. I have to say I think Mrs Reynolds was my favourite character. She doesn't beat around the bush about things she just tells you like it is.
The story I found it quite slow to start but about a quarter way into the book it picks up and flows very nicely. Simone really is a genius when it comes to story telling. She has a way with words that really make the feelings going through the characters really believable.
Leaving Paradise really is a must read for those who like contemporary fiction. I really wished I picked with up alot sooner and can't wait to get started on Return to Paradise. However, just a little warning have some tissues handy I was crying like a baby at one point I couldn't even see.
There is a some bad language in this story and some sexual references so I feel it would be for those who are aged 14 and upwards.
eileen9898's review against another edition
1.0
First of all, I read this book because my friends kept raving about Simone Elkeles and I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. I read the book in one sitting because it kept me hooked.
But.
From the start, the feeling stayed, that Elkeles is not an experienced writer. Way too much info dump was happening in the beginning about what happened prior to the start of the story. I am not a fan of a character telling their story directly to the reader instead of telling it indirectly. And I like it more when the past slowly gets revealed and we are kept in the dark about at least a few important things. That was not the case here. Everything about the two main characters got revealed by themselves in the first chapter(s) and nothing was left unsaid. To me, that is just lazy.
I really wanted to like Maggie. You could feel her pain, physically and emotionally, both regarding the accident and Caleb. I love how everything started, how she hated Caleb for what he had done, even though she had been in love with him until he fucked up.
But then everything went downhill - Caleb said a few things, about how he was sorry etc and then she developed feelings for him again. I know that that was the point of the story, but it went way too fast. I couldn't see her struggle enough with her feelings for him, she went from hating him to loving him again in, what felt like, a second. The only time she had problems with her feelings for him was when she thought Caleb still loved Kendra.
And I hate the overall negative atmosphere in the book. The only people, that are nice to Maggie are her mother, the doctors and Caleb. Everybody else bullies her, for her looks, her limping and for pretty much about everything about her. I don't understand what the point of that was, I was just difficult to read and not enjoyable. That Maggie had the accident is awful enough and it should have been enough to bring her struggles across. The horrible environment was unnecessary and a poor choice from the author, which, is another sign of poor writing. If Maggie had a supporting environment, her struggles with her past, her emotions, her legs and everything else would have seemed more difficult and the story would have been more powerful.
Caleb was just an idiot.
He started too started out well, I liked the dynamics with his family, where everybody tried to forget the past and tried to polish Caleb's image. I liked how he hated how fake everybody was and unaccepting of him. But then he too went to shit. I understand how he wanted everything going to back to normal, to get his girlfriend and his friends back. But Kendra was a manipulating bitch. After he found out that Kendra and his best friend were a couple, he willingly betrayed his friend by getting together with her as well, only because she was hot. And he still let her stay in his life after he developed feelings for Maggie. I hated that, when everybody said anything about him spending time in prison, he flipped out. But when Kendra told him to his face, that she wanted him to be her dirty little secret, because he is an ex-convict and 'dangerous', he did not do anything.
Enough about the main characters.
Now some things about Leah, Calebs sister and Maggies former best friend. I really liked her at the beginning too. I thought that she has struggles with her brother being in prison, with her fake family, Caleb giving her shit for her gothic appearance and, what seemed to be, her depression. But turns out, she was the one driving the car and hurting Maggie, not Caleb. And instead of going to prison herself, Caleb takes the blame. And instead of being thankful, she gives him shit for hanging out with Maggie, she lets her mom take pills, so she does not ask too many questions and she only worries about her secret not coming out. I know that I should try to be more understanding of her, but I just cannot stand her.
The only character I liked was the old lady, Mrs Reynolds. And only, because she doesn't have any character development. She stayed sarcastic and seemed to be the only person in the book that could have had potential. I liked how she was a mentor to Maggie and a step-grandmother in a way. But then she got ruined too, because she had to be killed off as another shock moment, to Maggie and Caleb alike (both Cale and Maggie worked for her). Again, that would not have been necessary and it didn't serve a point what so ever, it did not trigger specific events or something like that.
Because this is a series with two books, this one, of course, ends with a cliffhanger, Caleb leaves Maggie and the city. Again, not necessary. The story could easily fit in one book and Maggie and Caleb could get their happyend way sooner without any more unrealistic complications, but with what I got from the synapsis of the second book, that is not the case. The two lovebirds meet, again, and fall in love, again, and their past gets in the way, again.
I really did not like this novel and I am still pretty frustrated about it. I only rated it two stars because of the promising start. I would not recommend it.
[I am sorry for any obvious and not so obvious typos, English is only my second language.]
*1 day later* Fuck it. 1 star.
But.
From the start, the feeling stayed, that Elkeles is not an experienced writer. Way too much info dump was happening in the beginning about what happened prior to the start of the story. I am not a fan of a character telling their story directly to the reader instead of telling it indirectly. And I like it more when the past slowly gets revealed and we are kept in the dark about at least a few important things. That was not the case here. Everything about the two main characters got revealed by themselves in the first chapter(s) and nothing was left unsaid. To me, that is just lazy.
I really wanted to like Maggie. You could feel her pain, physically and emotionally, both regarding the accident and Caleb. I love how everything started, how she hated Caleb for what he had done, even though she had been in love with him until he fucked up.
But then everything went downhill - Caleb said a few things, about how he was sorry etc and then she developed feelings for him again. I know that that was the point of the story, but it went way too fast. I couldn't see her struggle enough with her feelings for him, she went from hating him to loving him again in, what felt like, a second. The only time she had problems with her feelings for him was when she thought Caleb still loved Kendra.
And I hate the overall negative atmosphere in the book. The only people, that are nice to Maggie are her mother, the doctors and Caleb. Everybody else bullies her, for her looks, her limping and for pretty much about everything about her. I don't understand what the point of that was, I was just difficult to read and not enjoyable. That Maggie had the accident is awful enough and it should have been enough to bring her struggles across. The horrible environment was unnecessary and a poor choice from the author, which, is another sign of poor writing. If Maggie had a supporting environment, her struggles with her past, her emotions, her legs and everything else would have seemed more difficult and the story would have been more powerful.
Caleb was just an idiot.
He started too started out well, I liked the dynamics with his family, where everybody tried to forget the past and tried to polish Caleb's image. I liked how he hated how fake everybody was and unaccepting of him. But then he too went to shit. I understand how he wanted everything going to back to normal, to get his girlfriend and his friends back. But Kendra was a manipulating bitch. After he found out that Kendra and his best friend were a couple, he willingly betrayed his friend by getting together with her as well, only because she was hot. And he still let her stay in his life after he developed feelings for Maggie. I hated that, when everybody said anything about him spending time in prison, he flipped out. But when Kendra told him to his face, that she wanted him to be her dirty little secret, because he is an ex-convict and 'dangerous', he did not do anything.
Enough about the main characters.
Now some things about Leah, Calebs sister and Maggies former best friend. I really liked her at the beginning too. I thought that she has struggles with her brother being in prison, with her fake family, Caleb giving her shit for her gothic appearance and, what seemed to be, her depression. But turns out, she was the one driving the car and hurting Maggie, not Caleb. And instead of going to prison herself, Caleb takes the blame. And instead of being thankful, she gives him shit for hanging out with Maggie, she lets her mom take pills, so she does not ask too many questions and she only worries about her secret not coming out. I know that I should try to be more understanding of her, but I just cannot stand her.
The only character I liked was the old lady, Mrs Reynolds. And only, because she doesn't have any character development. She stayed sarcastic and seemed to be the only person in the book that could have had potential. I liked how she was a mentor to Maggie and a step-grandmother in a way. But then she got ruined too, because she had to be killed off as another shock moment, to Maggie and Caleb alike (both Cale and Maggie worked for her). Again, that would not have been necessary and it didn't serve a point what so ever, it did not trigger specific events or something like that.
Because this is a series with two books, this one, of course, ends with a cliffhanger, Caleb leaves Maggie and the city. Again, not necessary. The story could easily fit in one book and Maggie and Caleb could get their happyend way sooner without any more unrealistic complications, but with what I got from the synapsis of the second book, that is not the case. The two lovebirds meet, again, and fall in love, again, and their past gets in the way, again.
I really did not like this novel and I am still pretty frustrated about it. I only rated it two stars because of the promising start. I would not recommend it.
[I am sorry for any obvious and not so obvious typos, English is only my second language.]
*1 day later* Fuck it. 1 star.
samia24's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75