littleredd303's review against another edition
DNF
I struggled with this book, before ultimately deciding to put it down unfinished. I think the story Hopkins crafted was interesting, engaging, and made me think a lot about my own personal views on a number of issues. The characters frustrated me, and there were points where Cole and Ashley was so unbearable that I just couldn’t read it any longer.
With this book the male main character was practically asking me to dive into the book and punch him! My dislike for Cole, made me kind of dislike Ashley as well. Though Ashley didn’t need Cole’s help because she’s not a great character either. I know for a fact I am not the only person who will dislike Cole. I’m pretty sure the main point of the story is to dislike Cole. I disliked him because we have totally different views of the world which made it hard for me to really like him and enjoy his character, though there was points when he wasn’t so bad. I wanted to root for Cole and Ashley in the beginning, but then Cole became a completely different person and Ashley saw the change and made excuses for it, or even ignored it, which is unbelievably frustrating. Though that’s just one problem, Ashley is judgemental, selfish, and Immature.
I started this book not expecting how it would turn out, I thought it was going to be a girl who falls in love with someone else while her boyfriend was at war. And its kinda like that be it is also so much more! I am not a big fan of war, I personally want every soldier to come home and be with their families, and the way the soldiers are illustrated in this story makes you think, and wonder about the things that is happening at war. While this book doesn't make the soldiers out to be monsters, it shows some of the things people do once they have seen things that they just want to forget.
Ashley is difficult but I still found her an interesting protagonist, but sweet lord almighty this girl is frustrating. Both Ashley and Cole are flawed, there are parts in the book where you like them and root for them both together and apart, but then there are parts when you just can’t root for them or like them.
Hopkins never portrayed any of the characters as perfect beings, she showed their flaws and their struggles and honestly it was my favorite part of the book.
I struggled with this book, before ultimately deciding to put it down unfinished. I think the story Hopkins crafted was interesting, engaging, and made me think a lot about my own personal views on a number of issues. The characters frustrated me, and there were points where Cole and Ashley was so unbearable that I just couldn’t read it any longer.
With this book the male main character was practically asking me to dive into the book and punch him! My dislike for Cole, made me kind of dislike Ashley as well. Though Ashley didn’t need Cole’s help because she’s not a great character either. I know for a fact I am not the only person who will dislike Cole. I’m pretty sure the main point of the story is to dislike Cole. I disliked him because we have totally different views of the world which made it hard for me to really like him and enjoy his character, though there was points when he wasn’t so bad. I wanted to root for Cole and Ashley in the beginning, but then Cole became a completely different person and Ashley saw the change and made excuses for it, or even ignored it, which is unbelievably frustrating. Though that’s just one problem, Ashley is judgemental, selfish, and Immature.
I started this book not expecting how it would turn out, I thought it was going to be a girl who falls in love with someone else while her boyfriend was at war. And its kinda like that be it is also so much more! I am not a big fan of war, I personally want every soldier to come home and be with their families, and the way the soldiers are illustrated in this story makes you think, and wonder about the things that is happening at war. While this book doesn't make the soldiers out to be monsters, it shows some of the things people do once they have seen things that they just want to forget.
Ashley is difficult but I still found her an interesting protagonist, but sweet lord almighty this girl is frustrating. Both Ashley and Cole are flawed, there are parts in the book where you like them and root for them both together and apart, but then there are parts when you just can’t root for them or like them.
Hopkins never portrayed any of the characters as perfect beings, she showed their flaws and their struggles and honestly it was my favorite part of the book.
sngick's review
4.0
This was the first Ellen Hopkins book I've read despite constantly ordering and purchasing her YA novels for my students and library. I've always been reluctant to try her YA novels because I perceive them as depressing and sad.
I decided to read Collateral because it was a love story. I'm a sucker for a love story and appreciate a good romance to lose myself in every once and a while.
The verse novel style made for a quick read but didn't lessen my involvement with the characters and story. My heart ached for Ashley as she fell for her marine and devoted herself to him during his 4 tours of duty in Afghanistan. I hoped for a happy ending but knew it probably was not going to happen. The emotions in this book are raw and intense. The characters are fairly well developed. The differences in writing styles for Ashley's thoughts and Cole's poetry was apparent. I also appreciated the changes in fonts for writers and even to depict different emotions and time periods.
I would recommend this book to adults who say they don't read or don't have time to read. The strong male & female main characters and military subject matter make it seem appealing to both men & women, but I doubt many guys will give it a try. I can now understand why my students enjoy books by Ellen Hopkins.
I decided to read Collateral because it was a love story. I'm a sucker for a love story and appreciate a good romance to lose myself in every once and a while.
The verse novel style made for a quick read but didn't lessen my involvement with the characters and story. My heart ached for Ashley as she fell for her marine and devoted herself to him during his 4 tours of duty in Afghanistan. I hoped for a happy ending but knew it probably was not going to happen. The emotions in this book are raw and intense. The characters are fairly well developed. The differences in writing styles for Ashley's thoughts and Cole's poetry was apparent. I also appreciated the changes in fonts for writers and even to depict different emotions and time periods.
I would recommend this book to adults who say they don't read or don't have time to read. The strong male & female main characters and military subject matter make it seem appealing to both men & women, but I doubt many guys will give it a try. I can now understand why my students enjoy books by Ellen Hopkins.
sarajayy's review
4.0
This was a little bit different than I was expecting, but overall it was enjoyable. It had its flaws but the main characters were interesting to read from and of course the writing style is amazing!
medusax0's review
DNF
I struggled with this book, before ultimately deciding to put it down unfinished. I think the story Hopkins crafted was interesting, engaging, and made me think a lot about my own personal views on a number of issues. The characters frustrated me, and there were points where Cole and Ashley was so unbearable that I just couldn’t read it any longer.
With this book the male main character was practically asking me to dive into the book and punch him! My dislike for Cole, made me kind of dislike Ashley as well. Though Ashley didn’t need Cole’s help because she’s not a great character either. I know for a fact I am not the only person who will dislike Cole. I’m pretty sure the main point of the story is to dislike Cole. I disliked him because we have totally different views of the world which made it hard for me to really like him and enjoy his character, though there was points when he wasn’t so bad. I wanted to root for Cole and Ashley in the beginning, but then Cole became a completely different person and Ashley saw the change and made excuses for it, or even ignored it, which is unbelievably frustrating. Though that’s just one problem, Ashley is judgemental, selfish, and Immature.
I started this book not expecting how it would turn out, I thought it was going to be a girl who falls in love with someone else while her boyfriend was at war. And its kinda like that be it is also so much more! I am not a big fan of war, I personally want every soldier to come home and be with their families, and the way the soldiers are illustrated in this story makes you think, and wonder about the things that is happening at war. While this book doesn't make the soldiers out to be monsters, it shows some of the things people do once they have seen things that they just want to forget.
Ashley is difficult but I still found her an interesting protagonist, but sweet lord almighty this girl is frustrating. Both Ashley and Cole are flawed, there are parts in the book where you like them and root for them both together and apart, but then there are parts when you just can’t root for them or like them.
Hopkins never portrayed any of the characters as perfect beings, she showed their flaws and their struggles and honestly it was my favorite part of the book.
I struggled with this book, before ultimately deciding to put it down unfinished. I think the story Hopkins crafted was interesting, engaging, and made me think a lot about my own personal views on a number of issues. The characters frustrated me, and there were points where Cole and Ashley was so unbearable that I just couldn’t read it any longer.
With this book the male main character was practically asking me to dive into the book and punch him! My dislike for Cole, made me kind of dislike Ashley as well. Though Ashley didn’t need Cole’s help because she’s not a great character either. I know for a fact I am not the only person who will dislike Cole. I’m pretty sure the main point of the story is to dislike Cole. I disliked him because we have totally different views of the world which made it hard for me to really like him and enjoy his character, though there was points when he wasn’t so bad. I wanted to root for Cole and Ashley in the beginning, but then Cole became a completely different person and Ashley saw the change and made excuses for it, or even ignored it, which is unbelievably frustrating. Though that’s just one problem, Ashley is judgemental, selfish, and Immature.
I started this book not expecting how it would turn out, I thought it was going to be a girl who falls in love with someone else while her boyfriend was at war. And its kinda like that be it is also so much more! I am not a big fan of war, I personally want every soldier to come home and be with their families, and the way the soldiers are illustrated in this story makes you think, and wonder about the things that is happening at war. While this book doesn't make the soldiers out to be monsters, it shows some of the things people do once they have seen things that they just want to forget.
Ashley is difficult but I still found her an interesting protagonist, but sweet lord almighty this girl is frustrating. Both Ashley and Cole are flawed, there are parts in the book where you like them and root for them both together and apart, but then there are parts when you just can’t root for them or like them.
Hopkins never portrayed any of the characters as perfect beings, she showed their flaws and their struggles and honestly it was my favorite part of the book.
thereadingknitter's review against another edition
4.0
Hopkins can always hook you into her books with the writing she uses. Ashley kind of got on my nerves the whole book, as did her relationship with Cole. I knew something was going to happen and I honestly thought it'd be bigger but what did happen was enough. Definitely a page turner!
necessitteem's review against another edition
5.0
I'm not going to lie, I love anything Ellen Hopkins writes. She has a way of speaking directly to the soul no matter what the topic is. Collateral is no different. I won't pretend to know what military families go through as I'm not in one, but this book made me feel apart of Ashley's family. Her journey is a rollercoaster of emotion but that doesn't stop her from taking control of her life whenever it's necessary. I really was absorbed into this book while reading it. I would absolutely recommend it to anyone who wants to read a very well written book.
samid12's review against another edition
2.0
This book did not suspend my disbelief. Ashley and Cole's relationship did not seem real and neither did other relationships throughout the book. Every single person she ran into had something to do with the war which I think is pretty unlikely. The narrator, Ashley, was incredibly annoying and irrational. Ughhh.
zephyrsilver's review against another edition
1.0
I have read nearly all of Ellen Hopkin's books. I fell in love with them. Identical, Impulse, and Burned all hold special places in my memory. They were wonderful books. They were inspiring. I always enjoyed her poetry, her stories, the messages behind them.
This one I couldn't stand. I forced myself to read it. Dreaded reading it the entire five hundred pages.
First off, it's just a flat out love story. The only twist is that he's a marine. I like war stories. This is not at all a war story. Just a one-sided love story.
Ashley drove me crazy. She's a jealous, petty young woman. She's meek and a push-over. Mostly, she's spiteful in her jealousy. She drove me crazy. She's incredibly possessive of her boyfriend, but terrified of him. She won't speak up when he does something to upset her. Unless it involved an ex-girlfriend or some decision he made without her.
Cole was not likable. My friends and I in high school always jokingly had a list of things that means to stay away from a guy. One of those was, if he writes poetry, he's probably not mentally stable. Of course, this was a joke and a very long list, but that was one thing on the list. Still, I thought about that a lot when Cole admitted he liked writing poetry. Well let me tell you, we were right. He is rude, misogynistic, aggressive, and sadistic. He did absolutely nothing right with me at all. I never liked him.
Their relationship was incredibly unhealthy. It all revolved around sex and making out. I don't think they had any conversations that didn't revolve around his service. It was mostly just sex. And a lot of it. It got really tiresome reading about how "wonderful" he made her feel in bed. (Also, he only ever commented on her physical attributes. Never seemed to care about anything other than her body).
A lot of the characters were incredibly forgettable. So many times I was internally screaming "Wait, who is this?!" because the character was briefly introduced about two-hundred pages prior, and I'd forgotten them.
And then of course, the ending. It was so friggin predictable, it was pathetic. Ashley was shocked though. I wasn't. There was so much foreshadowing to it that it really was just boring.
Also, I noticed Hopkin's poetry wasn't as unique. Maybe it's because I'm just used to it by now? But I remember her making shapes with her words and really making it poetic and beautiful. Her work always reminded me of e.e. cummings, and I loved it. This was so unimaginative. It hardly seemed like poetry at all. Just oddly formatted text.
Just, overall incredibly disappointing.
This one I couldn't stand. I forced myself to read it. Dreaded reading it the entire five hundred pages.
First off, it's just a flat out love story. The only twist is that he's a marine. I like war stories. This is not at all a war story. Just a one-sided love story.
Ashley drove me crazy. She's a jealous, petty young woman. She's meek and a push-over. Mostly, she's spiteful in her jealousy. She drove me crazy. She's incredibly possessive of her boyfriend, but terrified of him. She won't speak up when he does something to upset her. Unless it involved an ex-girlfriend or some decision he made without her.
Cole was not likable. My friends and I in high school always jokingly had a list of things that means to stay away from a guy. One of those was, if he writes poetry, he's probably not mentally stable. Of course, this was a joke and a very long list, but that was one thing on the list. Still, I thought about that a lot when Cole admitted he liked writing poetry. Well let me tell you, we were right. He is rude, misogynistic, aggressive, and sadistic. He did absolutely nothing right with me at all. I never liked him.
Their relationship was incredibly unhealthy. It all revolved around sex and making out. I don't think they had any conversations that didn't revolve around his service. It was mostly just sex. And a lot of it. It got really tiresome reading about how "wonderful" he made her feel in bed. (Also, he only ever commented on her physical attributes. Never seemed to care about anything other than her body).
A lot of the characters were incredibly forgettable. So many times I was internally screaming "Wait, who is this?!" because the character was briefly introduced about two-hundred pages prior, and I'd forgotten them.
And then of course, the ending. It was so friggin predictable, it was pathetic. Ashley was shocked though. I wasn't. There was so much foreshadowing to it that it really was just boring.
Also, I noticed Hopkin's poetry wasn't as unique. Maybe it's because I'm just used to it by now? But I remember her making shapes with her words and really making it poetic and beautiful. Her work always reminded me of e.e. cummings, and I loved it. This was so unimaginative. It hardly seemed like poetry at all. Just oddly formatted text.
Just, overall incredibly disappointing.
margaretann84's review
4.0
Okay, well, pretty much from the GR description you know how it's going to end up. That's a given. However, I've always believed the value isn't in the destination but the journey, and I enjoyed the journey in this book. I like how each section revealed a little more, like peeling back the layers of Ash and Cole's relationship to show some other little important piece. I didn't particularly like any of the characters, but I liked seeing how they changed over time.
Regardless, an enjoyable book, even if the characters weren't necessarily sympathetic.
Regardless, an enjoyable book, even if the characters weren't necessarily sympathetic.