19 March 2014

Blog Tour Review - Only The Good Die Young By: K.K. Hendin + GIVEAWAY!!!

Title: Only The Good Die Young
Author: K.K. Hendin
Publisher: (March 11th, 2014)
From: the Author
Format: eARC
Add to: Goodreads
Order a copy: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Amazon UK

NOTE: This is a "New Adult" novel. Due to mature content this title is recommended for ages 17+

Synopsis: The first year of college is supposed to be about parties, parties, and getting the hell out of Texas. Instead, Milcah Daniels is spending her eighteenth year in and out of Houston's hospitals. Her hair is falling out, they’ve cut off her boobs, and if she makes it to nineteen, she’ll consider it a personal miracle.

Breast cancer really has a way of messing with a girl’s social calendar.

When Milcah’s temporarily discharged from the hospital, she’s determined to get a tattoo for every medical procedure she’s had. Her quest leads her to Skin Stories, a new tattoo parlor a block from her apartment. And to it’s infuriatingly sexy artist, Callum Scott.

Callum is everything Milcah wants, and everything she shouldn’t have now. A new relationship when the official prognosis is one to five years is a terrible idea. But Callum doesn’t know about the breast cancer, and Milcah’s not running to tell him.
But when the doctor says things are actually looking positive, her entire life turns upside down. How is she supposed to start living again when she’s finally learned to accept her death?

Review: 4 Stars - Only The Good Die Young by author K.K. Hendin is the story about a teen girls emotional and often depressing journey alone through breast cancer.

As you'd think, and I've mentioned above that this title is a bit on the depressing side. However there's so much more to Milcah's story than just the sad bits. She's stronger than most with all she's been dealing with. She doesn't have to be alone throughout her illness but she chooses to be, to save the family she left behind from anymore pain. She moved away and is living alone while trying to finish her treatments when she's told it's time as Milcah puts it - “Time to cut her boobs off.”

I mean I would be a mess and don't get me wrong she is, but there's some strength to this nineteen year old character that she's able to do this all on her own. And she might just be surviving and hiding from everyone because she wants to be seen as normal when Callum walks into her life.

He's just... WOW! How can I describe Callum. He see's something in Milcah, he figures out pretty early on that she's hiding something but he doesn't push. Just wants to be there for her and get to know her. He's so sweet and goes about showing Milcah some of the better things in life.

To Milcah she's looking at an expiration date on her life so she doesn't want to get involved with anyone because that would have defeated the purpose to her running from her family when she found out her diagnosis, yet she can't help but start to see Callum for what he really is... a friend.

Throughout reading my heart hurt for Milcah. I felt like I was a fly on the wall watching her life and wanted to reach out to tell her it would all be okay. Sometimes I wanted to yell at her that looking at life as the glass is already empty isn't a way to spend what just might be the last days, weeks or months of your life. And that she should listen to Callum because he knows what he's talking about.

The two characters together fit perfectly even with how different they are. Callum is quiet, artistic and see's life the opposite that Milcah does. Milcah wants to hide from everyone, doesn't want to be pitied or seen as the girl with cancer and see's her life as only a painful reminder to those she loves.

In the end I loved this book. With how sad it was Callum brightened the story enough to see through the clouds. There were a few times he made me see life differently as well, which is just another reason why I loved this book and this story. Hendin has taken the topic of Cancer and created something sad and beautiful. While I wasn't ready for the ending and felt I had a few questions, was a tad confused a couple of times.. and wasn't ready to say goodbye to Milcah and Callum just yet, when in the end I was pretty happy with where Hendin leaves her characters and readers. To those who haven't read this one yet, it's a stand alone novel... as far as I know and there is no cliffhanger. Contemporary fans will love this one and these characters just as I have. I highly recommend this title and hope that you'll read it soon, enjoy!

About the Author:

KK Hendin's real life ambition is to become a pink fluffy unicorn who dances with rainbows. But the schooling for that is all sorts of complicated, so until that gets sorted out, she'll just write. Preferably things with angst and love. And things that require chocolate. She’s the author of the NA contemporaries HEART BREATHS and ONLY THE GOOD DIE YOUNG.

She spends way too much time on Twitter, where she can be found at @kkhendin, and rambles on occasion over at www.kkhendinwrites.blogspot.com.