DAMN THIS BOOK: November 9 Review

November 9 by Colleen Hoover
Publish Date: November 10, 2015
Publisher: Atria Books

          Fallon meets Ben, an aspiring novelist, the day of her scheduled cross-country move. Their untimely attraction leads them to spend Fallon's last day in L.A. together, and her eventful life becomes the creative inspiration Ben has always sought for his novel. Over time and amidst the various relationships and tribulations of their own separate lives, they continue to meet on the same date every year. Until one day Fallon becomes unsure if Ben has been telling her the truth or fabricating a perfect reality for the sake of the ultimate plot twist.

          I'm going to trash the plot even though I really enjoyed this book. So, I have to put something positive into this. First, I think Colleen Hoover is an amazing writer and an amazing person. She creates such realistic characters and they're all different from each other. They act differently, but at least one character has this thing I call the Colleen Hoover Effect. This is a trait. A character always does something really twisted in the past/something bad happened to them in the past (DISCLAIMER: I have ONLY read this book, Ugly Love, and Confess. So that's what I'm basing this on) and it's slowly revealed as the story progresses. The effects are usually really dark, elaborate and unrealistic, but they give you a total WTF moment.
          Hoover pulls at your heartstrings. She is a manipulator of emotions. Just when you thought everything was fine and dandy, you have the very foundations you're standing on pulled away.
          I found the beginning of the book, where Fallon (MC) is arguing with her father, to be raw and honest, even though it was pretty gritty and was in dire need of some editing. Her father says such terrible things and you just sympathize for her. To top it off, Fallon is self conscious about her self because of this tragic accident. The whole book was cute and fluffy, with dark undertones.
          I found the fact that they met on the same day, at the same time, at the same place every year to be so unrealistic. It seemed so flawed to me. It was one of those things that only happen in romance books. It's too perfect and implausible. The writing was nice though. It was simple. It got steamy, a lot... The guy was really wise, but he was portrayed at this dog. I found him to be douchey based on his dialogue and thoughts. He was kinda pervy.

          I thought it was too fast and contradicting. If you read the book, you know that Fallon hates insta-love, but that's what happened. Fallon and Ben both fell in love with each other, but they failed to realize that because this is a book after all! Sure, their "romance" is spread over 6 "November 9s", I think, I'm too lazy to do the math or to check the book. Their whole relationship probably summed up to less than 36 hours.
          They were loyal to a fault, most of the time. I think it's impossible to wait for someone that long. Again, it's really fake and something that comes straight out of a romance novel. 

          Ben: If you thought Miles was messed up, you're going to reevaluate everything. I don't get how his mistake is justified. I think Fallon was scopolamined/brainwashed because you have to be mentally unstable to forgive something that terrible. I honestly don't care how much you love him. I pictured Ben as a young John Green, but with a romance novel twist.
          Fallon: I do like her transformation-she gained back the confidence she lost in the fire. She stopped hiding and pursued her dreams, despite negative opinions. I found her admirable.