ME BEFORE YOU- JOJO MOYES

ME BEFORE YOU by Jojo Moyes

 (A Review by Yetunde Durodola)

 

I have always known that romance comes in different facets: Erotic, Comedic, Sugary, Flaky, Dark, Intense, Submissive and even alpha domineering. However, not until I read this book do I really appreciate the fact that romance can also be excruciatingly heartbreaking, complete with heart palpitations and ugly tears.

If you are not a fan of painful reality, this book is not for you. If you don’t think life and love and loss come hand in hand, this book is not for you. If your definition of happiness is hearts, flowers, rainbow and unicorns with life happily ever after as the cherry on top, this book is NOT for you.

Me before you is EXCEPTIONAL : The writing is very minimalistic…no excessive use of imagery or flowery descriptions and no side characters whose purpose is to merely  increase the word count for the author only to expire in the story as collateral damage. Every character is intentional and relevant from the beginning of the story till the end.

Me before you is UNIQUE: The story is unpredictable. The characters are introduced organically into the story and as the story progresses, we see the characters not only grow but become more complex without losing momentum. The setting is basic. You can picture each and every one in your mind’s eye whether it is the coffee shop, the bus ride or even the trip to Switzerland…..

Me before you is ROMANTIC: It is a slow burn friends-to- lovers’ story with a clear and clean transition from one stage to the other. It is a believable love story that you cannot but root for. It is heartbreakingly sweet and swoon worthy. It is the heart of the human being on FULL DISPLAY.

Me before you is as REAL AS IT GETS: The poor are poor; the rich continue to be rich and the line between the two remains as bold as it could be.  However, character and integrity is not defined by economic status. The good, the bad and ugly exist, alive and well on both sides of the line.

Me before you will BREAK YOUR HEART: I wanted a different ending….I could not take the ebb and flow and the wild racing and crashing of my heart anymore. I was stuck in my head being stuck in the different scenes with Clark and Will…I was right there with them like a voyeur wishing for a break that never came only  to succumb to the eventuality that did…..a sad but peaceful end.

Me before you has a Finality LIKE NO OTHER:  Living a successful life in the words of Will is true:  “I worked out what would make me happy and I worked out what I wanted to do and I trained myself to do the job that would make those two things happen”. Until the events of your life that defines you forces you to succumb to the inevitability of fate and destiny and to become “the kind of man who just…accepts” you make good on that life otherwise you REACH for the LIFE and the END you HOPE for.  “In the meantime, “tell yourself something good “, “live boldly”, “push yourself”, “don’t settle”, “knowing you still have possibilities is a luxury” and finally “just live”.