Monday, March 17, 2014

*REVIEW* Katja Millay's THE SEA OF TRANQUILITY

Hi readers....so, I'm finally getting around to posting this review that I wrote last year. I know I should've posted it earlier, but I wrote it during a really rough time, and I wanted to make sure I still felt the same way once I was ready to share my thoughts with you all...If anything, I've realized that this book means even more to me now that what it did then....so here we go:

The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay
Publication Date: September 5th, 2012
Publisher: Atria Books
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Synopsis:
I live in a world without magic or miracles. A place where there are no clairvoyants or shapeshifters, no angels or superhuman boys to save you. A place where people die and music disintegrates and things suck. I am pressed so hard against the earth by the weight of reality that some days I wonder how I am still able to lift my feet to walk.

Former piano prodigy Nastya Kashnikov wants two things: to get through high school without anyone learning about her past and to make the boy who took everything from her—her identity, her spirit, her will to live—pay.

Josh Bennett’s story is no secret: every person he loves has been taken from his life until, at seventeen years old, there is no one left. Now all he wants is be left alone and people allow it because when your name is synonymous with death, everyone tends to give you your space.

Everyone except Nastya, the mysterious new girl at school who starts showing up and won’t go away until she’s insinuated herself into every aspect of his life. But the more he gets to know her, the more of an enigma she becomes. As their relationship intensifies and the unanswered questions begin to pile up, he starts to wonder if he will ever learn the secrets she’s been hiding—or if he even wants to.

The Sea of Tranquility is a rich, intense, and brilliantly imagined story about a lonely boy, an emotionally fragile girl, and the miracle of second chances.




And now for my review:
*Spoiler-Free* REVIEW: The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay
Publication Date: September 5th, 2012

*DISCLOSURE: ARC was provided in exchange for a fair and honest review



Review:
Catharsis. If I had to write a one word review for The Sea of Tranquility, it would consist of that one word.

This is a story of life and death. Being lost and being found. A story of heartbreak and hope. A story of second chances.

Like your first time riding a bike without training wheels, like that first gulp of air after a long dive under water, like your first kiss, like falling in love for the first time...my first time reading The Sea of Tranquility was overwhelming, incredible, and something that I won't forget. It's the kind of book that evokes jealousy within me when I know someone is reading and experiencing it for the first time.

I read this book shortly after losing a loved one. I was having trouble coping, I was in shock, couldn't cry and couldn't shut off my mind. My experience with this book will be so much different than others, but at the same time, its ability to suck you in, make you forget, fall madly in love with these characters are cathartic and rewarding to any reader.

There were twists and turns in this novel, but what drives this book into one of the top spots on my shelf are the heartbreakingly beautiful characters. Delving into the minds of the two main characters that have so much to say within their own heads but the unwillingness to speak them outloud struck a chord with me.

A beautifully crafted untraditional story of a boy meets girl. Two people so lost in tragedy, in anger, in resignation that there doesn't seem the possibility of a new day until they find recognition and a kinship within each other. They find salvation and a chance to begin again.

The Sea of Tranquility is a unique, once in a lifetime novel. It captivated me with every single word and left me with an overwhelming sense of peace, an aura of hope. This is a book that I truly felt blessed to read. Katja Millay has found a forever place on my shelf and in my heart.


Rating:






About the Author:

Katja Millay grew up in Florida and graduated with a degree in film & television production from Tisch School of the Arts at New York University. She has worked as a television producer, and a film studies and screenwriting teacher. Currently she resides in Florida with her family. The Sea of Tranquility is her first book.




Where to purchase & learn more:

AVAILABLE FOR ORDER!


Well, don't just sit there! Those buy links up there are SO Convenient! *wink*




all the best, dear readers!


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