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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
Stay reminded me alot of the movie Fear. For one thing, the protaganists both had psycho boyfriends they were in love with. In Fear, Reese Witherspoon's character falls for a scary, bad-boy drug-dealer played by hunk, Mark Wahlberg. The fact that he's a drug-dealer should scream to you that dating him would be asking for trouble, but of course Witherspoon continues dating him even though her father advises her not to- kinda how Clara's father didn't like her going out with Christian in Stay.
What I loved about Stay was how the author approached the story. Instead of writing only in present tense, Caletti alters writing in past and present in order to show Clara's flashbacks of her regretful relationship with Christian and how that experience affects her now. As Clara tells the story on how she met and went out with Christian, she sounds mature and wise, acknowledging her mistakes and stupidities. If Stay was written while Clara was going out with Christian i would have found Clara dumb and would have wanted to smack some sense into her like I had with Reese Witherspoon in Fear.
Instead of having Clara's psycho boyfriend be a gangster or a serial killer like most of the cliches, Caletti made Christian sensitive and affectionate to show how these qualities can grow into obsession and jealousy. Christian's sweet personality also explains Clara's reluctance to break up with him until, you know, he's not so sweet anymore.
Other than entertaining, this book also had its share of funny and shocking moments and also leaves us with a meaningful message. I know one thing for sure: I am definitely going to be reading more of Deb Caletti.
Stay is the first book I have read by Deb Caletti, who has written several books for young adults. I have to say this book caught my attention at the beginning and never let go. Stay is the story of Clara, a girl who has left town with her father to escape her boyfriend-turned-stalker. The story is beautifully written, suspenseful and intense. The story felt real and authentic and tackled a difficult subject masterfully.
In Stay, Clara and her father have just moved away for the summer because Clara felt threatened by her ex-boyfriend. The details of where her relationship with Christian went wrong are slowly revealed through flashbacks. Through the flashbacks we get to see Clara before she met Christian when she was a typical shy girl. We see her first meeting with Christian, and how they were drawn to each other immediately. Their relationship quickly progresses to an all-consuming love affair. Eventually Clara starts to notice some of Christian’s obsessive and extreme jealous behavior.
The flashback story telling device is very effective and kept me on edge throughout the entire book. I felt anxious for Clara in her new town as she still worried Christian would find her. It’s easy to relate to her and the feelings she has while she is processing the relationship and trying to move on.
The other characters in Stay are flawed and real and add to the story. Clara’s dad is very protective of her and was the first one to recognize the dangerous relationship she was involved in. He is not perfect and has his own problems to deal with but Clara comes first with him. Clara also gets to experience a healthy relationship with Finn, who is kind, patient and sweet to her. It is fulfilling to see Clara’s growth as she goes through the healing process on her journey.
This book makes you think about relationships and love and how you would manage a difficult relationship. The story is hauntingly realistic and a rich and satisfying read. Highly recommended for fans of young adult contemporary books.
In Stay, Clara and her father have just moved away for the summer because Clara felt threatened by her ex-boyfriend. The details of where her relationship with Christian went wrong are slowly revealed through flashbacks. Through the flashbacks we get to see Clara before she met Christian when she was a typical shy girl. We see her first meeting with Christian, and how they were drawn to each other immediately. Their relationship quickly progresses to an all-consuming love affair. Eventually Clara starts to notice some of Christian’s obsessive and extreme jealous behavior.
The flashback story telling device is very effective and kept me on edge throughout the entire book. I felt anxious for Clara in her new town as she still worried Christian would find her. It’s easy to relate to her and the feelings she has while she is processing the relationship and trying to move on.
The other characters in Stay are flawed and real and add to the story. Clara’s dad is very protective of her and was the first one to recognize the dangerous relationship she was involved in. He is not perfect and has his own problems to deal with but Clara comes first with him. Clara also gets to experience a healthy relationship with Finn, who is kind, patient and sweet to her. It is fulfilling to see Clara’s growth as she goes through the healing process on her journey.
This book makes you think about relationships and love and how you would manage a difficult relationship. The story is hauntingly realistic and a rich and satisfying read. Highly recommended for fans of young adult contemporary books.
FINALLY! Finally it’s happened to me. A book where the creepy relationship is played out as exactly that. Oh, friends, the heavens must have opened and sung a beautiful song while Deb Caletti wrote Stay, because this book straight up gets it. It gets that bad relationships are bad. Obsessive relationships are scary, not sexy.
Read the rest of my review here
Read the rest of my review here
Wow! This book was so intense and well written I simply couldn't put it down. I absolutely loved it, the story, the main character, everything. In my opinion a very good book!
Stalking and abuse comes in all ages. This was a great story for teenagers. I always love Caletti's spin on family relationships.
Graded By: Meghan
Cover Story: Brown Bag It
BFF Charm: Yes
Swoonworthy Scale: 6
Talky Talk: Parenthetical
Bonus Factors: Pacific Northwest, Footnotes, Loyal Pets
Relationship Status: Successful Match.com Date
Read the full book report here.
Cover Story: Brown Bag It
BFF Charm: Yes
Swoonworthy Scale: 6
Talky Talk: Parenthetical
Bonus Factors: Pacific Northwest, Footnotes, Loyal Pets
Relationship Status: Successful Match.com Date
Read the full book report here.
I think the real problem with this book is that it sets out as if it has a secret that you're not supposed to know until the very end, and yet the secret is made PAINFULLY obvious within the first few pages. Secrets aside, this book is still very touching and the story is a very real one that sheds light onto very touchy subjects tha deserve to be discussed
This was a really good book... besides all the constant swearing.
Stay, my first read by Deb Caletti, exposed some hidden, ugly and unfair truths with an absoluteness that hurt yet healed. The intimacy of Caletti's simple prose charged an explosive awakening within me. You've had to have experienced some pretty shitty things in your life if the story of a girl who is scared of the boyfriend that loves her too much makes you thinking, even for a second, What he did wasn't that bad. Forgive him.
Disturbing right?
To defuse the situation, I'll refer to Shrek's onion metaphor. Stay is like an onion. It has layers, some thicker than others. What's on the outside isn't always the same as what's in the inside. But aren't we taught, more often that not, that it's what is on the inside that counts?
And that is how Stay wars with you, with what you thought you knew. With what you know is wrong, even if you can feel sympathy or sorrow for the wrong doer. It even wars with classification; it's contemporary fiction that alludes to something not real, something paranormal.
For Clara, the falling in love part was perfect, as it often is when you fall in love for the first time. Christian, physically beautiful and nice, swooned her off her feet quickly. And even with the ominous vibe around him, even with the fact that I knew what was coming, I swooned a bit with her.
But, as her dad warned, nice isn't the same as good. And all too soon, Clara realizes that she can't keep up with the lies she tells herself or the lies she tells Christian to keep from hurting his feelings. As Clara beings to realize that she is falling out of love with him, Christian becomes more obsessed with keeping her. So, when she finally decides to end things, it is not without consequence.
As gripping as it was, there still were some parts of the story that really disappointed me. Clara was really working for me as a character. She was so brave, so strong. Then she spoiled it by having a TSTL moment (actually she had about three). You know, those moments that make you think of scary movies where you scream at the screen, Don't go out there! Psycho with a knife is out there and you're gonna die! I know that fear can seize you so completely that it erases rational thought, but I didn't like seeing it happen to Clara. I also know that life doesn't stop to give you breaks even if you already have enough to deal with on you plate, but again, when it happened to Clara, I thought it was so unfair and unnecessary.
Still, small gripes aside, Stay is an incredible story that terrifies you from the start for a lot of different reasons. It was Clara's journey through hell and back that brought to light a life worth living. As swept away as I became with the story, I also got very mad. Sometimes with Clara, sometimes with Christian, most times with myself.
http://www.theunreadreader.com/2011/03/review-stay-by-deb-caletti.html
Disturbing right?
To defuse the situation, I'll refer to Shrek's onion metaphor. Stay is like an onion. It has layers, some thicker than others. What's on the outside isn't always the same as what's in the inside. But aren't we taught, more often that not, that it's what is on the inside that counts?
And that is how Stay wars with you, with what you thought you knew. With what you know is wrong, even if you can feel sympathy or sorrow for the wrong doer. It even wars with classification; it's contemporary fiction that alludes to something not real, something paranormal.
For Clara, the falling in love part was perfect, as it often is when you fall in love for the first time. Christian, physically beautiful and nice, swooned her off her feet quickly. And even with the ominous vibe around him, even with the fact that I knew what was coming, I swooned a bit with her.
But, as her dad warned, nice isn't the same as good. And all too soon, Clara realizes that she can't keep up with the lies she tells herself or the lies she tells Christian to keep from hurting his feelings. As Clara beings to realize that she is falling out of love with him, Christian becomes more obsessed with keeping her. So, when she finally decides to end things, it is not without consequence.
As gripping as it was, there still were some parts of the story that really disappointed me. Clara was really working for me as a character. She was so brave, so strong. Then she spoiled it by having a TSTL moment (actually she had about three). You know, those moments that make you think of scary movies where you scream at the screen, Don't go out there! Psycho with a knife is out there and you're gonna die! I know that fear can seize you so completely that it erases rational thought, but I didn't like seeing it happen to Clara. I also know that life doesn't stop to give you breaks even if you already have enough to deal with on you plate, but again, when it happened to Clara, I thought it was so unfair and unnecessary.
Still, small gripes aside, Stay is an incredible story that terrifies you from the start for a lot of different reasons. It was Clara's journey through hell and back that brought to light a life worth living. As swept away as I became with the story, I also got very mad. Sometimes with Clara, sometimes with Christian, most times with myself.
http://www.theunreadreader.com/2011/03/review-stay-by-deb-caletti.html
First of all, Deb Caletti writes sooooo beautifully. It was like reading a very thick poetry book that tells a story. Her writing style is spot on but the story itself is equally as powerful. As a strong independent woman (I really am!), this book moved me, gave me butterflies in my stomach, saddened me, and creeped me in some ways.
This novel shows how an ordinary relationship could turn into a very dangerous one. A toxic relationship with a person is to be avoided at all times and Clara knows she is in one. I loved that about her, that she knows, and that she tried to leave this relationship once she saw who Christian really was – a psychologically dirstubed boy. Clara and her father even had to move different places so that Christian wouldn’t be able to find her because he has turned into this obsessive maniac. She was terrified, yes, because who wouldn’t? Her story was told in retrospect and we glimpsed Clara’s life for a while. I am not in an abusive relationship but it is so strange to really connect to her feelings and actually relate to her perfectly. But the thing why I did not give this a five star-rating is because I was waiting for the big finale which did not happen and kind of disappointed me. But still!!! This book is great.
This is a powerful novel that deserves to be read by people of all ages. It speaks the truth. Deb Caletti, if ever you’re reading this, I have to say this girl: YOU ARE AMAZING. You find ordinary things, you write them and then they turn to magic.
This novel shows how an ordinary relationship could turn into a very dangerous one. A toxic relationship with a person is to be avoided at all times and Clara knows she is in one. I loved that about her, that she knows, and that she tried to leave this relationship once she saw who Christian really was – a psychologically dirstubed boy. Clara and her father even had to move different places so that Christian wouldn’t be able to find her because he has turned into this obsessive maniac. She was terrified, yes, because who wouldn’t? Her story was told in retrospect and we glimpsed Clara’s life for a while. I am not in an abusive relationship but it is so strange to really connect to her feelings and actually relate to her perfectly. But the thing why I did not give this a five star-rating is because I was waiting for the big finale which did not happen and kind of disappointed me. But still!!! This book is great.
This is a powerful novel that deserves to be read by people of all ages. It speaks the truth. Deb Caletti, if ever you’re reading this, I have to say this girl: YOU ARE AMAZING. You find ordinary things, you write them and then they turn to magic.