Book Review: After Ever Happy by Anna Todd | #Hessa Playlist + Giveaway

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After Ever Happy
After #4
Author: Anna Todd
Reading Level: New Adult
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: February 24th 2015
Review Source: Gallery Books

Book Four of the After series—now newly revised and expanded, Anna Todd’s After fanfiction racked up 1 billion reads online and captivated readers across the globe. Experience the Internet’s most talked-about book for yourself!

Tessa and Hardin have defied all the odds, but will their fairy tale ending be turned on its head? After Ever Happy…Life will never be the same. #HESSA

It’s never been all rainbows and sunshine for Tessa and Hardin, but each new challenge they’ve faced has only made their passionate bond stronger and stronger. But when a revelation about the past shakes Hardin’s inpenetrable façade to the core—and then Tessa suffers a tragedy—will they stick together again, or be torn apart?

As the shocking truth about each of their families emerges, it’s clear the two lovers are not so different from each other. Tessa is no longer the sweet, simple, good girl she was when she met Hardin—any more than he is the cruel, moody boy she fell so hard for. Tessa understands all the troubling emotions brewing beneath Hardin’s exterior, and she knows she’s the only one who can calm him when he erupts. He needs her.

But the more layers of his past come to light, the darker he grows, and the harder he pushes Tessa—and everyone else in his life—away. Tessa’s not sure if she really can save him—not without sacrificing herself. She refuses to go down without a fight. But who is she fighting for—Hardin or herself?

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Where does one begin when a book brings out so many different emotions? Do I begin with the good ones or the painful ones? Do I tell you how I cried or how I smiled bigger than the sun or do I tell you about the moment I needed to punch someone or when I took a moment just to exhale? Those are just a few moments I felt as I read After Ever Happy. The story and its characters had me experiencing every single one of their emotions as I read (that's writing magic). As far as something negative, not one thing can I point out that I didn't like or disagree with in the book, what one reads from the pages of the After series is something realistic, not the usual cookie-cutter fantasy only found in fairy tales. All these emotions should be part of a story, to experience sadness, anger, pain, happiness, love, forgiveness, betrayal and the list could go on and on. THAT IS WHAT MADE THIS BOOK INCREDIBLE!!! 

After Ever Happy is hands down my favorite in the series followed closely behind by After. I'm not comparing the stories when I bring up the Twilight Saga, what I'm going to compare between the After series and Twilight series is that the After series made me feel the same things I felt when I read all the Twilight books. So I'm not comparing one story to the other, no. What I expressing here is that everything I felt when I fell in love and obsessed with the Twilight books, the After series brought it all back. I didn't want it to end and the withdrawal is brutal because of how much I am invested in the After series. I want to scream from the top of the tallest building that anyone and everyone that is of age to read this series, TO DO SO! Anna finished the series STRONG and I Thank Her for that. 

I will not go into detail of what was contain inside the pages of After Ever Happy, because no matter what I say, I know I will spoil such an important scene or moment. You just have to trust us and believe that you'll will love (and hate, lol) everything that happens in the end. #Hessa for Ever!

Check out our reviews for:

After

After We Collied

After We Fell

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One thing is for sure… when I first started this series I wasn’t a major fan, but then all of a sudden I’m sitting here wanting to get back to Hardin and Tessa, and get back to their roller coaster of a relationship. And just like Hardin had his claws in Tessa, #Hessa had their in claws in me. I hated the characters, I loved the characters, I rooted for them and I cried for them. This series took me for a surprising ride and didn’t hold back on anything. The feels people, the feels are real.

After Ever Happy is definitely my favorite in the series. I would rate it a ten, but we only rate up to a five. Hardin and Tessa go through so much in this book, so much growing together and apart. They grow into the person they were destined to be. Anna doesn’t hold back on us, it’s like taking the band aid off, you ask to count to three and she rips it off right after you say one. The After series may not be for all, heck I didn’t think it was for me at first, but then I was consumed by #Hessa and couldn’t get enough of them. Now three weeks later I’m still hung up on them, thinking about them, wishing I could get more of them. Bravo Anna, Bravo. Now can we have more? Just a novella, I’m not trying to be greedy.

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There are no words...I have this huge hole in my life that is from #Hessa. I am in love with how their story ends, don't get me wrong. I just miss them, I'm not sure I've completely accepted that their story is done. I need more #Hessa. After Ever Happy is the exact way I would've wanted this series to end, even if I didn't realize it until I read the book. It has all the emotions of everything that we're use to when it comes to the After books. There's push and pull between Hardin and Tessa, but now they are both growing -- and that is GREAT!

To see Tessa becoming a stronger character is brilliant, I'm sad it happened towards the end because I would've liked more strong Tessa moments. And to see Hardin continue to grow is amazing. Every cliffhanger that is left open ended in After We Fell is closed up in After Ever Happy. I may be the only one who was worried about the Landon/Hardin relationship after the bombshell that ended After We Fell, and I was thrilled with where that went. All I can say is prepare yourself for the feels. I was a mess halfway through the book, I was literally a puddle of tears. So if you're a crier when it comes to books grab your tissues.

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Guys! Anna Todd is on tour right now, visiting several cities. Below you can see the remaining stops she has on her calendar. 

And don't forget tomorrow is the day!!! We will share the casual conversation podcast we recorded with Anna few weeks ago in celebration of today's release!!! So come on back tomorrow an listen to all the things we talked about regarding your favorite series and #Hessa!!!

And last but not least we created a #Hessa play list we wanted to share with you all. During the reading process, Shannon, Bri and I kept talking about #Hessa and songs that would remind us of Tessa, Hardin and the After series. So we wanted to share with you all and see if you agree these songs are perfect to go along with the series, roller-coaster moments and love-hate characters. Let us know in the comments. Enjoy!!! 

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And since we are celebrating tomorrow's release of After Ever Happy, a giveaway would be perfect to include now. So one lucky reader will win the complete set of the After series written by Anna Todd. This means you get the book that started it all After, then the one that continue our obsession After We Collied  then the book that knock us off our feet After We Fell to finish it up with the book that took our breaths away but then sealed it with a kiss After Ever Happy! All 4 books to one reader! 

If your not familiar with our giveaway policy, please check it out HERE. This giveaway is open to US/CA only. Let us know in the comments what you thought of this review and our play list.

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Teaser Tuesday: After We Fell by Anna Todd

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading

AFTER WE FELL

The After Series #3

Pages: 848 paperback

Author: Anna Todd

Release Date: December 30th 2014 (Today!!!)

Publisher: Gallery Books

Book Three of the After series—now newly revised and expanded, Anna Todd’s After fanfiction racked up 1 billion reads online and captivated readers across the globe. Experience the Internet’s most talked-about book for yourself!

Tessa and Hardin’s love was complicated before. Now it’s more confusing than ever. AFTER WE FELL…Life will never be the same. #HESSA

Just as Tessa makes the biggest decision of her life, everything changes. Revelations about first her family, and then Hardin’s, throw everything they knew before in doubt and makes their hard-won future together more difficult to claim.

Tessa’s life begins to come unglued. Nothing is what she thought it was. Not her friends. Not her family. The one person she should be able to rely on, Hardin, is furious when he discovers the massive secret she’s been keeping. And rather than being understanding, he turns to sabotage.

Tessa knows Hardin loves her and will do anything to protect her, but there’s a difference between loving someone and being able to have them in your life. This cycle of jealousy, unpredictable anger, and forgiveness is exhausting. She’s never felt so intensely for anyone, so exhilarated by someone’s kiss—but is the irrepressible heat between her and Hardin worth all the drama? Love used to be enough to hold them together. But if Tessa follows her heart now, will it be…the end?

Book Review: After We Collided by Anna Todd - #Hessa

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After We Collided
After #2
Author: Anna Todd
Reading Level: New Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance | College
Release Date: November 25th 2014
Review Source: Gallery Books

Book Two of the After series—now newly revised and expanded, Anna Todd’s After fanfiction racked up 1 billion reads online and captivated readers across the globe. Experience the Internet’s most talked-about book for yourself!

Tessa has everything to lose. Hardin has nothing to lose…except her. AFTER WE COLLIDED…Life will never be the same. #HESSA

After a tumultuous beginning to their relationship, Tessa and Hardin were on the path to making things work. Tessa knew Hardin could be cruel, but when a bombshell revelation is dropped about the origins of their relationship—and Hardin’s mysterious past—Tessa is beside herself.

Hardin will always be…Hardin. But is he really the deep, thoughtful guy Tessa fell madly in love with despite his angry exterior—or has he been a stranger all along? She wishes she could walk away. It’s just not that easy. Not with the memory of passionate nights spent in his arms. His electric touch. His hungry kisses.

Still, Tessa’s not sure she can endure one more broken promise. She put so much on hold for Hardin—school, friends, her mom, a relationship with a guy who really loved her, and now possibly even a promising new career. She needs to move forward with her life.

Hardin knows he made a mistake, possibly the biggest one of his life. He’s not going down without a fight. But can he change? Will he change…for love?

After We Collied continues where After left off. The relationship between Hardin and Tessa continues to be this love-hate relationship. You have crazy ups and even out of the box downs with those two. Sometimes you fight along with them to survive and at the times, your like maybe it best for them to give up. Regardless After We Collied brings most of what we fell hard for in After but...

The one downside I might have encounter was the pacing in the middle of book. I think at times it was missing for me that roller coaster effect I love so much in stories and in especially in After. I know you can't expect each book in the series to match or surpass the book before it, but I had just come off the major withdrawal of After and was ready to continue on the crazy train. I still enjoyed reading After We Collied but I just want everyone to know it's a different pace than After. With all that being said I cant wait for the next installment. 

Get ready for new things and situations to happen in After We Collied. Will Tessa and Hardin survive this next test in their relationship, because it seems that the powers that be want them to fail. Guess you'll have to read to find out. Will Hardin change for Tessa? Will Tessa make more sacrifices for Hardin? No spoilers from me. (evil laugh)

Happy reading and love live #HESSA

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You can read OUaT's reviews of After (After #1) HERE and HERE.

Book Review: After by Anna Todd - #HESSA

After
After #1
Author: Anna Todd
Reading Level: New Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance | College
Released: October 21st 2014
Review Source: Gallery Books

Now newly revised and expanded, Anna Todd’s After fanfiction racked up 1 billion reads online and captivated readers across the globe. Experience the Internet’s most talked-about book for yourself!

There was the time before Tessa met Hardin, and then there’s everything AFTER... Life will never be the same. #Hessa

Tessa is a good girl with a sweet, reliable boyfriend back home. She’s got direction, ambition, and a mother who’s intent on keeping her that way.

But she’s barely moved into her freshman dorm when she runs into Hardin. With his tousled brown hair, cocky British accent, tattoos, and lip ring, Hardin is cute and different from what she’s used to.

But he’s also rude—to the point of cruelty, even. For all his attitude, Tessa should hate Hardin. And she does—until she finds herself alone with him in his room. Something about his dark mood grabs her, and when they kiss it ignites within her a passion she’s never known before.

He’ll call her beautiful, then insist he isn’t the one for her and disappear again and again. Despite the reckless way he treats her, Tessa is compelled to dig deeper and find the real Hardin beneath all his lies. He pushes her away again and again, yet every time she pushes back, he only pulls her in deeper.

Tessa already has the perfect boyfriend. So why is she trying so hard to overcome her own hurt pride and Hardin’s prejudice about nice girls like her?

Unless…could this be love?

Yes that is my rating. Instead of 5 trees, I give it an exploding tree rating. Why? You might ask. Let me just tell you that this story will make you explode from start to finish for many different reasons. Let me explain myself better, so as I sit here writing this review, my chest is still constricted from the crazy explosive emotions that I felt as I read the book and after I finished it (will talk about the ending later). It has stuck with me to the point that I can't think of anything else at the moment. The next book I begin to read after this one, should be afraid of my rejection. This book will give you all the feels but you won't require tissues, no, not even close, more like a Xanax and a support group. 

Like all my reviews I am super honest. So when I say that I almost quit this book about 20+ chapters in, I'm not exaggerating. I was struggling somewhat with the beginning and the fact that I was burnt out on contemporaries and Hardin was just UGH, annoying that I just wasn't connecting with him. I felt like OK, nerdy girl meets tattooed rebel, I've read this many many times before, so what is going to stand out. Then I did give the book a rest for 2 days, I didn't read anything at all for 2 days (I know, how did I survive that) to just clear out my mind of all 200+ books Ive read this year alone, I needed a clean slate. So when I pick After back up on Sunday night, I was already thinking this will probably be the last chance that I'll give it. Cue 6 hours later, it's now 4am and I had to force myself to put the book down. I had to be up in 2 hours and knew I would be exhausted at wake up time. Then I did something I haven't done in a long long time, I had the book at my desk and kept sneaking a chapter here and there every moment I could. I was almost at the point like when Twilight, that I just stop everything and my sole focus was reading the book. I was almost there but being a Monday, my workload was crazy and I just couldn't check out. So throughout the day I read and read until finally I was down to the last chapter, then panic set in. I realized, crap, I am going to NEED book 2 like I need oxygen when I done. 

Little did I know, that that last chapter was going to wreck me completely, it wasn't that I just needed book 2 now, it was like I couldn't breathe from the shock of that ending and then knowing I was left with that ending till god knows when because I did not have book 2. Seriously if Anna Todd would have been standing in front of me when I finished After, I can't say if I would have kissed her or punched her. It could have been both, Todd girl, you are a genius!!! 

Now I can imagine the majority have heard of this story and its beginnings now. I for one did not have a clue that this story existed until Gallery Books sent the press release that they would be printing this Wattpad sensation. I am very familiar with fanfic, since I was a loyal follower of many now published books that began as Twilight fanfics such as Fifty Shades of Grey, Beautiful Bastard, Sempre, Wallbanger, ext... So I know how loyal the original followers can be when it comes to getting the word out about this story and its characters. I'll also admit, I really don't follow One Direction like most do. My heart still lies with the original boy band New Kids on the Block (someone write me a fanfic about them please). So when I read this book, I wasn't picturing the band members of 1D, I didn't even look them up to put names with faces since in the published edited book, the names have been changed. I'm sure those billions of reads probably had a 90% 1D fan-base but I'm happy to tell you, I didn't pick this book up because of 1D, so to have fallen as hard for it as I did and not having to do at all because of 1D, ya know this book is Epic!

Yes I know I'm rambling, that just shows you how effected I am by After. Seriously this will be the 2nd reviewed posted on OUaT for After, and if your not convinced after reading both of our reviews, then I have no other idea how else to convince you to read After. Maybe posting a 1D picture or even a NKOTB picture will do it, lol. Bribery is a good thing. 

Did that work? LOL! Well in case you still need a little more of a push, After is definitely not your typical contemporary as far as the romance and relationships involved. Even when it comes to Tessa and Hardin, you would never put those two together in any scenario but when they come together in After, explosions of a high degree happen that can range from toxic to out of this world. You will have a love-hate relationship with Hardin and at times want to slap Tessa so she can wake up. Then when they are on the same level, you will forget to breathe with their passion and words. I prefer Out-of-the-box then cookie cutter romances, and Todd delivers what I love flawlessly. That's it folks that is all your getting from me on After, I will not spill any more beans, you'll just have to read it for yourself (ASAP). 

Oh wait one last thing, remember I mentioned the ending. Yea, let's just say YOU WONT KNOW WHAT HIT YA!! Hardin is lucky he is a fictional character because if not, humph. Yea, can't say anymore but Hardin, you are a bad bad bad boy! 

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Here are the next 2 installments in the After series:

 

After Ever Happy (After #4 - no cover yet - 2/10/15)

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Post by Anna Todd Books.

Wattpad Sensation Anna Todd's "AFTER" Screen Rights Acquired by Paramount Pictures

After the news that Simon & Schuster imprint Gallery Books signed a six-figure, multi-book deal with Wattpad sensation Anna Todd was released, we hear of more exciting news for the author. You can read the official press release we shared recently here about the book deal. 

The latest news to break about this One Direction based fan fiction that had over 1 billion reads on Wattpad is that Paramount Pictures has acquired the screen rights to After. 

Here is what we know so far about the deal/ Adam Shankman and Jennifer Gigot will produce through their Offspring Entertainment banner.

Wattpad General Manager Candice Factor: “After has a massive built-in audience that was cultivated on Wattpad. This deal means millions of fans are one step closer to realizing their dream of seeing After brought to life on the big screen. “Wattpad is a top entertainment destination with thousands of new stories shared every day. We expect to see many more blockbusters and bestsellers emerge from the platform.”

 

After Ever Happy (The After Series, Book 4)

Extra! Extra!: Gallery Books to Publish Wattpad Phenomenon AFTER written by Anna Todd

The news was just released that Gallery Books', Adam Wilson negotiated the deal to publish the Wattpad phenomenon After. After is written by Anna Todd. It became a online phenomena when more than 800 millions reads of the three-part Wattpad series happened. 

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Here is the official press release:

Gallery Books to Publish Wattpad’s Popular Series AFTER

NEW YORK, May 27, 2014—Gallery Books will publish the Wattpad phenomenon After as a New Adult series, in both e-book and print editions, it was announced today by Jennifer Bergstrom, Publisher of Gallery Books. Originally serialized on Wattpad, the world’s largest community of readers and writers, the first book in the After series is scheduled to publish in Fall 2014; the second and third books will be published in early 2015.

After, written by Anna Todd, is one of the most talked about stories on the internet and has become an online phenomenon with more than 800 million reads of the three-part Wattpad series. Written serially with daily updates to meet reader demand, After became Wattpad’s most shared story of 2013. In addition to the massive popularity of After on Wattpad, the story regularly trends on other social networks, including Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram. The success also caught the attention of United Talent Agency, which is now handling the film and television representation of After. The original fanfiction will remain on Wattpad.

“Anna used Wattpad’s mobile and social storytelling features to captivate millions of readers with After,” said Bergstrom. “We are thrilled to be able to reach an even broader audience in book form.”

“Partnering with innovative publishers like Gallery Books gives Wattpad writers the ability to share their stories in new formats and attract additional readers around the world,” said Wattpad’s Head of Content, Publishing, Ashleigh Gardner.

Adam Wilson, Senior Editor at Gallery Books, negotiated the deal with Gardner, which includes world and audio rights.

ABOUT GALLERY BOOKS
Gallery Books is an imprint dedicated to publishing a variety of must-read books on a wide array of topics. Launched in February 2010, Gallery is designed to showcase established voices and to introduce emerging new ones—in both fiction and nonfiction genres. Some of Gallery Books’ bestselling titles include Tim Gunn’s Fashion Bible by Tim Gunn, Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me Chelsea by Chelsea Handler, The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, Love Anthony by Lisa Genova, Mrs. Kennedy and Me by Clint Hill, and The Untold History of the United States by Oliver Stone and Peter Kuznick.

ABOUT SIMON & SCHUSTER
Simon & Schuster, a part of CBS Corporation, is a global leader in the field of general interest publishing, dedicated to providing the best in fiction and nonfiction for consumers of all ages, across all printed, electronic, and audio formats. Its divisions include Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing, Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, Simon & Schuster Audio, Simon & Schuster Digital, and international companies in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit our website at www.simonandschuster.com

ABOUT WATTPAD
More than 25 million people have joined Wattpad, making it the world’s largest community of readers and writers. People use Wattpad to connect with each other while they discover and share millions of free stories. Wattpad stories are available in more than 50 languages and can be read or written from any phone, table, or computer. The company is proudly based on Toronto, Canada. Learn more at www.wattpad.com.