Novella Review: Finding Cinderella by Colleen Hoover

Finding Cinderella

(Hopeless 2.5)

Author: Colleen Hoover

Publisher: Atria Books

Publication Date: October 14, 2013

Genre: Contemporary

Source: Purchased

~Synopsis~

This novella is a companion novel to the Hopeless series, but can be read as a standalone. 

A chance encounter in the dark leads eighteen-year-old Daniel and the girl who stumbles across him to profess their love for each other. But this love comes with conditions: they agree it will only last one hour and it will only be make-believe.

When their hour is up and the girl rushes off like Cinderella, Daniel tries to convince himself that what happened between them only seemed perfect because they were pretending it was perfect. Moments like that with girls like her don’t happen outside of fairytales.

One year and one bad relationship later, his disbelief in insta-love is stripped away the day he meets Six: a girl with a strange name and an even stranger personality. Daniel soon realizes the way he pretended to feel about Cinderella and the way he really feels about Six may not be so different after all. Especially when the two loves of his life end up being one in the same.

Unfortunately for Daniel, finding Cinderella doesn’t guarantee their happily ever after…it only further threatens it.

~Review~

I loved Hopeless and Losing Hope and I think Colleen Hoover has such an excellent writing style. She really knows how to pack a punch and create an emotional story full of twists. While Fining Cinderella is only a novella, Colleen still manages to include all of the elements that make her stories so fantastic.

Daniel and Six have this instant connection and he is definitely into her from the moment they meet. She is so different than most girls, especially his ex, who he has had a tumultuous relationship with over the last year. The more he gets to know her, the more he realizes how perfect she is for him. I really liked Daniel and his charming personality. We get to see it a little bit in Losing Hope but I loved how we really got to know Daniel in this novella. He is a bit of a smart ass and a joker. However, he is a really good friend and he has a really great relationship with his family which I really liked.

Six is fun, smart and laid back. She has spent the last year in Italy studying abroad and now that she is back, it seems that something happened while she was there that really changed her. She used to be all about casual sex and no relationships but she doesn’t want to be that girl anymore. There is something about Daniel that she can’t resist and I loved watching her build a relationship with him. She didn’t have to have sex or be overly intimate with him for them to have a connection and it was so great to see that Six was happy.

One year ago, Daniel had an amazing hour with a mystery girl in the dark janitor closet. He has never forgotten her but resigned to the fact that he may never find her again. When he discovers that Six is one and the same, he couldn’t be happier. However, Six doesn’t react with the same enthusiasm and my heart broke for Daniel and when she took off. His dreams have finally come true and he doesn’t understand why Six would react the way she did. When she reveals her reason for being so upset, I was honestly very shocked. I didn’t see the twist coming and I was a little disappointed in the way Daniel reacted. Once I got over his initial reaction, I understood why he might freak out in the beginning. After he let himself process everything, he stepped up to the plate and gave Six the support and comfort she needed. I was super proud of him for that. They both proved their feelings for each other and showed that they could overcome anything.

While this was a novella, I should have known Colleen would find a way to sucker punch me with a shocking twist. Even in a short story, she still finds a way to almost bring me to tears and pack in an emotional storyline. I was super impressed with the development of the characters and the depth of the plot and even though I want more Daniel and Six because I love them, I was super happy with the conclusion.

PURCHASE LINKS:

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE