Review: After the Storm (Angel Island #2) by Marie Landry

Book Title: After the Storm (Angel Island #2)

Author: Marie Landry

Release Date: April 8th, 2014

Publisher: Marie Landry

Genre: YA/Contemporary

Companion to Waiting for the Storm (My review is here)

Book Link: Goodreads

Purchase Link: Amazon

Synopsis from Goodreads:

For most people, starting senior year at a new high school would be a nightmare, but for Ella O’Dell it’s the new beginning she desperately needs. Two months after her mother’s death, she’s ready to leave behind the rebellious, unhappy person she became when she found out her mom was dying. 

When Ella meets River Maracle and Sadie Fitzgerald, she begins to learn it’s okay to be herself, even if that means being different. River and Sadie aren’t ashamed of their misfit status—River grew up on a reservation, and his mother is the school counselor; Sadie stands out with her funky homemade clothes, and is a master at ignoring the whispered rumors that have plagued her since the beginning of high school. 

Ella finds a kindred spirit in Sadie, and something more in River. After almost a year of pretending to be someone she’s not, she finally embraces life and allows herself to have fun without constant guilt. But despite her budding happiness, something is off with her new life. She doesn’t want to dwell on the past, but Angel Island is a small place, and she soon realizes her demons are harder to outrun than she thought…

After the Storm is a standalone companion novel to Waiting for the Storm.

Disclaimer: I received this e-ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Review:

When we met Ella O'Dell in Waiting for the Storm, she was not kind to anyone, even herself. Especially herself. She dealt with her mom's death by rebelling in a big way, putting herself in danger more than once. It's not until the end of Waiting for the Storm that Ella has a breakthrough. This breakthrough continues on into After the Storm.

Now Ella's about to start her senior year at a new school. She won't be the girl whose mother died, since most people don't know about her mom, but since Angel Island is teeny tiny, she'll definitely be the girl who partied hard all summer. She'll be considered a "fun girl" an "easy girl" and Ella wants nothing more than to leave that time in her life behind. She wants to reinvent herself into a new Ella.

She had never been the type of girl to have loads of friends before her mother got sick but while her older sister, Charlotte cared for their mother, Ella went out and became popular. Ella doesn't want the pressure that came with popularity anymore. She wants to find herself in more ways than one.

She meets Sadie and River on her first day of the new school. Sadie has been assigned to be Ella's buddy in the beginning. Sadie has been best friends with River since he came to the Island. Both Sadie and River have their own secrets and as Ella gets to know each of them separately and together, she gets a glimpse of their lives.

Sadie was a complete standout for me. She had adopted this "I don't care what anyone else says or thinks" mentality when it came to her outfits and her mannerisms. But as Ella discovers, Sadie's got her own demons that she has to face every single day of her life. After we got a glimpse into Sadie's home life, I just wanted to hug her. 

Now River was a fun character. He really was an awesome guy. I loved that he didn't let the fact that his mom worked at the school bother him. Most teenagers would have been mortified that their mom worked at their school. He was wonderfully patient with Ella which I loved. He understood that she didn't want to rush things and he respected that. He knew that she had a rather colorful past but he wasn't going to let that ruin what they were building together.

"You're the girl I care about. Whether you've slept with a dozen guys or you're a virgin. What matters is who you are now." River

As much as I loved River, he still doesn't beat out Ezra in my list of swoony boys on Angel Island. Speaking of Ezra, I was thrilled to see that Charlotte and he were major parts of this book. We got some great Ezra & Ella moments and even some great Ezra & River moments. Clearly, these boys adore the O'Dell ladies.

My all time favorite scene in this book was with Charlotte, Ella and the candle. I sobbed so violently during that part. It was written beautifully and even just remembering that part, makes me tear up all over again. I loved that there was so much sister bonding in this one. Obviously we didn't get a lot of it in the first book. I would also say that this book was even more emotional than Waiting for the Storm.

Watching Ella figure out what she wanted and who she wanted to be in life was hard sometimes and so rewarding at other times. Watching her realize that she needed to stop punishing herself was beautiful and incredibly emotional. Especially when it came to River. Over the summer she had hooked up with a fair number of guys. She used her body simply for sex. She allowed boys to use her body simply for sex. Watching her become more aware and confident in herself was beautiful.

"I want to be powerful in all the right ways. I don't want to be wanted for my body." Ella

Tears. Instant tears.

River helped her to realize that she was worth more than just her body. That her heart was worth protecting as well. He helped her see that having and enjoying sex did not make her a slut.

"I've also learned that enjoying sex with a guy who genuinely cares about me doesn't make me a slut." Ella

Ella did a whole lot of growing and learning in this book which I loved. She learned a lot about herself and about her friends and family. She learned a lot about respect and standing up for herself and others. She learned to love herself for possibly the first time. This book was absolutely beautiful and amazing and full of heart. It's totally getting 5 stars and if I could give it more, I would. I cannot wait for Sadie's story. I already know it's going to be amazing.