Review: HOPELESSLY IMPERFECT by Gabriela Cabezut

Cancer is a beast. It's ugly, savage, and has no mercy. Cassie learned this all too well while watching her mother slowly deteriorate, one agonizing day at a time... With the desire to make her mother's last year the best it can be, she works to be the perfect daughter. Every character trait, witty joke, like and dislike-Cassie molds herself to be what her mother would love most. But in the end, it still isn't enough... After years of pretending, Cassie has no idea who she really is. When her mother slips away, Cassie falls into a deep depression, and thoughts of suicide become her most pressing threat. After a failed attempt, she seeks help, and is eventually able to return to life at home. Going through senior year as the girl whose mom died sucks... With her father picking up the pieces of his own heart, and Cassie back in school, she's able to make a few new friends-one of them being Nathan Rivers. A little quiet, strong, and with inner demons of his own, Cassie can't help but be intrigued. And as she grows closer to Nathan, the reasons for their mutual attraction slowly unveil. Pain sometimes feels impossible to cope with. It's consuming, saturating, and all-encompassing. As Cassie and Nathan struggle to heal, can they learn to forgive and accept the past, and possibly find happiness in being Hopelessly Imperfect...?

Reviewed by: Sandra

Rating: 4 stars

Review: For Cassie, watching her mother struggle with the big-C was unbearable. How could a young teen deal with that? The only way she could quench the pain was through a blade to her wrist. So when her mother finally died, she died too, which was why she was sent to a psychiatric facility. Now she’s trying to get her life back together. Of course, that’s easier said than done, especially when you’re treated like the school’s pariah, which is all fine since Cassie just wants to be left alone. Then comes Nathan, the brooding guy with the storm-gray eyes who doesn’t talk or pity her; he’s just….there.

There was something interesting about Nathan, but could the rumors about his violent streak be true? Still, a guy who’d be willing to take a punch for a smile can’t be all that bad, right? “Nathan was a mystery. An intriguing, unnerving, alluring mystery.” (64)

Readers will be able to relate to Cassie’s sad and detrimental state as she battles with gut-wrenching guilt and struggles to survive in any way possible.  Agony and overwhelming grief are dreary yet instrumental elements, which are repeated often in the book. It may seem tiresome, but it begs the question: can she go on without the love and guidance of her mother? And Nathan, a “bad boy” with his own problems, seems to provoke something in her—feeling, laughter, life.  Two people at a loss, two people in pain, find a way to breathe and find comfort. Nathan and Cassie just understand each other. Of course, readers will be pleased when Cassie starts to come alive again.

“No matter what happens in your life, there’s always a choice. Always.” (239)

Heartfelt and well-written, Hopelessly Imperfect is a wonderful tale of love, sorrow, and healing.