The Sea of Tranquility Redo Review

I was looking around on Netgalley awhile ago, and I came across The Sea of Tranquility on the request board.  Even though I've already read it, I hit request.  This story still resonates with me, and even though I read it last September, I still recall instances from that book whenever something random like someone saying "sunshine" occurs. 

So I looked back at my review I wrote months ago.  I felt like I needed to go back and realign my thoughts on this beautiful book.  I was in such a state of blissful reading hangover when I wrote that first review, that I need to give it another go, hopefully a little more concisely this time. ;)

The first thing I must say about TSoT is it has grown to have this cult like following.  It has over 12,000 ratings on Goodreads, and it has an insanely high average rating of 4.5.  Katja Millay created a literal masterpiece with this story. 

Nastya Kashnikov is broken.  But, we don't know why.  She doesn't talk.  Ever.  She's a complete mystery and throughout the course of the book the mystery of Nastya slowly becomes unraveled.  In addition to Nastya's mystery we have Josh Bennett's full transparency.  They represent so much more than people who are just living to get through. 

TSoT could not be a more breath taking book.  Even reading it upon the second, third, and yes even fourth time, it still gets me.  It is a whirlwind of emotion, leaving you wrung out and emotionally spent yet satisfied. 

There aren't any parlor tricks in TSoT, just beautifully written and deeply flawed characters that any human can relate to.  Millay has a way of creating characters that you can feel every intense event and emotion that they do.  You become those characters, you live with them.  Ultimately they come to live with you after you have set the book down. 

The Sea of Tranquility is one of the first books I eagerly recommend to any friend.  It is an emotional and wonderful book that so many people have come to love and remember.  It is a book that has clearly resonated with me, even after months have passed.  Pick up this book if you haven't already.  It is worth every penny you spend on it.  

5/5 OH YEAH I LOVED IT

GoodReads

I live in a world without magic or miracles. A place where there are no clairvoyants or shapeshifters, no angels or superhuman boys to save you. A place where people die and music disintegrates and things suck. I am pressed so hard against the earth by the weight of reality that some days I wonder how I am still able to lift my feet to walk.

Full of rage and without a purpose, former pianist Nastya Kashnikov wants two things: to get through high school without anyone discovering her past and to make the boy who took everything from her pay.

All 17 year-old Josh Bennett wants is to build furniture and be left alone, and everyone allows it because it’s easier to pretend he doesn’t exist. When your name is synonymous with death, everyone tends to give you your space.

Everyone except Nastya, a hot mess of a girl who starts showing up and won’t go away until she’s insinuated herself into every aspect of his life. The more he gets to know her, the more of a mystery she becomes. As their relationship intensifies and the unanswered questions begin to pile up, he starts to wonder if he may ever learn the secrets she’s been hiding or if he even wants to.

The Sea of Tranquility is a slow-building, character-driven romance about a lonely boy, an emotionally fragile girl, and the miracle of second chances.

Please Note: This book contains mature content including profanity, drug/alcohol use, and sexual situations/language.