Book Review – The Girl and Her Ren by Pepper Winters

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The Girl and Her Ren was, honestly, nothing like I thought it’d be. The characters weaved their way into my heart and left me raw, heartbroken and downright inconsolable from the sheer power of their story. It’s truly astonishing and it will have a special in place in my heart. Always.

“But in the end, love is what life is about. And love is the purpose of everything.”

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Pepper Winters, I have no clue how you got through this. It was hard for me and I was just a visitor. You, you breathed life into them. I just—it takes a lot of strength. I understand why you would wake up at night wondering if you were making the right decision.

So, before I begin, I’d like to mention that I did not review The Boy and His Ribbon. Not because I didn’t want to, but due to my urgent need to continue reading their story and finally have that moment of catharsis. Well, it was short-freaking-lived.

Gosh, I finished this 20 minutes ago and I can’t even find some quotes without choking up. Ren Wild. You have officially destroyed me.

Alright guys, I honestly wanted to spruce up my review with the beautiful quotes that create The Girl and Her Ren, but I can’t open that book up again (for now). So without further ado, let’s get on with this sobfest.

Ren Wild and Della Ribbon. One is never without the other. Even during those four separations and everything after that, they both carried a piece of the other. They were perfectly imperfect. Each flaw a testament to their love.

This is, by no means, an easy story. In fact, it may be the hardest one I’ve had the pleasure to journey through. I’m not kidding when I say my eyes were not without a tear for the last 20% of the story. The most irritating part about the entire thing—I never even saw it coming. Not once.

I’m just happy no one saw me bawling my eyes out. By the last 40 or so pages, I could not keep the ugly cry at bay. It was absolutely wretched. No book has ever kept the waterworks running for that long during and after. Because of that, I know it will remain with me for years to come. I’ll always remember the story of Della and Ren Wild.

I just hope they find each other one day. If I could wish for one thing, it would be for Della’s fifth birthday wish to come true. They deserve that and so much more.

Ren is Della’s wild animal and Della is Ren’s little blue ribbon. An eternal love.

“I love you. Forever and ever. For always.”

(Of my god, I wanted to end it that, but I’m so sad. I need to get this out. As I write this, a tear is literally crawling down my cheek. I’m an absolute mess. It’s just, I became so attached to Ren and Della. I was literally there from the beginning and to see them grow and prosper only to have it all ripped away. It’s devastating. What I’ve been wanting to say since I started this review was how unfair it was. It just wasn’t. But I thought it over and decided against writing it because that’s it. Life is never fair. It’s not meant to be. You just have to live it to the fullest—yeah I’m stealing that from Will Traynor, freaking brilliant he was—and hope, that no matter what, the memories live on. In the end, it’s the memories that will always be with us.)

It’s going to take a lot of strength to get through this if you haven’t already taken the plunge, but it’s worth it. Every single cough, blue ribbon and wild-eyed look. One will break you. It’ll take a hell of a toll on you psychologically, but it’s a masterpiece that deserves your eyes. So live it, breathe it and love it. Unconditionally.

“Love can’t be confined to pages or photos or memories—it’s forever alive and wild and free. Romance comes and goes, lust flickers and smoulders, trials appear and test, life gets in the way and educates, pain can derail happiness, joy can delete sadness, togetherness is more than just a fairy-tale… it’s a choice.”

Buy The Girl and Her RenAmazon, iBooks