Book Review: Almost

At a freshman party she doesn't remember, Jess Jordan was almost raped.

...Almost. Very nearly. Not quite. Three years later, Jess has managed to make everyone believe she's better. Over it. Because she is.

...Almost. Very nearly. Not quite.

Unfortunately, until Jess proves she's back to normal activities, her parents won't discuss college. So, she lands a summer internship and strikes a deal with hockey jock, Gray Porter: He gets $8,000. She gets a fake boyfriend and a social life. 

Jess has no idea Gray signed on for reasons other than money. She also never expects to fall in love. But Gray’s amazingly hot, holds her hand all the time, and makes her forget that he’s simply doing his job. It’s like having a real boyfriend.

...Almost. Very nearly. Not quite.

Gray Porter is hiding secrets of his own. About Jess Jordan. About why he’s driven to protect her, why he won't cash her checks, or deny her anything she asks.

Thoughts on the Book

Almost. Very nearly. Not Quite. This is a very catchy line and this was what got me to read Almost.

JESS JORDAN. She's a girl who loves geeky stuff. As an evidence, she wears geeky outfits all the time. She pulls her hair in a weird bun, wears long skirts and other outfits in weird colors. She's also a capital B in their school. Everyone hates her except the teachers. Behind the facade are the sleepless nights or nightmareful sleeps. She hides the circles underneath her eyes by applying concealer. She takes a nap inside her car during the day to catch up for her sleeping hours. She wanted to be though with that and she also wanted to be normal again. She wants to go to college but her parents wants her to prove that she can be normal even for the summer. So she applies for an internship to geekystuff.com and there she meets Gray Porter. To add to her normal facade, she hires him to be her summer boyfriend in exchange for the $8,000 salary from the internship.

GRAY PORTER. I like this boy. And mind you, he's got conscience. He was constantly haunted by what he hadn't done three years ago and he wants to come clean. So when Jess offered him a job, he saw it as an opportunity to make it up to her. What he didn't expect is for him to fall in love with her. He probably already had since fresh men year.He saw the real Jess Jordan.  He figured out her sleeping problems and even her bitchy attitude. True to his words, he made her feel normal. They did what normal couples do. They tried hiking, skating, and going to amusement parks. But when Jess' nightmare became clear, he had no choice but to tell her the truth.

PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). Posttraumatic stress disorder(PTSD) is a severe anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to any event that results in psychological trauma. This event may involve the threat of death to oneself or to someone else, or to one's own or someone else's physical, sexual, or psychological integrity, overwhelming the individual's ability to cope. As an effect of psychological trauma, PTSD is less frequent and more enduring than the more commonly seen post traumatic stress (also known as acute stress response). Diagnostic symptoms for PTSD include re-experiencing the original trauma(s) through flashbacks or nightmares, avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma, and increased arousal—such as difficulty falling or staying asleep, anger, and hypervigilance. 

Jess Jordan's condition became one of the elements that added drama to the story. Apparently, after being almost raped three years ago, she's still suffering from a PTSD. She may not remember what happened before but she's haunted by nightmare of the voices she heard during that unfortunate event. Although they mean well, I guess I didn't like how her parents dealt with her condition. They should have told her what exactly happened that night because part of the reason she still had nightmares has to do with her unconscious trying to remember what happened. Thanks to Gray Porter. Even though it hurts, they should have told her earlier and it may have lessened Jess'suffering. We always have to face the problem not run from them because it will continue to haunt us and that will prolong our agony.

I don't know if I'll agree with how Coach Williams and Jess'parents handled her case. I guess they just want to protect her and I know that. Coach needs his work to support his family but hell, the assailant should have done time inside the prison because he deserves it.

LUCKY. Jess may hate being called lucky but I guess she's still  lucky even when she was almost raped. Very nearly. Not quite. She's really a survivor and having a supportive family and a silent care take / admirer is considered as being lucky.

HIGHLIGHTS

• When Jess Jordan had a nightmare inside Michelle's van and all of a sudden all the blurring images became clear. That's when she figured out that Gray Porter knows what happened back then.
• The part where she confronted her family and then realized that she still loves Gray and that he doesn't have any fault of what happened that night because he was also scared. Then she went at Grays's house and they started making out in the open.
• Jess' abbreviated SMS are so funny. Who in their right mind would understand those texts? Like IOTP - I'm on the porch; KO - Kissing only

"No such thing as replays or penalty points in real life, no matter how valid and real the fouls might be."

"Member: BBB. Boys in Books are Better?"

"So that's a make-up kiss? Let's have another fight soon." 

 Rating: 3/5