Quinn strained my ability to empathize on so many levels. Maybe, it’s because I recognize glimmers of what she’s going through from a depression perspective, and some of her thoughts and feelings remind me of my own thoughts and feelings, and I HATE those parts of myself, so it was hard to not transfer that on to her. But Quinn took it to a whole new level, and I just had a really hard time with how things played out on her side of the marriage. I actually *felt* for Graham. It doesn’t excuse what he did by any means, but even *he* didn’t excuse what he did. He tried to explain, but not excuse. This love that Graham and Quinn shared was messy, beautiful and absolutely filled to the damn brim with hope. Their story showed an ugly truth to life, that hope isn't always something to lean on, rather something to keep close. There were some aspects in this book that I will talk about in the next section, only because I'm making everything above that last section spoiler free.

The Then chapters were an absolute delight. I was drawn in from the very first chapter. What a strange way to meet, a strange way to open a story. But you could already feel their connection. I kind of loved how the story was balanced between the Then and Now chapters. We got to watch them fall in love while simultaneously falling apart. I think it made it that much more heartbreaking, because you were seeing how solid they were initially, and how great a toll infertility was playing in their marriage.

Publication Order of Hopeless Books

Then I eat and wonder how long I’m going to sit out here in the hallway with this guy. I don’t want to be here when the door opens because I don’t want to see what Sasha looks like. But I also don’t want to miss the moment when she opens the door and finds Graham sitting out here, eating her Chinese food. Vincent nods and takes the cash. When his eyes meet mine, they’re swimming in apology. I give Vincent a hug since I’ll likely never see him again. Later that night, Quinn asked if he held the baby and he lied. Now, at the time, I had been confused as to why he’d lie about that. However, it was all explained in the end. Graham and Quinn were not perfect, but who is? What matters is that there was always one person fighting for each other. Even when their future seemed bleak. There’s something more in Graham’s expression. Something I haven’t noticed before. Concern, maybe? He pegs me with a serious stare. "Do not forgive him for this, Quinn."

I hear Ethan’s name being called out in a faint voice. At least it’s faint from this side of the door. Ethan’s bedroom is against the far side of his apartment, which indicates that whoever she is, she isn’t being quiet about it. She’s screaming his name. Sasha? I say her name incredulously, then I repeat her name, putting emphasis on the sha. "Sa sha. That explains a lot."Sometimes I look at him and feel such an overwhelming appreciation for him, I almost want to write thank-you notes to our exes." The title, Slammed, is a reference to poetry readings which are called “Slammings” at coffee houses and cafes where they are featured. In this story we meet Layken, an 18 year old forced into the new setting of small town Michigan after being raised in Texas.