A Thousand Boy Kisses Review: Read It Only If You Don’t Mind Crying Your Eyes Out
At first glance I read the title of this book as ‘A Thousand BOYS Kisses’ and my jaw fell in my lap. I thought there is a book following the theme of the movie ‘Just My Luck’ and the main character is probably out there to collect kisses from a thousand boys. But then I got to know that is NOT the case and the book deals with ‘true love’ and ‘tragedy’. I picked this book wrongly believing that it would deal with lost lovers reuniting after years. Though the book did have some of that, its central theme was tragedy and loss. Which is very clearly explained in the blurb. But, I was so blinded that I overlooked everything and focused just on the ‘Why did the girl who was one half of his soul, who promised to wait faithfully for his return, cut him off without a word of explanation?’ part in the blurb. My mistake. I agree. However, I did enjoy the book but in parts. Being a sad story I did not enjoy it much but if you like sad romances then this book will surely suit your taste.
A Thousand Boy Kisses by Tillie Cole
Publisher: ebook
View this post on Instagram
One kiss lasts a moment. But a thousand kisses can last a lifetime. One boy. One girl. A bond that is forged in an instant and cherished for a decade. A bond that neither time nor distance can break. A bond that will last forever. Or so they believe.
When seventeen-year-old Rune Kristiansen returns from his native Norway to the sleepy town of Blossom Grove, Georgia, where he befriended Poppy Litchfield as a child, he has just one thing on his mind. Why did the girl who was one half of his soul, who promised to wait faithfully for his return, cut him off without a word of explanation? Rune’s heart was broken two years ago when Poppy fell silent. When he discovers the truth, he finds that the greatest heartache is yet to come.
A stand-alone young adult tearjerker romance recommended for ages fourteen and up.
I LIKE A Thousand Boy Kisses Because,
…I like angsty romance a LOT. I just love it when two people who want to be together try hard to stay away from each other only to be pulled closer and closer.
Poppy and Rune are childhood best friends turned childhood lovers. They are soulmates and know everything about each other and are inseparable. Since the blurb mentions ‘tearjerker,’ it won’t really be a spoiler if I tell you that Poppy suffers from a terminal illness and she tries to keep away from Rune so he does not have to go through the pain of seeing her suffer. Being joined at the hip, it is practically impossible to keep Rune and Poppy separate and even a two-year hiatus makes no difference to that. Rune eventually discovers the truth behind Poppy’s silent treatment. The initial ¼ of the book that dealt with Rune and Poppy’s sweet innocent love to their separation and their eventual make-up was interesting to read. I recently realised that all my favourite romantic movies have ‘reunited lovers’ trope in them. I had no clue I enjoyed this trope so much. I like this trope because I feel that in this one trope the universe choreographs events just to ensure that the two people meant to be together, do end up together. The idea of the entire universe conspiring to bring two separated lovers back together excites me the most. When Rune comes back in town after two years he has a ton of questions for Poppy going silent on him. To avoid confrontation, Poppy ensures to stay out of Rune’s radar. I enjoyed the initial friction between these two. I find this kind of tension addictive and wish it’d last longer in the book.
…I liked Poppy and Rune’s romance. Yes, it does get far-fetched a lot of times but the love between the two is still enjoyable. If I kee Rune’s unrealistic behaviour aside in some parts, the love story is like a blanket on a cold winters night. Truly heart-warming. Poppy and Rune’s true love got tears in my eyes. The ‘soulmate’ or ‘one true love’ concept is brought across effectively and you cannot help falling in love with this couple. The bond that Poppy and Rune share is what most romantics dream of sharing with someone someday.
I Do NOT Like A Thousand Boy Kisses Because,
…I don’t like tearjerkers and seldom read such books but the ‘reunited lovers’ trope was too tempting to ignore. I thought that the first quarter of the book will explore Rune and Poppy’s childhood then the next quarter their separation followed by their struggle the keep away from each other and then the final quarter would deal with the ‘tearjerker’ part. But, when I realised that the main theme (tearjerker) dominates ¾ of the book, I was left disappointed as I wanted to see more of Rune and Poppy fight to stay away. I did not expect the major part of the book to deal with so much pain and agony. But then you cannot blame the writer as it is clearly mentioned in the blurb. It was my mistake that I was expecting more of an angsty romance instead of a painful love story.
…Rune’s character was too farcical. I liked Poppy’s character but Rune was too sweet to be true. Some unrealistic characteristics is fine but Rune’s ‘over-devotional to love’ attitude was too much to take. Boys are not really like Rune. At least not on planet Earth. At one point, I almost cried over not having Rune in my life but then I came to my senses when I saw my brother stick his tongue out at me. That’s how guys are. Guys are pigs! Hehe just kidding. 🙂 But they definitely are not like Rune. I had to constantly remind myself that Rune is not real. Rune can never be real.
…I felt that the writing slacked in the second half of the book. It even became repetitive in a lot of places. Not to mention the agonizing details of Poppy’s deteriorating health that made me cry. And I don’t like crying hence I skipped through a lot of pages to get to the end as soon as I could.
Favourite Quotes in A Thousand Boy Kisses
“I wish that people realized how this felt every day. Why does it take a life ending to learn how to cherish each day? Why must we wait until we run out of time to start to accomplish all that we dreamed, when once we had all the time in the world? Why don’t we look at the person we love the most like it’s the last time we will ever see them? Because if we did, life would be so vibrant. Life would be so truly and completely lived.”
“I have come to understand that death, for the sick, is not so hard to endure. For us, eventually, our pain ends, we go to a better place. But for those left behind, their pain only magnifies.”
“Why be miserable when you can be happy? It’s an obvious choice to me.”
“I didn’t need grand gestures or fairy tales; a normal life with the boy I loved would have always been enough.”
“When you know that something is finite, it makes it that much more meaningful.”
Final View: ‘A Thousand Boy Kisses’ has its share of minuses but the pluses cannot be ignored. If you like tragic romance then this book is the perfect choice for you. Poppy and Rune’s love will make you cry buckets of tears. And if you are okay with that then go ahead and grab this book right now. If you are not the type to read about loss and tragedy then this book may not be the best option for you. Poppy and Rune’s love story might cause you more pain than it did for them.
You can check out Amazon.in for a discount on this book.
Also Read:
AlphaGirl’s Favourites
