The ending - spoilers

Discuss the February 2016 book of the month, Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver.
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VinuW
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Re: The ending - spoilers

Post by VinuW »

I thought the ending was disappointing, but it felt right.
“He who jumps may fall, but he may also fly. It’s time to jump.” Lauren Oliver, Requiem
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Post by bookowlie »

VinuW wrote:I thought the ending was disappointing, but it felt right.
I agree. I didn't care for the ending, but it fit well with the rest of the story. If Sam would have lived, that would have felt like the author was giving readers a "tied up with a bow" ending.
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Post by HorrorFan87 »

ashley_claire wrote:I was a little disappointed that Sam died at the end of the book, but honestly I didn't really care that much because I wasn't really invested in her. I somewhat disagree with her supposed character growth. I think most of the nicer things she did was just because she was trying to find a way to save herself and get the day "right" so that the cycle would hopefully stop.
I completely agree. I saw Sam much the same was as you did and didn't even see her as a redeemable character. But now that you mention it, I wasn't really that invested in her to begin with either. She didn't grow, she didn't seem remorseful, she didn't...I don't really know how to explain it. She didn't seem interesting to me. The story was great but as much as I wanted everyone to survive, I can't say I was TOO disappointed that she died.
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Post by V_bansal2912 »

I was a little unsatisfied with the end...I am not really the one who always wants a happy ending but still felt that, maybe a there was something missing....
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Post by quadbrookie »

erasmus wrote:While I was fine with the fact that Sam died at the end, I keep wondering about what would've happened if she'd lived and her life continued, with all the consequences that came with what she did on her last day. When I think about how she would have to face her friends, her family, and her own life, I feel just a little bit... cheated. Sam escaped everything because she died. On the other hand, Sam saving Juliette was the proof and practically the pinnacle of her growth and development for her teenage years.

Honestly, I liked the ending but at the same time disappointed, and that's what I liked about this book.
@erasmus We both have the same spot on feelings! Sam really did mature in the end after the days she relived!
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Post by Heidi M Simone »

Wow! So many good comments here.

1) I agree that Sam probably could have lived thousand more days, but she chose the official day that she died. It was the right decision by the author.
2) I was still rooting for her to live, though :)
3) This is an interesting thought - leading Kent on knowing that it was going to be her final day. I didn't really think too much about this, but I do agree that it wasn't fair or right for Kent. Now, it's going to be that much harder to get over her.
4) Also, I believe that an epilogue would have taken away from the story.
5) I would hope that Sam didn't die in vain. I'm hoping that since she saved Juliet's life that Lindsey would approach her and maybe rekindle their lost friendship.

Awesome thoughts, and thanks for sharing! :)
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Post by Lovely_Loreley »

I personally loved the way the book ended. I was honestly dreading a "happy ending" where Sam woke from a coma or something like that. It wouldn't have been right, especially since Elody died on impact on the night that she took Sam's spot in the passenger seat of the car.

The way I read the book, the original accident was the "real" one, if any of the days could be considered more real than the others. So Sam's treatment of Kent ("leading him on" as some have said) never really bothered me. Reliving her last day was Sam's chance to make things right for herself - to open her eyes and realize what was going on outside her little bubble of friends. In this I suppose it would have been helpful to have an epilogue from someone else's point of view, a reaction from one of her friends or Kent or something like that, to confirm which series of events actually happened. But to me it makes more sense that the first telling of the story was Sam's actual death, and no one else will have any recollection of the others days.

And in a way that's even more heartbreaking. Kent will forever regret the fact that he never told Sam how he felt. Rob will wake up from an alcohol-induced stupor to realize that his girlfriend is dead and that if he'd just left the party when she wanted to, left with her, she'd still be alive. Lindsay won't be able to avoid the thought that if she'd just stopped bullying her once-best-friend, both she and her current best friend might still be alive. No matter how you spin it, people will be bitterly affected by Sam's death - and that's the point. If Sam woke from a coma or something like that, and lived, she could have tried to fix things among her friends. I don't know about anyone else, but for me that sort of ending just wouldn't have had the same ring to it.
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Post by Sarah G »

I was a little disappointed that same didn't get her life back but I think that gave the book a more poignant ending. It will definitely make the book stick in my head for longer
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Post by The_Venturas »

Well, it looks like not every book would have an happily ever after ending, but i think this what makes the book a whole lot more realistic.
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Post by Katherine K »

I read it a while ago, and while I thought it was a fun read, the ending was a letdown. It just felt so anticlimactic...sure, I didn't have a problem with her dying, but it felt like the ending just wasn't very strong.
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Post by VinuW »

bookowlie wrote:
VinuW wrote:I thought the ending was disappointing, but it felt right.
I agree. I didn't care for the ending, but it fit well with the rest of the story. If Sam would have lived, that would have felt like the author was giving readers a "tied up with a bow" ending.
I read the Delirium series recently and realized that Lauren Oliver is not an author who gives her readers a "tied up with a bow" ending.
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Post by Mune »

bookowlie wrote:I agree with Ashley Claire - I also wasn't disappointed that Sam died at the end because I wasn't that invested in her. However, I was disappointed that Kent wouldn't get to be with Sam after they finally reconnected and kissed.

One thing I liked about the ending was how Juliet's subplot dovetailed with Sam's storyline at the end. I certainly didn't see that coming. The other thing I liked near the ending was the revelation of why Lindsay had been so nasty and bullying toward Juliet for years. It gave a richness to Lindsay's character and explained why she acts the way she does.
I was pleasantly surprised by this as well. I had a feeling it was possible (the heavy emphasis on the white thing flying up in front of the SUV and then on the whiteness of Juliet). I felt bad for Kent, but I also felt if Sam and Kent got together after she survived, that it would end in heartbreak for Kent if the author stayed true to the character. It wasn't that I wasn't invested in her, it was more like I felt the whole book was the "flash before she died" and that it was almost a just punishment, in a way. Not to say I think her being a bully and a sociopathic narcissist was reason enough for a girl to die, but I believed that if it was her time to die, then maybe it would be her chance to finally (sadly) realize how much she was screwing up and what a bad path she had been heading down if she had continued to live. Perhaps she would have changed, but that is way too fictional of an idea for me. A person with her though processes, attitude, and perspective would be very likely to be living in a subdivision, married to a real estate agent, drinking a bottle of wine a day as she gossiped with the other girls in their driveway around a glass table, occasionally screaming at their kids running wild in front of the houses, while they talked about the expensive makeup and hair styles and clothing they wanted, only to never go anywhere or do anything except sit around and gossip and complain about the world around them.

I know that is extremely judgemental, but I kid you not, that is the scene I dealt with for a week straight when visiting my ex-husband's old military buddy. I tried to hand out with the wives, but it took all I could not to run screaming. They talked simultaneously as they texted on their phones and watched videos, painted their nails, died each others hair, reminisced about high school cheerleading and prom and how they never though they would have four kids already, and so on. I had never seen four women get up, get dressed and coat on makeup to go sit at a dining table in the yard and drink wine from 8am to 6pm. It was very surreal. I actually read books on my phone the entire time, I fit in because I stared at my phone enough to excuse my lack of joining into the topics (putting their daughters through cheerleading and prom, the Kardashians--which I did not even know about before that trip, talk show hosts, their husbands and football/barbques/long hours/beer drinking, how ugly or stupid or meaner words every woman that walked or drove by was, and so on). When I read this book, I thought to myself "this is those women eight years ago when they were in high school."
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Post by SharisseEM »

It's a bittersweet ending. Even though she died at the end, she died a better person. It was like redemption. I did feel a little down about the ending because of her relationship with Kent but I respect how the story ended.
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Post by Insomniac07 »

Lovely_Loreley wrote:I personally loved the way the book ended. I was honestly dreading a "happy ending" where Sam woke from a coma or something like that. It wouldn't have been right, especially since Elody died on impact on the night that she took Sam's spot in the passenger seat of the car.

The way I read the book, the original accident was the "real" one, if any of the days could be considered more real than the others. So Sam's treatment of Kent ("leading him on" as some have said) never really bothered me. Reliving her last day was Sam's chance to make things right for herself - to open her eyes and realize what was going on outside her little bubble of friends. In this, I suppose it would have been helpful to have an epilogue from someone else's point of view, a reaction from one of her friends or Kent or something like that, to confirm which series of events actually happened. But to me, it makes more sense that the first telling of the story was Sam's actual death, and no one else will have any recollection of the others days.

And in a way, that's even more heartbreaking. Kent will forever regret the fact that he never told Sam how he felt. Rob will wake up from an alcohol-induced stupor to realize that his girlfriend is dead and that if he'd just left the party when she wanted to, left with her, she'd still be alive. Lindsay won't be able to avoid the thought that if she'd just stopped bullying her once-best-friend, both she and her current best friend might still be alive. No matter how you spin it, people will be bitterly affected by Sam's death - and that's the point. If Sam woke from a coma or something like that, and lived, she could have tried to fix things among her friends. I don't know about anyone else, but for me that sort of ending just wouldn't have had the same ring to it.
I wasn't a massive fan of the ending, but I expected Sam's death. Nothing else made sense to me. No matter how I tried to imagine her coming back to life after the last day, it never seemed to tie up all the loose ends. But your scenario here is just perfect. It makes sense that the first death would be the real death and the rest of those are Sam's chance at self-realization. Thanks for this. :D
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Post by clarissegail »

I do not like the ending either. I think that at some point, after everything Sam went through, she deserves to live. To have a second chance to atlease make up for what she wasnt able to realize in the beginning.
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