Goodreads Rating: 3.88
Pages: 310
Format: ARC from BEA
Janet Gurtler's books have been hailed as "just right for fans of Sarah Dessen and Jodi Picoult" (Booklist) and "reminiscent of Judy Blume" (RT Book Reviews). Her latest contemporary YA novel is by turns gripping, heart-wrenching, and joyous as one teen girl has to find the courage to carry on after a devastating tragedy.
She never thought a kiss could kill...
As the new girl in town, Samantha just wants to fit in. Being invited to a party by her fellow swim team members is her big chance...especially since Zee will be there. He hasn't made a secret of checking her out at the pool. Sam didn't figure on Alex being there too. She barely even knows him. And she certainly didn't plan to kiss him. It just kind of happened.
And then Alex dies—right in her arms...
Consumed by guilt and grief, Sam has no idea what to do or where to turn when everyone at school blames her. What follows is Sam's honest, raw, and unforgettable journey to forgive herself and find balance—maybe even love—in a life that suddenly seems to be spinning out of control.
I wasn't expecting this book to be as explosive as it was. I never really knew what I was missing until I dove into this super quick read. All in all it took me less than a day to read which I adored, its been awhile without a super quick read that I truly adored.
I've heard good things about it, and I was excited about getting it when I went to BEA12. It looked really interesting and it was nice to see a a story where it wasn't a paranormal reason for the death of a character. (I.E Touch of Death or Cursed) In this case, Peanuts were to blame, and I was excited for this, I also needed a good contemporary that blew me out of the water.
For starters, what I loved about this book was Sam, she was a little cliche, but at the same time I felt that her reactions to things were normal for a girl her age. To wallow in this self pity that she was alive while Alex was dead was totally normal. I felt that she was a normal girl and I loved that, too often authors try to make their main character more special than everyone else (in this case she was a superb swimmer, but we hardly got to see that because she gave it up to punish herself.) I absolutely adored her family too, her crazy aunt who believed in angels and spoke in a silly spanish voice for her Chihuahua.
I wasn't a big fan of Zee, but just because of the way that he treated Sam, although it was also understandable because of how he was grieving for what happened. I just felt that it wasn't fair of him to judge her so harshly because it was entirely his fault that she was in that situation in the first place.
This was a great contemporary that I really enjoyed. It was quick to read, and hand a great message about not giving up and that shitty things happen, but that you have to move on with life.
The Courts Decision:
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