Brigid Kemmerer is known for writing some great teen romance books, especially as she tends to draw characters that are a bit unusual, or have an unexpected backstory. The characters here have that appealing uniqueness, but the romance falls a little flat. Its almost as if the romantic angle was added in as an afterthought. There is still quite a bit to say and feel about friendships and family relationships as they grow and develop throughout this story and I believe it will hold appeal for older teens.

Brigid Kemmerer has really been shining with her books. I'm so pleased she's getting all the praise, hype, and book deals she deserves. Call It What You Want is another excellent read from her. In fact, she only seems to be getting better with every new release!

As with Letters to the Lost and More Than We Can Tell, this book is intense and emotional and tells the story of two broken characters who find comfort in each other. Both of these kids are dealing with a lot and it's hard to stomach at first, but they come out of their situations much stronger than before. Maegan has always been the good girl who has done well in school. Unfortunately, she makes a costly mistake under the pressure of trying to be good. Now, she has got a reputation at school for being a cheater and the only people talk to her are her friend Rachel and his boyfriend, Drew. Her situation at home is not any better. With her sister pregnant, tensions are high. Rob's situation was even bleaker. His father was caught in the midst of an embezzlement case and attempts to commit suicide. Now, his family is shunned, his father is uncommunicative and has to be fed through a tube, and Rob has been labeled a thief. Both Rob and Maegan were really well-written. They are not perfect in any way and Kemmerer makes you feel and sympathize for them every step of the way. I love reading about flawed characters and this author writes them brilliantly. Even when they are on the verge of making huge mistakes, you can't help but root for them.

Rob and Maegan are forced to interact with each other when they are paired on a calculus project. It takes them a while to warm up to each other, but eventually, they find a kinship with each other. They open to each other and the relationship that grows is a really sweet and heartwarming one. I was glad that they had each other. Call It What You Want was also packed with complex family dynamics. Maegan's relationship with her sister was especially well done. Even when her sister was being kinda mean on her pregnancy brain, she listened to her sister and provided a shoulder for her to cry on. We also have some great friendships in this book. Rob finds a good friend in Owen and Brigid Kemmerer also explores his shaky friendship with Connor, his childhood best friend. No relationship was straightforward in Call It What You Want. My complaint would be that I would have liked for an epilogue. I felt like the book ended on an abrupt note.

Call It What You Want is another excellent contemporary novel from Brigid Kemmerer that will hit you with all the feels. If you loved Letters to the Lost or More Than We Can Tell, this book will be right up your alley.

I was given an advanced look at this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher.

This novel should do well with young adults who love realistic fiction. The complications these students encounter because of one wrong turn in their lives may help readers to avoid their own mistakes and understand the social consequences. And, I'm not gonna lie, I am ecstatic that the teacher that Rob turns to is the librarian. I also love that Rob finds that he can turn to reading to fill his days when his friends are no longer his friends.

There is so much in this book to clap for. It tells so much about the stress of high school and college. Things change from one day to the next with the click of the send button. It shows that parents are often just winging it, too, and want the best for their children but their mistakes don't just effect them, they effect everyone around them. WOW, like I said, so much in this book to mull over and take in.

Also, as tired as I am of having alternative lifestyles shoved down my throat on TV and in literature, this author introduced the characters early on, with mentions throughout, and then made the characters part of our hearts. Kudos, Brigid Kemmerer, for developing characters well instead of just throwing them in to be politically correct.

I am absolutely here for any contemps Brigid writes. I didn’t even read the synopsis of this one.

I loved Maegan and Rob. They’re both struggling with secrets and I loved how they found a connection and a support in each other. There are a lot of characters here, but the standout for me was Owen.

Plot wise, it was good. There are a lot of moving pieces here and while the main story line was interesting, I was a bit bored with everything else. I just wanted more of Maegan and Rob together.

Overall, it was the characters that kept me reading. I was quickly invested in them and definitely wanted just a little bit more from the ending.

**Huge thanks Bloomsbury for providing the arc free of charge**

I don’t know if Brigid Kemmerer is the queen of YA contemporary angst, but she’s certainly a member of the royal family.

Rob and Maegan are both outcasts at school. Rob went from popular jock to pariah when his dad was arrested for embezzlement. Maegan got caught in a cheating scandal. When the two of them are paired up for a project, they both find someone to connect to, which eventually turns to romance.

I sympathized a lot more with Rob than Maegan. Not only did he not do anything wrong, Rob has to take care of his disabled father after a failed suicide attempt. That would be tough for anyone, and the fact that he essentially suffering for the sins of his father is harsh. His experience has also made him a better person in some ways. In contrast, Maegan is a smart kid who didn’t have to cheat, so she made her own problem there. Not to mention that she can be a bit judgmental of others for someone who chose to cheat. I was more interested in the drama surrounding her sister’s pregnancy than Maegan’s own issues.

I did like the fact that the author didn’t shy away from highlighting the complexity of her characters. People aren’t totally good or bad in real life, and they aren’t here, either. Even Rob isn’t a suffering saint, because he struggles with the morality of theft from the wealthy. After all, if the person won’t miss it, is taking something from them really wrong?

There is a “twist” to the story. I saw it coming and so was kind of hoping I was wrong, but nope.

it’s not a perfect book, but if you are looking for an angsty YA read, it’s a pretty good one.

A copy of this book was provided through NetGalley for review; all opinions expressed are my own.

4.5 stars. Wow! What an amazing character-driven story. I loved Rob and Maegan, even when I didn't LIKE one of them all that much. Complex characters and issues. Weighty secrets and crushing loneliness. My favorite thread of this wrestles with the idea of the gray areas in life where we want things to be more black and white. Once again, Brigid Kemmerer delivers an engrossing, not-to-be-missed story!

Trigger Warning for suicide. (Language, LGBTQ, teen pregnancy/abortion/adoption)

Call It What You Want is officially my new favorite novel from Brigid Kemmerer. Kemmerer is a master of creating engaging stories filled with wonderful characters that will tug at your heartstrings, and she really captured my heart with this one.

Call It What You Want follows Rob and Maegan, two teens who have been ostracized by their classmates. Rob’s father got caught embezzling funds from half the town, including the parents of many of his classmates. Many people have wrongly assumed Rob knew exactly what his father was up to and so he has gone from being a popular star athlete at the top of the social food chain down to the bottom rung. Maegan is an academic overachiever but we learn in the opening pages that she has cracked under the pressure of trying to be the best and cheated on her SATs. Not only has Maegan potentially tanked her own chances at college, but she also caused the scores for dozens of her classmates to be invalidated as well. Maegan is no one’s favorite person right now.

When the story opens, Rob and Maegan are both just in survival mode, each trying to lay low and get through the school year drawing as little attention to themselves as possible. When Rob and Maegan get paired up on a project in Calculus class, however, everything changes.

The friendship that blossoms between Rob and Maegan is one of my favorite things about Call It What You Want. I love the way Kemmerer writes unlikely friendships like theirs. She portrays that initial awkwardness of the relationship and then the slow opening up to one another so authentically and so beautifully. I could read books like this from Kemmerer all day every day and never get tired of them.

Another gem of a friendship that appears in the book is between Rob and Owen. Owen is a loner and he’s also poor, so poor that he can’t even afford to buy lunch at school. Owen’s struggles are, in part, due to what Rob’s father did, so a friendship between Owen and Rob seems nearly impossible and yet Kemmerer works her magic and creates yet another amazing friendship for me to smile about. I actually adored Owen’s character so much that I’d love to see him with a book of his own at some point.

Aside from making me smile at the wonderful relationships being forged throughout the story, Kemmerer also puts them into situations that tugged at my heartstrings so hard. I felt tremendous sympathy for Maegan and the mess she has gotten herself into. It felt like one of those situations that any one of us could have found ourselves in back in school. Even more heart-wrenching than Maegan’s situation though is Rob’s. Not only did he not have any idea what his father was up to, but Rob and his mother are stuck dealing with all of the fallout, including taking care of his father, who botched a suicide attempt and is now brain damaged and mostly paralyzed. Rob is also being bullied by his former best friend, so every day is pretty much a living hell for him.

Finally, what makes Call It What You Want my new favorite book from Kemmerer is the fact that she really had me thinking about some tough topics, especially as they pertain to Rob. Rob is desperate to try to fix what his father did and contemplates crossing into morally gray territory to make it happen. It really got me thinking about right and wrong. Can you ever really make something right by committing a wrong? I love a book that can engage me with such important and thought-provoking topics.

Wow, I actually had no intention of writing so much, but the book is just that good! Call It What You Want is a heartfelt and beautifully written story about friendship, overcoming adversity, and making amends. I know Kemmerer’s fans are going to love it, but I’d highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a moving read.

Brigid Kemmerer has never disappointed me with her plots, her characters, or her books. This one is no exception. This draws you in right from the start, gives you great complex relationships, and I just couldn't put this down. Finished it in one sitting.

Brigid has written another wonderful YA book! She is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.

Both Rob and Maegan‘s lives have taken 180° turn in the space of the year. Rob was popular, is now treated as an outcast because of his fathers actions. And one mistake for Maegan means that she has been labeled a cheater and also now an outsider. It takes a calculus project for them to find each other, but together maybe they can help each other find redemption!

It took me a little bit to process this book, but after spending some time pondering it I realized I loved how Brigid walks her characters through the gray areas in their lives and with the help of their friends and family, work through their issues. I enjoyed seeing Rob work through his anger with his father, as well as the compassion he showed him.

What stands out the most to me, is the deep transforming friendships that are woven into the story. I love how she writes male friendships and not many other authors that I’ve read do this with such clarity and defining moments.

This was another fabulous story from Brigid! Be sure to pick up a copy!!! Thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for this ARC for an honest review.

Call It What You Want was a heartfelt story with an emotional depth that took me by surprise.

The premise was not anything new for a YA contemporary: two teenagers isolate by their peers find solace in each other. However, this book handled the trope in such a fantastic way. Rob and Maegan are each dealing with their own family issues, and after being forced to work together on a Calculus project, a friendship begins to form between them. I loved Rob so much! ❤️ He was so perfect! And it was really fun and satisfying watching his friendship to Maegan evolve from acquaintances to friends to something more. There were also a couple other great character relationships that develop as well with the side characters. In particular, I really enjoyed Rob and Owen’s friendship and Maegan’s relationship with her sister, Samantha. They were really important to the story and I was absorbed by their dynamics.

There were a lot of heavy topics brought up throughout the book, and Brigid Kemmerer wrote about them in a very compelling and realistic way. Some parts were so well written they made me feel a little emotional thinking about what some of these characters were going through. I absolutely love the fact that Brigid Kemmerer allowed the boys in the story to have emotions! You really don’t see enough of this in books, especially in the YA genre. Boys are allowed have emotions; to cry and to be upset and break down and not be any less masculine because of it. And when it did happen in the book, it wasn’t a huge focus and felt very natural and real. I honestly think it was one of my favorite aspects of the story.

Brigid Kemmerer really impressed me with this lovely book. I was not expecting the emotional depth and heavy topics brought up, but I thought they were brilliant and created such a wonderful story. Call It What You Want is a heartwarming, captivating book with some powerful messages.

Call It What You Want was a heavy read that really weighed on my mind. A lot of tough topics were addressed throughout the book, and it was refreshing to see teenagers having authentic reactions to distressing situations. Their emotions and responses were realistic and really packed a punch, and my heart repeatedly broke for these characters. Sometimes life isn't fair, and we occasionally get lost in the gray areas.

It's not always easy to distinguish right from wrong. What if you did something wrong to protect a family member? Does that make it right? Maegan knew people's secrets, and constantly struggled with whether or not to tell someone. She knew her sister needed help, and that someone else should know what information Samantha had shared with her, but she didn't want to lose her sister's trust. However, keeping Samantha's secret could have caused more problems for her in the end. Is it better to keep the truth to yourself, or risk hurting and helping in equal measure?

Everyone's secrets seemed to find Maegan, even though she wasn't very good at lying. When cornered, she tended to give away whatever she was hiding, even if she didn't want to. However, Maegan was a good friend. She wanted to give people the benefit of the doubt, and she was also loyal and fiercely protective. She didn't always know what to think, but she tried to not judge others and looked for the bigger picture. I wish her friendship with Rachel had been elaborated on. They've been best friends for years, so I was hoping for more conversation and conflict resolution between the two.

I did enjoy seeing Maegan and Samantha repair their relationship. Samantha was hurting and conflicted, Maegan was lost and unsure, and they really rallied together when it mattered. I also liked their family dynamics, and that their parents were really invested in their lives and well-being. I think their dad was a little judgmental, and he came across as an overprotective father. It was clear he loved his daughters and only wanted the best for them.

Rob's family is a little trickier... I understood his mother's perspective, but I didn't really agree with it. As a mother, I can see her wanting to protect her son and his future. As an outsider looking in, I think she did more harm than good, and there's no going back from that. It was hard to watch them interact with Rob Sr., because his condition affected everyone around him. His choice to end his life, and the fact that he failed, only caused more strain on their family and what they were going through. They all loved each other, but I think their feelings were misplaced for awhile.

Speaking of Rob, I do have a small complaint about his character. He's lonely and frequently complains about having nothing to do, but he has a vehicle that he can drive, so why doesn't he have a job? He's struggling with money, his mother has gone back to work, and he has the means... so why didn't he get a job after school? That would have helped everyone, and he likely wouldn't have felt the need to rebel in other ways. It doesn't make sense for him to stay hidden away in his room feeling bad about his situation, especially since he often mentioned wanting to do something to help.

There are a lot of complicated relationships in this story. Relationships between old friends and new, siblings, parents, teachers... it's amazing Kemmerer managed to squeeze them all into one book. Everyone was hurting, or knew someone that was, and we see that people can be unnecessarily cruel. They can also surprise you by being kind and doing things you wouldn't expect.

Like I said before, there were a lot of tough topics addressed in this book, but I think Kemmerer handled them all very well. Nothing had a perfect resolution, but that's life. It's rarely perfect. If anything, her portrayal of this story was brutally honest. You want to cheer these characters on, but at the same time, you don't know how to make their individual circumstances better. Oftentimes, there was no right answer, only moving forward and trying to make the best of a bad situation.

Originally posted at Do You Dog-ear? on June 25, 2019.

6 Stars | Top Rec

Call It What You Want was a phenomenally written novel that explored teen-hood with a level of skill often unmatched in this genre. Kemmerer brilliantly captured every beat of plot and character development with aplomb; every subtle note of tension—internal and external—a perfect stepping stone to the next moment. From the opening page to the end, I absolutely inhaled these characters' stories and their words as fast as I possibly could.

Every character—from supporting to lead—was incredibly vivid. Their struggles and frustrations, no matter how diverse in nature, were instantly relatable and easy to empathize with because there was little room for unbelievability. There was such a balance of tension that it never felt dramatic or overwhelming while still evoking that cloying sense of anxiety the author intended for you to feel along with them. And because of all that, Rob and Maegan were simply two of the easiest characters to become, to root for. The sweetness of who they become to each other was indescribable and I loved how organically it fit into their journeys—a piece that only enhanced an already amazing story. 

I'm always in awe of how effortlessly Kemmerer can capture the essence of being a teenager, and I remain in awe after finishing this book. Call It What You Want was a compelling read with fantastic characters that I'm still not ready to let go of.

I have yet to read a book by Brigid that wasn't excellent. I loved the characters and all the juicy secrets and betrayal. It raises a lot of questions and shows that things can be morally grey, rather than black or white.

There is just something so addictive about Brigid Kemmerer’s writing style. For a majority of the books I’ve read by her, I’ve finished them in one sitting. Call It What You Want was definitely one of those books for me.

Rob was once the quintessential High School student-athlete. That was until his father was accused of embezzling money from people in their community and, his peers treated Rob like he was the one responsible or at least he was in on it.

Maegan wasn’t at the top of the high school chain but she sure wasn’t loved by many after she cheated on her SATs. Which resulted in those students who were taking the test with her, having to retake the SATs.

Both social pariahs end up paired together for a math project and thus their story commences.
Maegan in a lot of ways reminded me of myself back in highschool (minus cheating on the SATs of course). I also enjoyed the fact that the plot is more character-driven. But what I appreciated the most about this story is Kemmerer’s writing style. As I mentioned before, it's addictive. And that is mostly because Brigid tends to include serious situations in her YA books. Making her books more relatable and de-mystifies some of the fantastical elements that are usually included in YA contemporary books. Also, the character development of the main characters, as well as the side characters, was phenomenal. I enjoyed getting to know all the ins and outs of Rob’s life especially after something traumatic.
I will say that I found the end of the story to move at a faster pace than the rest of the story. I’m not completely satisfied with the ending. I would've liked to see how the big revelation of the plot played out over maybe a couple of chapters, instead of one chapter and an epilogue.

However, I recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed Letters to the Lost and More Than We Can Tell, or those who enjoy YA contemporary that includes what I call real life grit.

TW: Self-inflicted harm, Gun-use, Teen Pregnancy

Thank you to Netgalley and Bloomsbury USA Childrens's books for an e-ARC of Call It What You Want by Brigid Kemmerer. Receiving this ARC did not affect my rating or review.

Summary
Maegan is known as "the cheater" since she was caught cheating on the SAT, causing her and 100 other student's tests to be thrown out. And to add to the household tension, her sister has just come home from college pregnant.
Rob was always the big guy on campus. But after his dad was turned in for stealing money from his clients, he's become a social outcast. At home, Rob is also responsible for taking care of his comatose father who lived after attempting to take his own life.
The two are teamed up for a math project and realize they've both been looking for someone to talk to. As they grow close, they try to make amends for all the dark secrets they're hiding.

Overview
This book is told in dual perspective from the POV of Maegan and Rob. This book is packed to the brim with lots of difficult topics (taking care of a comatose parent, familial & school pressures, and loads more). So definitely make sure you're in a head space to handle a heavy book before going into this one.

Content Warnings: Embezzlement, Attempted Suicide, Cheating (school), Bullying, Teen Pregnancy, Abuse, PTSD (never directly stated)

What I Liked
1. Mr. London. He was hands down my favorite character in this book (and the only one who didn't drive me up a wall).
2. I thought the relationship between Rob and Maegan was well written and realistic. I appreciated that they supported each other when they had no one else to rely on.
3. The sisterly bond between Sam and Maegan was really well written. They bickered and didn't always see eye to eye, but they always had each other's best interest at heart. It felt like such a realistic portrayal of siblings. And I definitely wanted to slow clap when Maegan stood up to the professor.

What I Didn't Like
1. My number one grip with this book was the sheer over-the-top dramatics. Like there was never a single moment of relief throughout this. It was just terrible choice after terrible choice. And to make it even worse it wasn't just the teens being train wrecks - it was every adult too. But the end I was so exhausted and frustrated. It just felt like way too much. The reader is dragged in so many directions and into so many problems that I personally never connected or cared about any of them. Because there was always another disastrous thing happening. I needed this to focus on one big thing rather than taking on: teen pregnancy, embezzlement, child abuse, bullying, cheating, familial pressures, poverty, attempted suicide, etc. It was all just too much.
2. I did not appreciate that her pregnant sister gets drunk at high school party and then it is never discussed again. Like everything's cool. It was not okay.

This was overall just not for me. This book was heavy, but not in a way that I enjoyed. I can definitely appreciate that there were important topics discussed in this - and if these are something you're interested in reading about, this may work for you! But overall I felt like this book took on too much.

I’ve been a fan of Brigid Kemmerer since I opened Letters to the Lost and read it in one day. There is something about the way that Brigid writes, not only romance but the friendship aspect as well. She also writes the best boy characters! Anyway, when I heard about Call It What You Want I was beyond thrilled to get a new contemporary from her. And I can happily say it hit the spot for the most part and I was happy to be on the journey with these characters.

Call It What You Want is the story of Rob and Maegan, two high school students that are in for a tougher year than they ever expected. Maegan has always been known to be the good girl that does the right thing until she has a serious lapse in judgment and makes a terrible mistake, and now is avoided at school like the plague. Rob, on the other hand, didn’t do anything personally, but his father did. His father got caught embezzling from half the town and Rob is left dealing with the repercussions, on top of taking care of his dad after his failed suicide attempt. When Rob and Maegan are paired together for a project these two outcasts start to learn something about themselves and start on a new kind of journey together. But not everything is as it seems.

Once again I loved the boy Brigid created. Rob was hands-down my favorite thing in Call It What You Want. He was so broken and in such a bad place. He had his whole life upended and was navigating a path he never saw coming. He broke my heart with how alone he felt. And he was so angry. Angry enough to make some really bad decisions that he would justify even knowing he was doing the wrong thing. But underneath all of that, he was just a scared kid. Maegan, on the other hand, had a terrible lapse in judgment and made a mistake that cost a lot of people. She was under pressure and did something she shouldn’t and was paying the price. I hated how she just accepted that people should treat her the way they did because of what she did. It made me sad to see her just accept it. In the end, I liked how these two interacted together. I like how they learned and grew by being around one another when no one else really wanted to be there for them.

I enjoyed Call It What You Want a lot. It had some really good, strong parts. There were also some parts that I just wanted more of and I didn’t get it. I think because of that I didn’t have as strong of an emotional connection as I did to Letters to the Lost and More Than We Can Tell. But with that said, it still packed a punch and made me grateful Brigid shares her talent as an author with us. Pick this one up for sure!

I was fortunate enough to receive a Netgalley ARC of Call It What You Want by Bridgette Kemmerer, a realistic fiction that explores the story of Rob and Maegan’s unlikely connection. Both characters have garnered the ire of most of their classmates, Maegan through her involvement in an SAT cheating scandal that ended up invalidating the scores of over 100 classmates, and Rob by being the son of a financial advisor who attempted suicide after stealing millions of dollars from unsuspecting clients, most of whom are the parents of his former best friends. When Maegan and Rob are partnered for a math assignment, both expect the worst, but their relationship quickly grows beyond a school project as Rob tries to define himself against his father’s infamous legacy and Maegan navigates the tricky waters of how to support her sister after an unplanned pregnancy.

While the plot is compelling, Kemmerer’s ability to capture the nuances of character is what truly drives this book. Almost no character is pictured as fully good or fully bad; for example, when unburdening himself about his mixed feelings about his father, Rob comments, “He was awful...but he wasn’t an awful father.” Kemmerer captures the duality of real life in Call It What You Want; best friends inadvertently betray, strong siblings display weaknesses, good people do bad things, parents fail to communicate, and moral issues appear murky. There is an exploration of poverty, labels, morality, and what it means to do right, but, as in life, this novel offers no easy answers. In the end, readers are left with the clear impression that there is good in almost everyone and, as Kemmerer repeats through a number of characters, “One choice doesn’t determine your whole future.”

By considering the gray areas of life and confronting some starkly difficult situations while mixing in just the right amount of teen romance and mystery, Kemmerer succeeds in creating a compelling read that will appeal to a wide audience and encourage empathy. Call It What You Want is a strong choice for any high school library where realistic fiction is popular.

4.5

*I received an e-ARC of this book from the publisher. This is my honest review.*

This is only my second Brigid Kemmerer book, and I think it has solidly placed her among my favorite authors.

I loved the way she dealt with grey areas and controversial topics with grace and compassion. This story covered a variety of characters in a variety of situations and struggles. None of the main characters were fully innocent, but they were all relatable and all people you wanted to root for.

Characters like Rob and Maegan are held accountable for their mistakes, but they also have second chances to make things right. All of the topics Kemmerer covered, she handled well by showing that there are always two sides to every story. She didn't skim over difficult topics or problems real teens might have to wrestle with. Instead, she faced them head-on. It was refreshing to see her characters address them with honesty and always work to pursue what was right.

We see consequences for bad choices and we see realistic struggles even for good choices made. I will say that I saw one of the big plot twists coming, but it didn't really seem to take away from the book overall, so I only took off a half star. (Because personally, I like to be surprised.)

I look forward to reading more of Kemmerer'a work!

Thank you Netgalley and Bloomsbury sending me a digital arc of this book. I read A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer a couple of months ago and I loved it. So I starting reading this book as soon as I got it. And it was fantastic from the beginning to the end. 'Call It What You Want' is a story about friendships, relationship and choices. The main character Rob and Meghan are beautifully flawed and complex. Throughout the book, they make so many bad decisions but when you put yourself in their shoes, you can totally see why they act the way they do. All the characters in this book was so well written. I loved Rob's friendship with Owen and Conner. They had such interesting dynamic. The romance was so beautiful. I loved the inner lying message of the story that everyone one is going through something we do not know and hence, we should not be so quick to judge them or decide what they deserve; that we always have the choice to do the right thing. The writing was heartfelt and fast paced. The plot was dramatic and captivating.

Special shoutout to this book for mentioning many other YA books like Ember In The Ashes and Throne of Glass.. In most other books, you usually see the characters reading and quoting classics; Im so glad that I could find one book where the main character reads and loves the same books as I do.

Brigid Kemmerer is one of my favorite contemp YA authors! (Her fantasy novels are also excellent, I hear, but I've only read her contemporary ones.) Every new book of hers is better than the last, and this one is no exception.

It's hard not to feel sorry for Rob. Yes, his dad did a horrible, unforgivable thing but Rob is paying for it. (Although, after a failed suicide attempt, it's not like Rob's dad is doing well, either.) He's lost basically everything and he has no support system to speak of. Maegan IS responsible for the mistake she made, but I feel like her choice is also understandable. It's not a great choice, but I understand why she did it.

Their friendship is this really amazing thing that neither expected (or particularly wanted) but that both really needed. The conversations they have are incredibly thought-provoking and would lead to some fascinating discussions in a book club. 

Also, I love Owen and would really like a companion book about him, please.

Highly recommended.