I received this free eARC novel from NetGalley. This is my honest review.

This has been on my TBR pile for so long, and I'm glad I finally got around to it. I really enjoyed the storyline and seeing the characters change throughout the story was a great character development. The plot was great and kept my attention. I'm glad I got the chance to read this and will be on the lookout for more in the future!

This book wasn’t quite what I expected but it turns out to be just OK. The characters were a little bland and the story was predictable.

This book was a struggle. I really didn't like either of the main characters. They were the most selfish teens I have read in a long long time. The plot was predictable and I rolled my eyes a lot. It really was just not a book for me. It was a quick read though.

I am working through and clearing out my list of galleys and unfortunately not interested in reading this any more.

Teresa Kander's review Jul 27, 2014 · edit
really liked it
bookshelves: netgalley, young-adult

I was fascinated by the idea of a YA novel written from the male point of view, especially by a female author. Jessica does a fantastic job of getting into the mind of a teenaged boy. Ryden has so much going on in his life--mourning his girlfriend, raising his daughter, holding down a job, going to school, being on the soccer team--and we get insight into his thoughts on all of it.

Sometimes I felt sorry for him, and other times I just wanted to shake him...much like how I feel about most ACTUAL teenagers. The entire cast of characters in this book are realistically written and very believable. Ryden's mother is always there to support him, but she also makes him be responsible for his daughter as much as possible. His friends are unsure how to react to him, with the exception of Meg's sister and Meg's best friend, both of whom are straightforward with him, good or bad.

There are a lot of ups and downs to this story, but the ending was very satisfying. I'd love to read a sequel, several years in the future, to see how things are going, not just for Ryden and Hope, but for the other characters as well.

I received a copy of this book in return for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.

I really wasn't a fan of this story-line and didn't find it appropriate to add to our school collection especially because she got pregnant on purpose..

Sorry, I did not like this book. I tried to be emotional about it but it did not work for me.

What you Left Behind is an amazing book of the struggles young teens go through when they have a baby. The struggles are real and trying to balance parenthood, school and just everyday life is so much harder then most believe.
Add to all that........ cancer, and then death and you have something you as a teen will most always struggle to understand.
This book tells the story of a 17 year old "couple". She has cancer and gets pregnant. He tries to get her to terminate the pregnancy so she can continue having her cancer treatments but she will not do it. She wants to have the baby and continue with her treatments after the baby is born. Before she dies she leave a trail of journals for him to find that lead him on an emotional journey with feelings that will make you giggle, smile and flat out bawl your eyes out.

This felt too much like an after school special for me to love but I did like it. I felt for the main character despite his dumb decisions. Unique perspective for a ya novel.