"Take your life back and start living, but not for him. Live for you" (Dr Thompson)
While I read all the other books in the Count On Me series in order, I saved this one for last. The reason for this was because after getting a glimpse of Eric in Count On Me and Hear Me Now, I didn't really like him as a character. I thought that his POV was going to be boring. In fact, I wasn't interested in reading this book at all. But, when I learnt that Amy was going to be the second POV, I was curious. Curiosity killed this cat! I love it when a book proves me wrong and Take Me With You did just that.
The first person I have to talk about is Amelia. When I found out that Amy was going to be Eric's love interest, I couldn't believe it. I know that Melyssa Winchester can turn the most irredeemable characters into the most lovable souls. She proved it when she wrote about Dillon Murphy in Hear Me Now, but Amelia is much worse that Dillon. I wasn't sure about how Melyssa Winchester was going to change my opinion. She did damn more than that! Amelia changes from the queen bully to one of the strongest characters I've ever met and this change is so subtle and believable. After reading Take Me With You, I love Amelia so much!
There's always a reason as to why a bully becomes who they are. Melyssa Winchester is able to get inside bullies heads and make them extremely sympathetic characters. Amelia goes through something that nobody, no matter how terrible they are and no matter what they have done in their life, should go through by the hands of someone who is supposed to love her and protect her. In order to cope with all the pain and hurt that she feels she takes to self-harming. My heart just bled for Amelia. I've read a few stories about sexual abuse before, but they never made me feel the way this book does. Sometimes, I had to put Take Me With You down because I couldn't handle the overwhelming emotions in Amelia's head. Take Me With You is difficult to read, but it's such an important read.
Eric used to be my least favourite in the Count of Me series, but after reading Take Me With You, he surpasses Isaac from Unbroken and is a solid favourite of mine. Eric is one of the nicest and sweetest guys I've ever read about and the friendship that he shows towards Amy, even although she and her friends used to bully him because he has aspergers syndrome, is so amazing to read about. Eric is awesome!
Eric and Amelia are a match made in heaven. They are both attending counselling sessions with Dr Thompson and it's there that Eric literally knocks Amelia on her ass (something that Take Me With You mentions several times) After that, they develop a friendship that realistically starts off with weariness and ends up as an awkwardly sweet and perfect relationship. Eric and Amelia are adorable, so different yet so similar. I would start smiling like an idiot whenever Amelia blushes or when Eric says something without thinking about it first and the romantic gestures in this book are EPIC!
I've mentioned this before, but Melyssa Winchester writes characters whose disabilities make them say what they feel, when they feel it and allow them to pick up on body language and things that other people don't notice. In Eric and Amelia's relationship there's little uncertainty of how the other person is feeling and when there is any uncertainty it's dealt with using love, support and understanding. Obviously, there are potholes in their relationship and the events that take place are unexpected, emotional and terrifying.
Take Me With You is not a perfect book by any means, there are typos and unnecessary internal monologue, but the way this book makes me feel makes it perfect. I don't know how Melyssa Winchester does it, but she writes the most real characters I've ever read about, allows us to get into their heads in such a way that we understand who they are, why they do the things that they do and creates believable character development.
I thought that Take Me With You would be my least favourite book in the Count on Me series, but it ended up being my favourite. I need more Eric and Amelia in my life!
"Together we're individual pieces, but when we're together, we really are a force and not just any force.
The strongest one."
(Eric Carmen)