What Worked for Me:
- I felt that the mental health piece was appropriately portrayed, and that the aftermath was dealt with well too.
- There were many relationships playing out during the book. We get to see romantic relationships, familial relationships, and platonic friendships all evolving and struggling and forming throughout the book, which is quite realistic, especially in a high school setting.
- There were some very, very poignant lines in the story. Lines that I know other people will relate to, because I related to them.
- The writing was really lovely, and even though I am not a huge poetry fan, the Dickinson poems really worked in context. I'm Nobody! Who Are You? really was appropriate in this situation and stuck with me the most.
What Didn't:
- Honestly? I think this book would be a home run for a younger crowd. I think this book is a fantastic read for a younger crowd. I will purchase this book for my own daughter one day. Sadly, I am not that crowd. I think it just falls a little more on the younger end of the YA spectrum.
- Maybe because of the last point, I found it to be very predictable, and even a bit cliched at times. I knew who was attempting suicide, I knew pretty much exactly how all the twists would turn out.
- I know that this was done on purpose and had a point, but having the characters named Emily and Elizabeth (whose real name was Emily) was really hard to keep straight. Especially in POV switches. The good thing was that the girls were different, so it wasn't impossible to tell apart, but sometimes just a minor aggravation.
- I would have liked to get a better picture of each girl's struggle and life. Especially Emily's family situation, it was brought up frequently, but never really delved into in great detail.
Bottom Line: This book has an awesome message, especially for a younger teen. There's a bit of everything: Friendship, family, love, heartbreak, and of course, mental health issues. A solid read for a younger group, but still told an important message for everyone.
**A copy was provided from the publisher via Netgalley for review**
This review was originally posted on It Starts at Midnight