Very nicely done YA novel. Fast moving and well written. The end was just a bit convenient. But that was only a minor quibble. On the whole the heroine was interesting and you really felt like you knew her by the end of the book. The secondary characters were well written and interesting. The book was written in first person present tense which I really don't like but it wasn't too intrusive. The love story was fairly sweet like in any number of teen movies. the girl ignores her best friend who is the boy who truly loves her to go out with the handsome jock then realizes her mistake Still it was nicely done. There were some difficult themes such as abuse but there is nothing explicit. There was a mystery element as the heroine didn't remember what happened the night of the accident. I would not hesitate to recommend this to teenage girls. There is no sex and only a minor mention of drinking and that was by the bad guys. Clean with only a couple of sweet kisses mentioned in passing. ( )

This book for teens tackles a tough subject but in a way that is sure to work with teen readers. It has mystery, romance, self-redemption and the role of family all wrapped up together in a coastal Washington state setting. Kept me reading and cheering for Allie, the main female character. If you have a teen girl in your life, I'd recommend you pass this along as a valuable read. ( )

Heartbreaking love story and mystery that ultimately leaves you uplifted. Story of a teenager who has to piece together missing memories of a catastrophic incident in her past while facing some hard truths about herself, her family and friends and the adults around her. She learns that love triumphs in unexpected ways. ( )

Good story. A real page turner. A good look inside an abusive relationship. A good mystery. I found the characters very real and believable. ( )

I choose a lot of my readings based on similarity with books I've already read and liked. It's not an unfailing method; sometimes you come up with perfect copycats and sometimes you end up with things totally different from what you were looking for. The trick lies in finding the right middle ground.

Reading the synopsis, I already knew this book would entail the same elements featured in [b:Truly, Madly, Deadly|18045151|Truly, Madly, Deadly|Hannah Jayne|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1370606479s/18045151.jpg|21693894] by Hannah Jayne: an abusive relationship, a tragedy, a strong friendship. You can easily do the math and come up with a story that, if not very original, is compelling and interesting to read. Well written and well paced too, and that doesn't hurt either.

I really liked this book, but I couldn't give it 4 stars because I can't condone suicide and I can't forgive someone (even a fictional someone) for thinking it can be a solution to anything. Let me reassure you: the MC is not going to kill herself in the book, but for a brief period she entertained suicide as a solution to what was ailing her.
So, it's going to be 3 stars: yes, I really liked it, but parts of it got me mad, too. ( )