READ ME, READ ME It's hard to give a review for the last book of a series because I want to talk about everything that Maddie, her family and friends went thru. But that would be giving spoilers to all who are looking to read this. So many emotions that take you up and down like a roller coaster. People looking for something that they might or might not find. Finding love in different places and never knowing how long it will last. At times I wanted to laugh, or cry at so many places, this is a book you will NOT put down. Once I started reading it, I couldn't stop. (I even folded clothes while reading it and other things) You'll be glad that you read it and how amazing Hannah R. Goodman was in writing this. ( )

"Peter filled me in. You’re going all loopy-nut job on us? You know what? It’s about time. I mean you friggin’ intellectualize yourself into feeling fine."

Can she come to grips with her life and stop worrying about others?

Maddie is getting ready to graduate high school. Her parents are pressuring her to send in her applications for college, her beloved grandmother is very ill, her former boyfriend ("That Who We Aren't Supposed to Speak Of") who she hasn't seen in a year has been sent to military school due to drugs, her friends are encouraging her to date someone else so she dates two guys at the same time, and she is having panic attacks her two shrinks (yes, two) say is due to separation anxiety.

"Disconnected. Everyone is moving on in their lives. But me."

This is book 4 in the Maddie Chronicles and can be read as a standalone. I chose this book because I had not read a young adult fiction novel for a while and was looking forward to reading about teenage angst, but I found that this novel had much more. According to a National Institute of Mental Health report, one out of every five teenagers has a mental health disorder. A staggering reality that is a very serious subject seen often in YA fiction today. Goodman covers peer pressure, family pressure and serious events in her life which result in a teenage girl coming of age and facing her challenges head-on.

Goodman's characters are funny, flawed and true to life. Told from Maddie's point of view, the story centers around her relationships with family and friends. I often found myself feeling empathy for Maddie's situations and I loved her friend Susan who is a strong character herself who I would like to read more about. Also, after reading Maddie's build-up of Justin, I was worried about being disappointed when she meets up with him again, but I was pleasantly surprised with how mature and supportive he was with Maddie.

A serious look at teenage mental illness, love, drug and alcohol abuse, sexuality, and cancer told with truth and humor as only teenagers do. Highly recommend.

This book was provided as part of a virtual book tour with no expectation of a positive review given. ( )

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review as part of a blog tour for the book.

This is my second time reading Hannah R. Goodman. I had previously read the YA anthology book she edited and contributed to, Sucker Literary Magazine Vol. 1. I remember really enjoying it so I was excited to read this book.

Going into this book I did not know that it was part of a series so in the beginning I was a tad bit confused because there were a lot of reference to things that happened in the past. However, I was still able to piece together what happened in the previous books, so you can read this book as a standalone.

This was a very touching and realistic story full of emotion and heart. It tackled a lot of heavy topics like cancer and anxiety in a respectful and caring way. There was a good balance between the happy moments and the more somber ones.

As to what I didn’t like, the ending felt a but rushed to me. It ended pretty quickly. I would have liked for it to have been fleshed out a little more.

There was also one line in the book that didn’t sit well with me. In describing the main character’s trip to NYC the book states, “We are right in front of one of those grocery stores that reek of Asian food and rotten produce” (83). I don’t quite know what this line was trying to get at, but to me it seemed like a slight jab at Asian grocery stores since they can sometimes be smelly.

Overall, this was a wonderful and moving book. It had a few flaws, but was still an enjoyable read. ( )