Review Detail

Reader reviewed by The Library Lurker

I love novels in free verse. The way that eventually it's like you're
not even reading poetry anymore but everything is so beautiful
without trying to be is just amazing. This is only the second novel by
Ellen Hopkins that I've read, and I loved it just as much as I loved Burned.
Her books are a lot of things, but they're definitely not light summer
reads. You have to be ready to get emotionally attached and hang on for a
bumpy ride.



What I loved about this book is that it's a book about suicide, but not a
typical book about suicide. It's not a book of what lead up to a
character killing themself, it's a book about what happened to three
teens after they attempted to kill themselves. Of course it goes into
why they did it, but the entire backstory unfolds slowly while new
relationships and personal revelations are happening in the facility
that they were sent to "get better."



The three main characters, Tony, Conner, and Vanessa, had such different
voices that a lot of times I didn't even have to look to know who I was
reading. They all have such heartbreaking backstories in such different
ways. I felt for them all. I loved the way that the relationship
between the three constantly evolved, and ended up completely different
than I was expecting.



There isn't so much a plot to this book as there is a story. And that
story is told beautifully. Basically, if you've never read Ellen Hopkins
you need to, and soon. This book was great, and I can't wait to read
more by her.