In a Minnesota resort town two sets of brother-sister duos are lifelong, great friends.  One of the girls dies suddenly from an undiagnosed heart ailment.  Over the next year both sets of parents and the remaining three teenagers struggle to come to terms with guilt and grief.

The story centers primarily on Ben (the deceased girl’s brother) and Lucy (the girl’s best friend).  They love each other romantically but Ben, out of guilt, says some hateful things to Lucy that ruin their friendship.  In fact, Ben KEEPS acting badly and saying the wrong things–both to his parents and to Lucy–until finally, after many twists and turns, it appears he comes right, along with the other grieving parties.

I found this book tiresome and the situations and characters stereotypical.  There is a lot of bad language and meaningless teenage sex.

Categories: Death and Grieving, Grief, Navigating through High School, Peer Relationships

Tags: Coping Behaviors, Family Relationships, Harry N. Abrams, Offensive Language, Peer Relationships, Purchasing YA Fiction, Purchasing Young Adult Books, Sara Biren, YA Book Reviews, YA Book Selection Criteria, YA Fiction, YA Fiction Reviews, YA Literature