Secondly, Forman looks at the fine line between suicide and the very common and morbid habit of considering one's own death.

However, the relationship dynamic goes through many changes by the novel's close and it tugged at my heartstrings numerous times. It's a difficult, troubled relationship being pulled apart by lack of communication and understanding. First, I absolutely loved the handling and development of the relationship between Cody and her mum. There were two things I thought were done excellently in this book and neither of them were the romance. She is led towards online suicide forums and a group of people who may have had a hand in her friend's decision to die. With the help of a tech-savvy friend, she sets out to discover the truth about Meg's death. Then she uncovers something unexpected: deleted emails and encrypted files on Meg's computer. The two of them have grown up together and were practically like sisters, so Cody's grief is amplified by the fact she had no idea her best friend was suicidal. The main plot line is about Cody coming to terms with the suicide of her best friend - Meg. Because this book was written by Gayle Forman and even when she writes cliches she manages to add emotional depth to them and make this a novel that doesn't rely solely on the romance to be good. The romance was so cliched and obvious from the moment Cody set her eyes on this 'player' that I almost put the book down for good.

This book is no exception, but I felt that this time the story of two teen girls, their friendship and the suicide of one of them was even more orchestrated around the romance between Cody and Ben.Ĭommon elements of every other New Adult romance pop up constantly as this novel moves along: death of a mutual friend brings a girl and guy together, a road trip laced with tension takes place, she's a virgin and he's slept with hundreds of girls but he suddenly finds himself wanting to change his ways for her. It almost was, anyway.įorman's contempory novels have always contained a heavy romantic element that has propped up the central themes of grief, growing up and friendship. In the hands of most authors, this book would have been nothing more than a standard, trope-ridden NA romance. It was the first time I ever lied to them. I told Joe and Sue that I was sorry, that I couldn't give a eulogy because I couldn't think of anything to say.

I was here gayle