“I’m so stained by this loss that its color will bleed into everything I touch for the rest of my life. I think I loved him too much to ever wash my hands of it.” —Santiago, page 306

marie continues to prove herself as one of the strongest writers in the ya contemporary genre. the way each character grows around, through, under, and over grief is so interesting. beatriz lets bryce’s death engulf her, and santiago runs so far away and pretends it never existed until he has to confront the reality of it. finding love amidst all that is an added bonus to me! it took me a minute to find solid ground with this cast of characters, but i got into the groove soon enough. 

also . . . how do i explain this. okay, i’m not too “old” for ya (fun fact: people can enjoy a wild variety of books!), but there is something constraining about the genre that makes everything a little too . . . neat? i’m not sure how to put it into words, honestly. beatriz and santiago’s grief is messy and complicated and the way they react to the world in grief comes back to them, but i just! don’t! know! how to describe it! 

anyway, a very rich narrative, saturated in grief and flowing with love. very delicious :)