I recently finished yet another YA novel that focuses on mental/emotional struggles. I requested this one through ILL because it came up as a read alike on Goodreads to Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow. But I didn't enjoy this book as much.
I appreciate YA books with these themes, but so many of them are similar in their character development and their plot lines that all blend into one another. This one fits that description.
Ellery is determined to die. Ever since her little sister was killed in a car accident, which she blames herself for, she does not feel that she is worthy to live. The story begins with her failed suicide attempt, and after the gun fails to function, she tries to return it to the store, claiming that it's broken. it doesn't seem to occur to her that a teenage girl entering a Kmart with a gun, and no receipt (since it was actually purchased at Walmart by someone else) is going to raise suspicions. So of course she gets stopped, and it turns out that the night security guard is a classmate. He can tell that she is unstable, and makes it his mission to help her. First he befriends her, and then, of course, he falls in love with her.
I liked the character of Ellery okay, but I resent the fact that in yet another novel, the girl is saved by someone else, like a gorgeous guy with a heart of gold. I believed in the beginning that she wanted to die, but as the story went on, she kept insisting that she had "a plan." Her voice stopped being authentic after a while, and it seemed like she was just being stubborn rather than feeling desperate.
It wasn't a terrible story, but it just didn't really set itself apart from the plethora of others with similar themes.
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