Sydney Wells should have died. She was supposed to die.
She never expected, after years of waiting, to receive a heart transplant. Now, seventeen-year-old Sydney doesn’t know what to do with her life. Her daily routine consisted of staying indoors, eating heart-healthy foods, and posting about her transplant list experiences on TheWaitingList with her long-distance BFF (and heart failure buddy) Chloe.
Now, Sydney latches onto the one thing that gives her meaning: learning as much as she can about the person whose heart she inherited. After finding the family of her likely-donor, Mia, Sydney falls deep into her world—and may also be falling for Mia’s best friend, Clayton.
But Sydney isn’t the only one hiding something. Mia’s brother Tanner won’t talk to Clayton, and Clayton won’t tell Sydney why. And hundreds of miles away, Chloe’s health has taken a turn for the worse. Sydney needs to face what’s in her heart—the truth, the guilt, and the future—before it’s too late.
Honestly, I was reading along, and everything seemed to be coming to a close, so I peeked at what percentage I was at in the book because I thought, wow, I must be close to done. 59 percent?! All I could think was what the heck else could possibly happen for the second half of this book?!? The answer is….a lot. A lot happens in the second half of this book. Never a slow moment. Never felt like filler. So full of complex emotions, feelings, relationships, and life!
The settings were so well done. It never felt too wordy, but I feel like I could picture every detail! The characters were chefs kiss. Everyone. The parents, the doctors, the best friend, everyone was very 3 dimensional to me. This story isn’t your typical “sick girl learns to live life again” story. The ups and downs and twists and turns are so artfully done. Not only will you not guess the ending, but you’ll be on your toes for most of the book! I don’t think I’ve ever said that about a book that isn’t a thriller!
Remember when Sicklit became the genre everyone was looking to read? Im pretty sure the craze started with John Greens “The Fault in Our Stars.” This wasn’t the first sicklit book… but it started a craze that was absolutely unstopable at the time. All this is to say that if you enjoyed books like “The Fault in Our Stars” or “5 Feet Apart,” you’ll love this story. Get your hands on it now.
One more 5 star read for the books. Thank you, PenguinTeenCa and Netgalley, for the Arc 😘 Im a bit behind in posting (March Break with all 3 kids home 😅), so this one is out already!
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