Carrie Arcos

If you're looking for a weeper, this will do it. Arcos portrays Mark's path of grief with honesty and gentleness. There's no she's-in-a-better-place sugar coating. Mark gets angry and lashes out at friends. This is how grieving is: hard and messy and overwhelming and raw. But then there are moments, even briefly, that are okay. A searing and true book.

Rachel and her older brother Micah have a sibling relationship like any other - they fight and laugh with one another; they cover for each other, lying to their parents with ease. Even as Micah gets involved with drugs, namely crystal meth, Rachel continues to conceal. But when Micah runs away before finishing out his senior year of high school and Rachel's left to deal with the aftermath, she can no longer avoid what's taking place in her life. In an attempt to save the day, Rachel recruits show more Micah's friend Tyler to follow a clue which may lead to Micah's recovery. Along the way, Rachel uncovers more about Micah than she ever realized, and in turn, discovers herself as well.

The topics included in this book [drug abuse, dysfunctional families, gossip, relationships, etc.] are relevant and realistic for teens [and adults who seek to talk to teens about these issues]. Though I found the character of Rachel annoying at times, I kept coming back to read about her life and the upset caused by her brother's actions. Her family relationships interested me the most. As well as the different people Rachel and Tyler come across. For other perspectives on drug addiction, readers might check out Ellen Hopkins' Fallout. show less

This is a debut novel for Arcos that details 24-hours in the life of 16-year old Rachel whose 18 year-old brother, Micah, is addicted to meth and has vanished; we get that story in flashback chapters. Rachel takes Micah's friend, Tyler, along on a trip to find Micah; the simple but hard truth she finds along the way is what makes the story. While parts of this story dragged on a bit too long for me, I did appreciate the narrator's honesty, the developing understanding between Rachel and show more Tyler, and the ending, which wasn't overly tidy or climactic. This book seems most appropriate for high school readers because of its realistic dealing with drugs and their impact on an extended network of caring others. show less

A young teenager Mark has lost his sister Grace in a car crash. He takes the blame for her death so he goes to the bridge where it all happened. His mother left Mark and Grace when they were only small children. Months after Grace's tragic death, Mark and Grace's best friend Hannah find Grace's diary in her room. Grace was a happy girl on the outside but apparently not on the inside. They find a page that's particularly interesting to them. It was Grace's bucket list. It was even more show more interesting because all the things on her bucket list were things she was afraid of. Mark and Hannah take on the duty of fulfilling all of Grace's things to do by the end of the year. With a new school year in the way and Mark's and Hannah's feelings for each other, could they ever finish Grace's bucket list?
I think the book was a very good book to read. It was heartfelt and the words felt natural and fluent in my head and as if i was reading it aloud myself. The balance between drama, romance, and death was perfect. When you read the book things just feel like it's happened to you yourself because of how emotionally attached you get to the characters. Overall, it was a good book show less