I liked the interesting dilemmas sixteen-year-old Dylan faces as the author takes readers to deeper levels of thinking and compassion. Along with having to deal with a pot-smoking, freethinking, tattoo-filled mother, Dylan meets a father she never knew existed, struggles with whether or not to become a bone marrow donor for a half sister she never met, wonders whether to have sex with her first boyfriend, and tries to hold on to a friendship that seems to be crumbling right in front of her eyes.

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I have picked this book up and put it back down again a few times since receiving it. I just can't get into the story. Passing it along to my local library.

Dylan is sixteen, the exact age her mother was when she became a single parent. Dylan knows nothing of her father other than the sketchy rare comments her mother makes about a one-night-stand. That is, until her father shows up in town and wants to meet her. Dylan’s mother has been lying about her relationship with Dylan’s father and this adds to the confusion his visit is causing. Not only is she shocked at his visit, but she is conflicted by the reason for his sudden interest. Mark, her Dad, has come to ask her to be tested to possibly help save his other daughter who has leukemia. How can Dylan say no and possibly doom her half-sister to death?
Dylan is a responsible teen who looks out for the environment and who hasn’t had a real dating relationship yet. Her best friend is now busy with a boyfriend and Dylan feels left out. Then a new boy, Jax, begins to pay attention to her and she is flattered but not really invested in the relationship. Jax wants more from her physically than she’s willing to give and that causes her more anxiety. Dylan has a supportive mother but she’s not a real role model – she’s into tattoos, drinking, marijuana and frank discussions with her daughter of her sex life with men she dates. Amanda – the mother – is not the typical parent in teen fiction yet she may be the reality for some teens today.
Dylan’s confusion and her struggle to come to terms with meeting a father and sister she never knew before, make Dylan a sympathetic character. Her willingness to try to help her half-sister is one indication of her good heart. The writing of the book flows smoothly and the story builds with good momentum. Characters are real and some are multi-dimensional. In particular, Dylan’s mother is unique in that her wild crazy ways do not relegate her to the status of unfit parent. She really cares about her daughter and one can understand why she made the choices about deceiving her daughter for so long. A quick read; teens should find it interesting. ( )

Even though 16-year old Dylan's life might be different from those of her readers, I think many teens can relate to her feelings. She's scared of death, feeling lonely now that her best friend has a boyfriend, and confused by her mother and some truths that are starting to emerge. Dylan wants to save the environment (she bikes everywhere) and would like her mother to act more like a mother sometimes. She's not sure if she'd ever like to meet the father she's never know and who she thinks has never wanted to meet her. Then a phone call changes everything. She'll question her sense of family and learn the truth about herself, her mother and her father.

I think the was a good read. It was a little predictable at times, but still kept me interested. Dylan's feelings of loneliness are ones I think a lot of teens can relate to. ( )

The cover: I like this cover. I think it is simple and striking compared to other covers that are out on the market right now. I like that it looks like a tattoo and that it ties into the story well. I really have nothing negative to say about the cover- it is very pretty. Another publisher (Penguin) has a YA title coming out this summer with a very similar cover, even the hummingbird tattoo. I wonder if that is just coincidence (it wouldn't surprise me).

The characters: I really struggled with the characters. I felt sympathetic for Dylan and for the struggles that she was facing, but I didn't like her very much. To be honest, with the exception of Karma and Dylan's dad and his family- I didn't really like ANY of the characters. It wasn't that they felt fake or flimsy- the characters were complete. The choices that they made made me angry! Every single character in this book was a "hot mess". I was hoping that someone normal would come along and save me from the craziness.

The story: I am incredibly conflicted about this story. On one hand- I really did enjoy this story. It was absolutely fascinating look at what it like for a girl to finally meet her real father after 16 years and the emotions that go through that meeting and developing a relationship. But this is not the first book I have read where every single teen is smoking pot, getting high, getting drunk, and having sex every night. Now I get that teens today are doing more, but really? This book was EXTREME. Am I really that disconnected from the world? The way this book was written- it made it sound like if you were a virgin or someone who didn't get trashed or high you were abnormal. Do I have any teen followers? Is this really true? I admit, I am almost 30, but I really am tired about reading about teens that are train wrecks waiting to happen. (But then again, maybe I am too stodgy). There are numerous mentions of sex in this book, drug use is a prevalent theme, and there are many mentions of getting drunk and of alcoholics, and one pregnancy scare. This was a good book, but not an uplifting one at all. ( )