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I was given an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I would describe the Truth About Fragile Things as a YA coming-of-age romance. The book is very well written, and the premise of two girls drawn together in such a way is fascinating. I enjoyed the characters for the most part, but I'm sure they are best appreciated by readers who are themselves teenagers. I didn't really care for the way the romantic pairings turned out, but I can definitely say that the story was not predictable in the least. I would recommend this book for young adults and teens who enjoy sweet, adventurous stories. ( )

THE ESSENTIAL FACTS:

My name is Megan Riddick.
I am a junior in high school.
I killed a man when I was two years old.
It all started with a stuffed monkey and a butterfly.
I don't want to tell this story.

Powerful, right? Intriguing? Definitely. A fabulous read? ABSOLUTELY!

I received my copy of this eBook in exchange for a fair and honest review.

What should have been buried in the past comes back to haunt Megan Riddick during one of the most trying times of anyone's life - high school. At two years old, Megan had been chasing a butterfly and wandered out into the street in front of oncoming traffic. A young man named Bryon Exby saved her life, and in the process, lost his own leaving behind a wife and small child.

I don't remember the sirens or the screams from that terrible morning. I can't recall my mother's panic or the pain of my skinned knees. Not even Bryon Exby's strangely calm face when he looked up at the people who raced to him first. We found out his name that night when the hospital called and told us he hadn't made it. I learned all of that from other people, snatches of old news reports and witness accounts in the newspapers, and turned them into a memory that is mostly artificial. But I do remember the strange orange butterfly - bright as a drop of sun, brief as the gold light of a struck match. One flap of color that rippled and wrinkled all the fabric of fate and led me to the street where I would kill a man before I even knew my last name. And to this day the impossibly beautiful insect looks like nothing but death to me.

Megan believes the worst of herself, thinks that her small two year-old self chose to end Bryon Exby's life by running out into that street. No one she knows at school, not Alicia nor Phillip, her best friends, know about the story of the butterfly and man who saved her life. Megan hasn't been able to tell it, she has kept it quiet because of the guilt that she feels over her part in his death. This is possibly why when Charlotte Exby, the baby left without the guidance of her father, comes to find her, to offer her forgiveness for taking her father from her life even though she doesn't want to just because her father had it on his bucket list... I broke down sobbing. The relationship that is developed between first Megan and Charlotte, something tenuous and fragile forged by a horrible tragedy, turns into to something beautiful and familial involving Charlotte, Phillip and Megan.

Charlotte looked out across the empty auditorium and breathed in the power of the stage. I watched it happen as her shoulders relaxed and she leaned into one leg, comfortable, at home. "Maybe I don't hate her. She's the last thing of him that I have left. The last thing he did."

Phillip and Megan help Charlotte tick off the items on the bucket list one by one. This provides a kind of closure for both Megan and for Charlotte who both sorely need to experience something where they feel they can pay homage and respect to Bryon the Hero they never knew. Bryon's list takes them backpacking on Taum Sauk Mountain to watch a meteor shower while sleeping beneath the stars in hammocks slung between trees. It finds Megan relinquishing her lead in the school play to her understudy Charlotte so that the wish of performing on stage can be fulfilled. Bryan's list brings them closer together and brings both girls comfort and closure for what happened the day a little girl ran into the street after a pretty butterfly.



This is a beautifully written tale that took me on a roller coaster ride of emotions. I cried both tears of joy and tears of sadness, my heart soared for Charlotte when she found love, and it wept for Megan when it looked like she could lose her best friends. I watched these characters grow and fell in love with them as they struggled to find peace within themselves. Five stars well deserved and two overly enthusiastic thumbs up for a book that has captivated my heart and soul!



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I was given this book in exchange for an honest review on ebooksforreview.com. I thought I'd done my reviews, so sorry for the delay.
Our main character is Megan. I immediately fell in love with her, but felt so sorry for her at the same time. She's never felt worthy of simply being alive. When she was small, she ran out into the street and would've been killed-if it weren't for a man-taking the blow from the car for her. That man, Byron, was instantly killed-leaving behind a family of his own.
There's a new girl named Charlotte at Megan's school who stares at her and treats her unkindly. Come to find out, she is Byron's daughter. Charlotte has always known about Megan and is bitter that her father chose to leave behind her family-even if it was to save another.
Megan cannot handle the guilt and decides to befriend Charlotte. That's when she learns that Byron had a bucket list-a list of things he wanted to experience during his life. The girls band together to try to complete this list in his honor-adding a few things along the way. Charlotte wants to use this list to try to get to know her dad, since she has no memory of him. Megan wants to do it to honor him.
This is a story of loss, friendship, sacrifice and redemption. A very powerful read! ( )

"No one really hears you even when you're talking"

One of the best contemporary books I've read!

When Megan was two years old a man saved her life and gave his own in return. Fourteen years later that same man's daughter, Charlotte begins at her school and wants to talk to Megan. When he died her father left an unfinished bucket list that Charlotte now wants to finish with the help of Megan and Megan's best friend Philip. This is the beginning of a journey across America and is about forgiving others, and even harder, forgiving yourself.

Megan was a strong and relatable main character and I absolutely adored Philip with his quirkiness and that big brother role he put on himself. The character of Charlotte was beautifully written and her line about how she didn't think she was made to be happy was heartbreaking.

The theatre part was fun as well since all of the three main characters are in the school play, which is a big part of the story. Another nice thing that I enjoyed was Megan's relationship with her family and how supportive they where.

The only downside was the romantic relationships. There were two of them and they both felt a little rushed and unnecessary.

I think this book would make an amazing movie.

*I received this as a free ebook in exchange of an honest review ( )