If you aren't already an organ donor, you will be after you read this one! Excellent YA read. ( )

CW: Death of young person due to illness.

3.5 Stars ( )

A wonderful read with well-drawn characters and great pacing. Normally, I would rate a book like this 4 stars but I sense it's getting underloved because of the sad ending which it doesn't deserve so I'm trying to compensate. ( )

“I wish it didn’t have to be like this: all or nothing. I wish I didn’t have to chase highs to try and banish the lows. I wish normal could be good enough.”

I wasn’t expecting to become so immediately hooked to Lia’s story, but I just couldn’t put The Arrival of Someday down. We follow Lia Linehan, proud activist and roller derby enthusiast, as she must face her need for a liver transplant. Lia is determined to stay strong and renounce all pity directed her way, but soon learns that distractions aren’t always the best ways to evade your problems.

Things I Liked
I really enjoyed the hints of romance between Lia and Will. It’s mostly just flirting, with nothing too heavy or distracting, but I did enjoy it and I appreciate that it didn’t pull focus from Lia’s journey and growth.

It was such a small thing in the story, but Lia’s Words with Friends game with her brother was super endearing to me. It helped show the basis for their relationship and I loved that the words they used were relevant to the plot.

This story had such strong family moments and I was here for each one of them. Allowing yourself to confront your emotions from here mom and embracing the unknowing and the ‘whys’ of life with her dad. They were all so good and showed how much they cared for each other.

There was this great conversation about bravery vs bravado that was super intriguing. The internal vs external notions of courage and how your self view influences your reactions for life’s uncertainties.

Things I Didn’t Like
Some of the activism things in the story were a bit cheesy, especially Lia and Sibby fighting the dress code. I loved that they both fight for what they believe in and to right injustices of all kinds, but it was a little heavy handed at times.

The ending didn’t hit me like I expected. Or at least not right away. I appreciate how realistic and honest it was, but my immediate reaction was indifference, I think. But on reflection, I think I have a more emotional reaction. But there was a weird and unexpected disconnect I hadn’t expected to experience.

Though I did have some emotional distance from the ending of the story, I thoroughly enjoyed The Arrival of Someday. It’s a journey of personal acceptance and embracing the right to say “I don’t know” to life’s questions.
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Amelia Linehan was busy being a badass during her last year of high school. She had few worries – her parents are cool, if dorky, she received notification of her early acceptance into Amherst, and she and her best friend Sibby are kicking ass on the roller derby track. But one day all that comes crashing down – her rare liver disease, diagnosed at birth and which she had almost forgotten, suddenly flares up and everything is changed. She becomes a victim in the eyes of every one, which she hates. Amelia is not prepared for the consequences of what is happening to her body. Without a liver transplant, she will surely die before she can put any of her plans into action and her adult life even really begins.

The author has written a pitch-perfect YA book perfectly capturing the horrid reality of the effect her character’s disease has on her future – or lack thereof. Malone has created a character who is charismatic, compelling, and very real.

If you are looking for a very well-written book with characters so well-drawn that you’d like to spend time with them, this is the book for you. You’ll be tempted to speed read this book, but don’t. You don’t want to miss the carefully crafted nuanced writing, the humor, sometimes morbid, and Amelia’s longing to be “normal” again.

This is a must read book that deserves to be at the top of your TBR list.

Thanks to Edelweiss and Harper Teen for an eARC. ( )