This book was a really interesting exploration of grief, trauma, and friendship, and it was written very well. I was pleasantly surprised, because when I read the synopsis I totally thought it was going to be your straight-up romance with Otis falling in love with Meg and blah blah happily ever after, but that wasn't the case.

The writing was gorgeous, and the characters really stood out - all of them were very well-written. I especially liked Dara, Otis's one-armed swim coach. She had a really big character presence and I really enjoyed her and Otis's friendship. Meg was nice too, and it was really interesting seeing this web of relationships.

Spoiler

One thing I really appreciated is that the book seemed to value friendship over romance, as Otis constantly chooses Dara over Meg. It's not something you usually see in YA.