This book was okay, but I wouldn't say I loved it or would want to read it again. I can't say I particularly liked any of the characters, except Matt, and he died at the beginning of the book. Frankie was annoying, Anna was annoying in how she constantly worried about erasing Matt or "cheating on his ghost," and Red and Jayne just seemed too out of touch with their daughter. That being said, I did tear up a couple of times reading this, just because of the subject matter: parents losing a child, a sister losing her brother, a young girl losing her first love and everyone trying to cope in their own separate ways but nobody really asking how everyone else is doing. This being a book aimed at young adults, I can see a teenager reading this book and probably marking it as a favorite, with all of the talk of boys, beaches, clothing, make-up and young love. With THAT, the author does know how to appeal to her target audience. ( )

This was a rather simple teen book with an interesting backstory.

The goal of meeting twenty guys a day was fun in theory but in reality felt extremely forced, both to Anna and to me as the reader. In the beginning, there wasn't enough attention placed on Matt, but in the end there was too much. I felt like the balance was really hard to achieve realistically and I feel like it fell flat. There was also really barely ten guys, and in that regard I didn't get what I was expecting from this book.

The parts I enjoyed most were the parts about Matt and Anna in the past. The recollections of their time together was incredibly sweet, and details like them both keeping frosting stained clothes as mementos were very touching.

A year after the fact, dealing with Matt's death is challenging to Anna and Frankie, but I found myself unable to connect with them or really relate. They both needed to grow up a lot, especially in regards to events at the end.

Anna's relationship with Sam, one of the twenty guys, also had me gritting my teeth and feeling uncomfortable. I'm not really sure why she was interested him or in Matt because I barely got to know them at all.

The premise of this book was strong, but I really just didn't love the writing. ( )

i read this in middle school and absolutely cried the entire time. ( )

I'm glad their friendship was saved.

One tragedy - too many broken lives.

I'm not sure how to feel about the whole Sam thing. I guess I'm glad that someone managed to remind her that life goes on. A summer fling. I wonder how that feels.
I hope Anna and Sam can keep their friendship over the great divide of distance.
Grief is an ugly beast.

VERDICT: It okay ( )

LOVED this, such a solid read. Parts of the story had me giggling out loud, the author's descriptions are just so great. I could totally relate to Anna, as the shy, more awkward best friend being slightly overshadowed by Frankie, the more outspoken of the two.

Not every aspect of this book is light or carefree, as both Frankie and Anna learn to deal with the tragic death of someone close to them. The characters and emotions in this book are so heartfelt and real, and I really liked how the author shows how people deal with tragic events in such different ways. This book is one of my favorites of the summer so far! ( )