Me Since You by Laura Wiess (ARC Review)

Release date: February 18 2014

Publisher: MTV books

Number of pages: 368

My rating: 4.5/5

This book left me an emotional wreck. It was so emotional, raw, and real. I loved almost every second of it, and it's one of the four books that have actually made me cry. (For some reason, I don't really cry while reading). 

Me Since You is about the events before and after the protagonist's father commits suicide. One day, he fails to save a man and his son from committing suicide off a bridge. He falls into depression and becomes hated on by most of the population. Rowan--the main character--feels guilty for setting off a chain of events that led to her father being called to the bridge. Eli, a

good Samaritan tries to stop the man and his son but fails. Rowan's father eventually commits suicide, and both suicides impact on every character in the book.

Rowan is a likable and realistic protagonist. She's upset and weak for more of the book--as expected--but she never becomes whiny and unreasonable. She's a bit of a rebel, and she does lash out a bit. 

Rowan's father is your typical hard-working, fully-committed-to-his-job kind of guy who obviously becomes very depressed. His transition throughout the book is shocking and sad.

The other secondary characters (Rowan's mom, Rowan's best friend, Rowans boss, Rowans grandparents, etc.) are all pretty cool. They're a pretty mixed bag, who all react differently to the suicide and the incident leading up to it. They felt real and awesome, even though not all of them are meant to be liked.

The only character who I felt was lackluster was Eli. Eli is a pretty big part in Rowan's life before and after her father's suicide. He was kind and easy to relate to. He has a pretty interesting back-story pertaining to the death of his father and how he got his dog. There isn't really anything wrong with Eli, but even though there was all this time spent of his awesome back-story, he felt underdeveloped. Apart from all the stuff about his dad and his dog, I don't know anything about him. Who are his friends? What does he do in his spare time? He has a big impact on Rowan. Despite his big part in the book, he doesn't appear nearly enough. He turns up for a good amount of time before the suicide, then drops out after the suicide. Why the hell is such a major character not even there for most of it? 

The suicide is completely realistic and the story moves in a good pace. Apart from the flaw with Eli's appearances and lack of information, this book is a fantastic, emotional book. I am definitely going to buy it, and will recommend it to anyone.

An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.