I have read a few books now by Lauren Oliver and I can honestly say that she is one of my favourite authors.

This book was another wow.

“They say that just before you die your whole life flashes before your eyes, but that’s not how it happens for me.”

Samantha Kingston thought she was happy with her life, with who she was, until she died in a car accident.

Until she wakes up the following morning to relive that day over and over again, seven times.

And then she finally sees.

“I mentally try to add up all the things I’ve done in my life, but no clear picture emerges, nothing that will tell me what kind of person I am—just a lot of haziness and blurred edges, indistinct memories of laughing and driving around.”

Caught up in Lindsay's group, Sam loves the attention that comes with the power of being the 'populars' at school. Along with one of the most sought after boys by her side, life is almost perfect.

“A good friend keeps your secrets for you. A best friend helps you keep your own secrets.”

Stuck in time reliving her last day, Sam tries to find out why she's stuck in this vortex. Experiencing it all again, it is clear that she must find a way to undo what has been done. But the closer she gets, the more ugly things look.

“I mentally try to add up all the things I’ve done in my life, but no clear picture emerges, nothing that will tell me what kind of person I am—just a lot of haziness and blurred edges, indistinct memories of laughing and driving around.”

Seeing the damage she's inflicted, the pain she's caused, Sam finally starts to see the wrong and right.
The beautiful and the ugly.
The happiness and the fear.
The love and the hate.

And now she must make it right.

“Even before the accident I’m not sure that I was a whole person—that’s what I’m realizing now. And I’m not sure where the damage begins.”

She becomes a better person, appreciating the parts of her life and the people in her life that she dismissed for so long. Her eyes now open to the life she should have led, Sam is determined to save it all.

But saving herself isn't the key.

“It’s not supposed to go this way. I’m supposed to save you.”

I love Lauren Oliver's style. It's simple, meaningful, and light, with a slight weight to it.

This story was so beautifully written, it was thought provoking and had my heart spilling out on to the pages.

“You can see them every day—you can think you know them—and then you find out you hardly know them at all.”

I found the dialect perfect for Samantha's character. At the end, an honest 17 year old who lost herself and didn't mean for anything to turn out the way it did. She had changed without knowing it, had gone along and initiated things that she eventually looked back on with regret. She made mistakes, but she asks us, did she deserve this?

“Time and space recede and blast away like a universe expanding forever outward, leaving only darkness and the two of us on its periphery, darkness and breathing and touch.”

There was stunning imagery in this book. The reality of life, the haziness of death and that space in between, and Oliver never lost sight of the story. It was a joy to read and I was completely captured by her writing.

“I watch patterns of snow coming down at an angle as though flowing, cresting, breaking on a massive current, a tide that leaves the world glittering. It’s beautiful. All I can think is that it’s the first of many things Juliet won’t see.”

Sam was a wonderful character. I loved reading this story through her. Watching her come together piece by piece was so beautiful. She was a real character, and we got a glimpse into what girls like her are really all about.

And we also see the consequences.

The ending was bittersweet as just as she finally got her act together, Sam must sacrifice it all.

“They say that just before you die your whole life flashes before your eyes, but that’s not how it happens for me. I see only my greatest hits.”