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I’ve been getting a bit sick of light reads recently and would love something to really sink my teeth into, but when I set those feelings aside I found that I enjoyed this a lot.

A simple story i.e star-crossed lovers, well, not quite the lovers bit and you’ll understand why if you read it. The story was told from the point of view of Poppy, a seventeen year-old girl who suffers from panic attacks. She doesn’t know why the panic attacks started over two years ago and why they seem to be worse when she’s in close proximity to Noah, the good-looking guitarist from a local band.

She starts going out with Noah after her panic attacks subside and the majority of the book chronicles their relationship. This would usually get boring, but it was structured in a way that gave me just enough at the right time.

Although the majority of the narrative is told from Poppy’s perspective, there were a few chapters scattered throughout the book which followed a doctor and her assistant as they monitored some indeterminate data. I wasn’t sure what this meant at the beginning, but the more we find out, the clearer it becomes that the data that they’re monitoring relates to Poppy and Noah’s relationship. When this aspect of the plot was realised it added a unique twist to what would have otherwise been a tired format. I was starting to find the whole thing a bit cringe-worthy, but then the twist kicked in and it picked up.

The characters are what I read Holly Bourne for. I don’t tend to go into it for plot because I know that the strength of her characters will, in all likelihood, supersede that and the plot’ll become secondary. Obviously the plot needs to be a little interesting, but it’s not my main concern. Anyway, Poppy and Noah were lovely characters. Holly Bourne’s secondary characters are always really well-done, as well, and never one-dimensional. In this book it was Ruth who provided the grit that balanced the nicety.

A simple story at it’s core, this was a surprisingly unique read in its completion.