Read for the first time on December 31 2013 - January 2 2014

Where to even start with this amazing book! I am so glad that this was the one I chose to read as my first book of 2014 and it has raised the bar high for all the books to follow. When I finished it, I had to just lie there for a while and take it all in, it's one of those stories that just reaches out and grabs you by the heart and you can't help but become invested in each and every character.

I normally find characters like Lou a bit annoying, stuck in a rut and not doing anything to get out of it but complaining the whole time about their life but Lou seemed quite happy stuck in her rut until Will began to open her eyes and actually made her experience what she was missing out. I love how you discover things about the general story that you would never have guessed from reading the back of the book so most things come as a big surprise (such as why Lou was on a six month contract and her fear of the maze). But Lou charmed me with her bright personality and even brighter clothes. And Will, darling Will who was dealt the most cruel of hands in life....from his Christy Brown impressions to his sarky sarcastic comments, you have to love him because underneath it all you can see the man he used to be, the bright vibrant amazing man that he was. It's so terribly tragic and that's not even the worst part.

I really hoped the ending would be different but deep in my heart,I knew it wouldn't be. I still wasn't prepared for the sobs I had to hold back as I read the final pages. This is a book that will make you cry and laugh, sometimes simultaneously, and flip your heart upside down and inside out. Read it. Now.