There are no ruthless men with guns, no diabolical lawyers, no serial murderers. But something told me this book was 'the one.' And sometimes you just can't let a special book go.Ī novel about a teenage musician is a far departure from the traditional model of a thriller.

My first encounter with Gayle Forman's If I Stay began like most of my romances - for purely physical reasons. Some I bought for their covers, some for the feel of the paper, and some I had a genuine interest in - until a newer, glossier novel caught my eye. Were I to write my confessions, I would have to admit to buying books for purely aesthetic reasons. And that's where the book ends, as Mia's life is beginning anew.I cheat on books regularly. He also holds Mia's hand, and the combo of her two loves-Adam and cello music-bring her back to life. Adam returns, and he plays a Yo-Yo Ma track on his iPod. Mia loves music, and she loves playing cello. But she remembers her promising college opportunity at Juilliard. Mia soon learns that her little brother is more dead-y than Teddy, and she considers dying, too, in order to send the whole family down with the proverbial ship. Adam gets a musician friend of his to create a distraction, and he rushes in to see Mia-but he's pulled away by guards before he can touch her lifeless body. Her friend Kim brings Adam to the hospital, but he isn't allowed to see her. Mia doesn't want to wake up unless she sees Adam. She can choose to wake up, or she can choose to fade away into the darkness. Her dead parents aren't beckoning to her from beyond.

They're a match made in heaven… which isn't where Mia is going. He's hot, he's romantic, and her hip parents love him. They met because of their shared love of music. Mia has a series of flashbacks, some about her family, but mostly about Adam. Mia hopes her little brother, Teddy, is still alive, but the person she really wants to see is her boyfriend, Adam. Helpless, ghost Mia watches her body being airlifted to a nearby hospital and put on life support.Īs some sort of invisible spirit, Mia watches as her grandparents, relatives, and best friend Kim flock to her side. The body that she is currently out of is alive, but it's hanging on by a thread. Snow days should be less bloody, but Mia doesn't have a choice… yet.Īfter the fatal accident, Mia finds herself having an out-of-body experience. Okay, so the snow day is far from perfect.

A horrible car accident that kills almost the entire family instantly. Mia and her family get to enjoy a snow day at the beginning of If I Stay.

If i stay forman