Review: Notes to Self by Avery Sawyer

Summary/Cover Image from Goodreads/Amazon:

Two climbed up. Two fell down.

One woke up.

Robin Saunders is a high school sophomore with an awesome best friend, a hard-working single mom, and a complicated relationship with a sweet guy named Reno. She's coasting along, trying to get through yet another tedious year of high school, when Em suggests something daring. They live in Florida-- tourist central--and Emily wants to sneak into a theme park after midnight and see what they're made of.

When things get out of control, Robin wakes up in a hospital bed and Emily doesn't wake up at all. Just getting dressed becomes an ordeal as Robin tries to heal and piece together the details of that terrible night. Racing to remember everything in the hopes of saving Emily, Robin writes a series of notes to herself to discover the truth.

Review:

If you're a long time reader of my blog/reviews, you'll probably know that I'm always up for a contemporary read. Therefore, when I first heard about Notes to Self by Avery Sawyer, I was beyond excited. It sounded like such an interesting read and with even a little mystery thrown in as well. Plus it sounded a similar to another all time favorite book of mine- Love You Hate You Miss You by Elizabeth Scott. Anyhow, I recently dove right into, and I ended up loving it! Suspenseful as well as insightful, Notes to Self is yet another excellent Indie published novel, one that has continued to give me hope in this area of books.

Notes to Self tells the story of Robin Saunders, a high school sophomore who recently had the worst night of her life. It all started when Em, her best friend, decided that they should climb to the top of an amusement park ride late at night. It would be something fun to do she said, but in the end, it ended up being nothing but deadly. Now Robin is facing amnesia, complicated feelings for an old friend, and guilt over the accident all without Em by her side. Plus that's not even adding in the fact that Robin knows they were was more to that night than she remembers. Now on a race to save her friend, Robin embarks on a journey like no other...but will she be able to save the day in time? Only time and more pages can tell in this intriguing and twisty read that will have nearly any reader on the edge of their seat.

From the first page, I was instantly hooked on Robin's story. Her voice, one filled with regret as well as hope, grabbed me and didn't let me go. Plus it didn't hurt that I thought she was a great character, one that was relatable as well as likable. Robin was someone who always thought she would be nothing without her extraordinary best friend, but in this, she found out that wasn't true and really evolved as a person because of it. It was always interesting to see her face new issues and dilemmas...ranging from her feelings over her old best friend Reno to her complicated relationship with her mother and father. The one character I liked as much as Robin, though, was Reno. He was so funny and sweet. I was always happy when he appeared on the page since he added such a great little spark to the book. I also enjoyed finding more about Em out..she was dangerous yet incredibly strong and I always felt a mixed bag of emotions about her.

The plot in this one was also incredible! I really enjoyed the mystery angle to the story as it caused for the book to move in a fast and furious pace, as Robin as well as I tried to piece together what happened that horrible night. I also loved the romance sub-plot, because it was sweet as well as cute, even though it didn't always go smoothly. Most importantly, Notes to Self is a book about self-discovery as well as coming to piece with what life throws at its core, and I thought Avery did a great job of making that happen.

Lastly, Avery's writing was excellent. I loved the addition of Robin's notes as well as how she split up the story into quick yet important segments. I also enjoyed the use of present test...as mentioned before, it let me be able to discover everything out at the same time Robin did. Plus it added a good little twist to the book to say the least.

In all, Notes to Self is an emotional and moving book, one that I highly suggest you pick up. Trust me..you won't regret it!

Grade: B+

Notes to Self (Amazon, Goodreads) is now out!

Source: Author- thanks Avery!