It was hard to imagine a follow-up to "If I Stay" and this was pretty brilliant. Reading about Adam's problems got a little tedious in the middle, but I think the reader had to experience it for the ending to be so effective. I cried, and then I cried again after I skimmed the acknowledgments and she wrote, "And finally, thank you to the booksellers, librarians, teachers, and bloggers. For helping books take flight." Feeling a little emotional, I guess. I loved how the power of music is such a big part of the book, too. 
 Since the characters are a few years out of high school, I'm not sure how much middle-schoolers would enjoy it.