I am totally in love with this book -- I devoured it in two days. I even cried a little. 
 It all comes down to the main character. Max is an intersex teen who has always identified as a boy, but certain catastrophic events lead him to question who and what he is. I just adored him. To his peers he's perfect: a talented soccer player, beautiful to look at, an excellent student. They have no idea the pain and confusion he's going through, especially because he can't talk to anyone about his secrets, not even his parents, and least of all, the girl he likes. He's so sweet and vulnerable, I just wanted to pet him and tell him everything would be alright. 
 This book has been compared to another story featuring an intersex teen: Annabel by Kathleen Winter. Personally, I thought it was far and away the better of the two. Unlike with the oddly dispassionate Annabel, this book drew me into Max's emotional struggle; everything he felt and thought and did felt true, even when the plot veered a little too close to melodrama. 
 The book isn't perfect. It's structured as a first-person round-robin, alternately giving you Max's perspective, everyone in his family, his doctor and his girlfriend. While Tarttelin nails Max's voice, she's less successful with the other characters. Their chapters sometimes feel too didactic as the characters explain Max's situation or their own decisions. In the case of Max's parents, the chapters sound more like written confessionals than insights into who they are. But it is interesting to see how each character responds to Max and his situation; I just wonder if it might have worked better in third person. 
 Whatever its flaws, a book that elicits such a visceral reaction from me is always an immediate favorite, and I highly recommend it.