Overall Rating: 3.5 stars 
 The first thing that readers should know about this book is that it can be very triggering. The book goes over very dark topics including rape, cutting (self-harm), and suicide. Before reading this book, readers should ensure that they are in a healthy enough mental state to be able to cope with such topics -- especially if they can personally relate to them. 
 The first thing I'd like to discuss are the aspects that I liked about the novel. While the topics covered in this book are triggering, I really like the fact that Ellen Hopkins addressed them. Most of all, I like that it was addressed in a novel that is meant for teens to read. Teens are heavily affected by these issues -- as are some other age groups -- and I think it is important that they have novels they are able to relate to. Novels such as this one can help teens feel like they're not alone. Being represented in novels in an accurate way is not only a great way to help those who are struggling through these problems, but it is also a great way to bring awareness to the severity of these issues. 
 Now to move on to the aspects of the novel that I wasn't too fond of. There were moments of this book when I was completely captivated and eager to know what happened next. However, there was also several moments when I was disinterested in the novel and wanted to skip ahead. While I understand that Ellen Hopkins wanted readers to understand the despair that her characters felt, there were some times when it seems that she added many unnecessary details, and not all of her characters' misery seemed to have a point. In my opinion, some of the tragedies and secrets that her characters revealed seemed to me unnecessary mainly because they weren't clarified enough. Had she taken out some of the elements she wasn't going to bother delving further into later in the novel then I believe the story would have been better and more captivated. 
 It is completely possible -- and likely, even -- that my disinterest in the book arose because of my changing personality and changing taste in books. I gravitated towards books of this nature while I was dealing with these issues, and while I can appreciate them for what they are I no longer enjoy reading through them as much. But overall, I believe that Ellen Hopkins has written a great novel that would be good for most people to read.