Stay With Me
Paul Griffin
Publisher: Dial
Release Date: September 8, 2011
Pages: 304
Source: Publisher

Rating: 5 stars

Fifteen-year-olds Céce and Mack didn’t expect to fall in love. She’s a sensitive A student; he’s a high school dropout. But soon they’re spending every moment together, bonding over a rescued dog, telling their secrets, making plans for the future. Everything is perfect. Until. Until. Mack makes a horrible mistake, and in just a few minutes, the future they’d planned becomes impossible. In this stark new reality, both of them must find meaning and hope in the memories of what they had, to survive when the person they love can’t stay.

Wow. There are really no words to explain my feelings for this amazing book! Raw and real, Griffin delivers an emotional read that will stick wither readers.

The first 50 pages or so were a bit slower paced, and I wasn’t as in to the story. All at once, I fell head over heels in love with it and didn’t want to put it down! Stay With Me is a very different kind of story, and the experiences the characters had were very interesting to read about, as it was a completely new world to me.

Griffin’s writing wove together a perfect story. Stay With Me was simply beautifully written. Every detail felt true, and I was transported into Cece and Mack’s world. There are a lot of raw, sadder moments, but they are perfectly balanced with moments of sheer happiness that will make you smile. Mack’s way with dogs and using it to save some of the less fortunate dogs made me smile.

The characters felt very authentic, and their voices true to their ages and what they had lived through. There was a wide range of characters that were all very different from one another. None of the characters were perfect, and finding out their flaws and insecurities was part of their charm. The characters all had different views on life, and seeing how they put them to use was very cool. Vic was so understanding and willing to give second chances – he is the kind of person we need more of in the world, so reading about him was a charm. I would put Anthony in the same boat, and say we need more people like him in the world as well.

The ending was one of the best parts of the book. The entire book was amazing, so I was worried about the ending and whether all the strings would be tied up. Griffin ends Stay With Me in the perfect way, bittersweet and full of hope.

Stay With Me is a book that needs to be read. It’s a book whose characters and lessons they learn will stick with you. Stay With Me is real and I book I couldn’t more highly recommend.

Cover Rating: B-  – I’m really not too crazy about this one, but I do love the puppy quite a lot.