Review: I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios

I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios 

Publishing Date: February 3, 2015
Publisher: Henry Holt & Company, LLC, Books for Young Readers - An imprint of Macmillan Children's Publishing Group
Pages: 400 pages
Young Adult Contemporary Fiction

The premise: The story follows Skylar Evans and Josh Mitchell, two individuals from Creek View, that are basically aquaintances and co-workers at a quirky motel, "Paradise". Skylar, who is dealing with her mother and the loss of her father, dreams of a life away from Creek View where she can explore museums and collage. Josh on the other hand, has an experience that changes his life completely. He travels to Afghanistan as a Marine and returns home without one of his legs. Reunited upon Josh's return, the two find themselves getting to know each other and becoming friends.

My overall thoughts and review: When I first heard about this book, I thought to myself that it was going to be a typical YA love story, but it is actually so much more than that. I really enjoyed this book so much. It captures not only the struggles one would feel deciding one's future, being in their last year of highschool, worrying about what college/university will bring to them. But it also captures those that don't choose to go that route like Josh. Furthermore, it depicts the inner workings of these characters so well. We get to know Skylar and Josh's family and what we learn only makes us feel for them even more. I really enjoyed that everything wasn't quickly paced and it dealt with things in a really honest and raw way. I appreciated that it didn't "sugar coat" certain things. Demetrios goes to great lengths to capture Josh after his experience in the war and the anxieties that he felt coping with regular everyday once he returned. I don't want to say much without spoiling it, but I just really enjoyed how "real" it felt to me. Demetrios is also such a wonderful writer. I loved how she really captured the atmosphere the characters were in and I loved how diverse the text was. Certain passages really resonated with me such as this one:

"Why is it that some people in the world get to wake up in beautiful houses with fairly normal parents and enough food in the fridge while the rest of us have to get by on the scraps the universe throws us? And we gobble them up, so grateful. What the hell are we grateful for?" (160). 

I loved seeing such strength in both protagonists. Although the majority of the book takes place from Skylar's point of view, there are miniature chapters in between it all from Josh's perspective. I am a huge fan of the dual-POVs because it just builds the story so much. All in all, this was a lovely read. I was grinning like a mad woman by the end of it. If you are looking for a good YA contemporary romance, then I'll Meet You There is definitely the one you should check out!

My rating of the book: ✮✮✮✮✮ (5/5 stars) 

Now available for purchase at: 
Chapters/Indigo

Also for my US readers, right now Heather Demetrios is offering a sweet promo on her blog if you PRE-ORDER the book which you can read more about here!

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by Raincoast Books for consideration/review. All opinions are my own.