AN UNDERRATED YA FANTASY MASTERPIECE. That's what this book is.

Tortured teens. Telepathic abilities. Wintery small town setting. Dysfunctional blood families and functional found families. And so much representation that made me feel so so seen!!!!!!

Gosh, I have once again found a book that has shaken me and spun me around and turned me upside down to the point where I am almost dizzy and delirious and struggling to form thoughts into words into a review. With immersive writing and characterization reminiscent of Shatter Me and Solitaire, the ride is so good it not only feels but IS real to you. It's something of an artistry. It was slightly frustrating reading my ebook copy because I just wanted to annotate and doodle and POUR my thoughts onto the pages of this book. (I did it digitally, but it's not the same). Nevertheless, I greatly enjoyed my reading experience.

These characters are so so special. There's Aiden, a neurodivergent empath hiding behind her protective shield of lies and Cole, an autistic insomniac whose own shields hide a horrific past. I found pieces of myself in both of them. Aiden's heightened sensory input and protectiveness towards her family (at the expense of her own well-being) and Cole's love for black coffee and cinnamon and his inability to fall asleep... These are all things I relate to so deeply! And the way these experiences are written? It's like having my brain exposed. I particularly loved how all these things that we (I) usually hate about ourselves (myself), all these "issues" that inhibit the lives of many, are reimagined as supernatural abilities. While still maintaining all the struggles and difficulties of experiencing/having them! The side characters are equally delightful, and I especially adored Layla, the Afghan best friend. She's a MUSLIM who wears HIJAB, just like me!!! :D 

Told mostly from Aiden's POV, I felt like I've been living in her brain these past few days. Somewhere between the relatability and immersion, I lost distinction between reading and experiencing. Where did I end and where did Aiden start? I both experienced her as a real person and experienced myself AS her. I can't explain. This book is just magic, okay? I felt Aiden's hurt and I felt Aiden's love (especially as her feelings grew for a particular sleep-deprived cinnamon roll). I felt this story with every fiber of my being.

I want to fill my bedroom walls with the words of this book. Not just a few quotes, but I need all 500+ pages of this book layered down as wallpaper.

Props to the author. Because that was incredible.