Honestly I looked at the reviews this book had halfway through reading and was surprised that a lot of them were negative or very low rated. This book is 100% not your typical romance, and definitely not the first romance book I’d recommend someone. In summary, the protagonist, Leah, has just gone through a horrific event of losing her parents in a car crash. She’s in the car, lives, and is on a rollercoaster of emotions such as survivors guilt, while feeling nothing at all. She’s surrounded by people who coddle her and just accept that’s it’s been a year since the incident, and that she’s not her normal self anymore. Then comes Axel. He is asked to take care of Leah when Leah’s brother leaves town for work inevitably to support Leah and her future. The two build a strong bond as Axel helps Leah move through her pain and rediscover herself and her love for art and painting. What makes this a romance is that their special bond turns into something more. Yes they are 10 years apart, and Axel is like a big brother to her, but while reading and getting lost in the authors powerful language, analogies, metaphors, everything she uses to push this story to be what it is, I found myself in both Axel and Leah and every supporting character. It was beautifully written, and the end tied it together perfectly, and it’s like you almost realize small details you skipped over that you romanticize. That’s not a spoiler, again just speaking on the writers persuasion of the story. I look forward to reading the sequel and where it’ll take Axel and Leah together, or apart.