My oh my...I wasn't expecting this book to be what it was but man, I will definitely read more by this author in the future. Excellent world building, excellent character growth...cringeworthy parenting, grief and healing. Cringeworthy but accurate when dealing with loss, for sure. I related so much to Marlow and found his character lovable and raw. Four stars instead of 5 cuz I figured out the bad guy...bumping it back up to a 5 tho cuz the ending made me cry. Real tears of relief, sorrow...i don't know. I felt the pain I was supposed to feel. Honestly, if this author hasn't suffered real loss, there's something wrong. This book was spot on.