This book has – if you’ll pardon the pun – so much heart!

Jesse Spark is the lovable lead, a teenage film-maker who finds out he needs to have open heart surgery. He sets out to make the zombie movie of his dreams, despite growing tensions between his best friends, and a complete lack of budget or equipment.

We join the friends on the adventure as they pull together a cast, locations, make-up artists, and everything they need for the film. It was laugh-out-loud funny, the mishaps they got themselves into, but they always managed to pull it off despite the odds.

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I will admit that, at the start of the book, I thought I knew exactly where the story was going, and I was still fully committed to the ride. Over the course of the book, though, the story changes direction ever so slightly, until we see just before Jesse does what the true ending will be. It kept me on the edge of my seat and very emotionally invested!

One of the big themes of the book is that of body image. Jesse knows that gay men are often held to incredibly high standards when it comes to their appearance, and he’s afraid that once he has the operation – and a scar on his chest – he won’t be considered datable. One of his best friends, Morgan, has felt insecure about how she looked her whole life, and while Jesse and their other friend Cas do their best to help her, she sees doesn’t find any validation in what they say. I thought these issues and storylines were handled really well. I also appreciated that the author didn’t go into the specifics of Morgan’s appearance, such as her exact weight or clothes size, because these insecurities can plague someone no matter their appearance (and also avoids giving a number to ‘too big’ or ‘small enough’).

There was also excellent narration from Chris Nelson, who brought all the characters to life so vividly.

I received a free copy for review. All opinions are my own.