What's it about? Arlie is sixteen and living in Colorado with her mum, who's a meth addict. Right at the beginning, her mum Sarah dies of an overdose and Arlie's life is turned upside down. She's got an uncle she never knew in Texas who moves to become her guardian, even though he can only house them in a trailer. Arlie has started school thanks to encouragement from her friend Mo, and has a crush on someone from her choir, Cody. But there's danger lurking, because Arlie's stepdad Lloyd is back in the picture, and it's his fault that her face is badly scarred.
What age range is it for? 16+, there's a lot of adult themes in it.
Are any main characters LGBTQ+? Not that it's mentioned.
Are any main characters non-white? It's also not mentioned.
Are any main characters disabled either mentally or physically? Yes, Arlie is, and it's a pretty big part of her identity and character. Cody is blind, too, and I actually really like the way it's handled - like it's not a big deal.
Is there any sex stuff? Some, but age appropriate
Are drugs mentioned or used? Yes, there's some graphic descriptions of hardcore drug use
Is there any talk of death? Yes and some of it is quite graphic, hence my higher than usual age recommendation
Are there swear words? A few.
Would I recommend the book? Yes. I felt it was quite confusing, because it's slightly non-linear, and I also felt like it was too short, because things kept happening very quickly. But towards the end I got really invested in the story and the characters, which really upped my enjoyment of it. It's a good novel, but it took me a while to get into it.
How many stars? Seven out of ten.
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