Review: Saving June

Saving June
Hannah Harrington
Publisher: Harlequin
Release Date: November 22, 2011
Pages: 336

When her older sister commits suicide and her divorcing parents decide to divide the ashes, Harper Scott takes her sister's urn to the one place June always wanted to go: California. On the road with her best friend, plus an intriguing guy with a mysterious connection to June, Harper discovers truths about her sister, herself and life.

Saving June is a breathtaking and heartbreaking novel. I loved every minute of it, from the premise to the characters. It has everything that I love in a good contemporary: music-heavy, a road trip, a hot guy, a well-done friendship. 

Even though this book may seem a bit depressing, I think that in the end it can be uplifting. The main story line is about a girl going across the country to spread her sister's ashes after she commits suicide. But even though it's the main thing, throughout the book it takes a back seat. The books deals with so much more. That's one thing I really liked about this book: how real it was. 

I also really liked the characters of the book. Harper was grief-stricken from her sister's suicide. One of the things she always struggled with was that her sister was the good, perfect one, and Harper, well, wasn't. I found that despite everything she was going through, Harper was still very selfless. Most the time she would put other people before herself, although I would understand if she didn't. 

One thing I really liked about this book was the friendship. Now and days, you really don't find a good friendship in YA. Usually the best friend is rude or annoying or selfish, in a way meant to juxtapose the main character. But that wasn't the case in Saving June. But that wasn't the case with Laney. I felt that Laney and Harper's friendship was real.

Two things a love to read about: road trips and an emphasis on music. This book had both. I loved reading and hearing about the different bands and songs throughout the book. And I just love road trips, so that was a plus.

There were a few cliche's in this book, like any contemporary with a mourning sibling. But I was able to overlook those. 

Overall, Saving June was a great read. Like I said, even though it's a book about grief, I think that it has on overall uplifting effect. I was fully invested in all of the characters. Definitely a book I recommend.