Review: The Day Before by Lisa Schroeder

Title:		The Day Before
Author:		Lisa Schroeder
Publisher:		Simon & Schuster
Imprint:		Simon Pulse
Pub. Date:		06/28/2011
ISBN:		9781442417434
Pages:		320

Amber’s life is spinning out of control. All she wants is to turn up the volume on her iPod until all of the demands of family and friends fade away. So she sneaks off to the beach to spend a day by herself.


Then Amber meets Cade. Their attraction is instant, and Amber can tell he’s also looking for an escape. Together they decide to share a perfect day: no pasts, no fears, no regrets.


The more time that Amber spends with Cade, the more she’s drawn to him. And the more she’s troubled by his darkness. Because Cade’s not just living in the now—he’s living each moment like it’s his last.

(Summary and cover via Goodreads)

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Facing a life-changing event, Amber decides to take a day for herself. This book covers this one day Amber uses to spend some alone time at the beach. She doesn't spend it too alone however, as she soon meets Cade. They are instantly drawn to each other, and they are both spending a day trying to forget what the next day will bring.

This was a very enjoyable book. I found the characters to be introspective without being unrealistically self-aware. They felt very much like teenagers faced with these events. I believed their connection. It felt organic and real. I felt for them and the choices they were facing. Many times when you see this immediate connection between two characters, things feel very rushed. I think the author did a good job of making it realistic though.

This book is written in verse, which I think brought an interesting angle to the usual young adult story. This makes the book an extremely quick read, but I don't feel it suffer from the use of verse. In fact, I think that's one of the books strengths. There's a certain beauty to the starkness of the words. So much story and emotion is told in so few words. This book is proof that it's not the number of words you use but the power behind those words that matter.

Galley provided by publisher for review.