Goodreads Synopis: What if you’d been living your life as if you were dying—only to find out that you had your whole future ahead of you?
When
sixteen-year-old Alice is diagnosed with leukemia, her prognosis is
grim. To maximize the time she does have, she vows to spend her final
months righting wrongs—however she sees fit. She convinces her friend
Harvey, whom she knows has always had feelings for her, to help her with
a crazy bucket list that’s as much about revenge (humiliating her
ex-boyfriend and getting back at her arch nemesis) as it is about hope
(doing something unexpectedly kind for a stranger and reliving some
childhood memories). But just when Alice’s scores are settled, she goes
into remission.
Now Alice is forced to face the consequences of
all that she’s said and done, as well as her true feelings for Harvey.
But has she done irreparable damage to the people around her, and to the
one person who matters most?
Julie Murphy’s SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY is a fearless and moving tour de force about love, life, and facing your own mortality.
“I knew how to die. It was the living that scared me.” - Alice
Side Effects May Vary is told in two different points of view and also in two scenarios (then and now). I found this a bit confusing but I managed.
At first I hesitated to read this book because I'm kind of tired of books with characters doing the bucket list thing but I decided to give it a try. I read it as an ebook. I ended up loving it. I fell in love with the way it was written. It was simple. Simple but beautiful.
I know some readers think that Alice's character is hard to like. She's stubborn and some would say "bitchy." I will leave it to you to find out why is that (if you decide to read it) It was interesting to read about a stubborn lead character because most of the books I've read deals with not so bitchy girls haha (if you know what I mean) Alice may be emotionally wrecked but she was still able to gather the strength to overcome the challenges in her life. I mean, she is informed that she has leukemia then she does the things she wants to do before she dies (written in "the list") then after all that she goes into remission...AHHH
Okay now, Harvey. I instantly loved him! He's the kind of guy who would do anything for the girl he loves. I kind of pity Harvey because he goes through a lot of effort to show Alice that he loves her but Alice is afraid to admit her feelings for him.
This is a book full of emotion and sass *cough* Alice *cough* Definitely worth the read!
- Alex
