ARC Review: Things We Know by Heart by Jessi Kirby

Things We Know by Heart by Jessi Kirby (April 21, 2015)
304 pages
Genre: Young Adult/Contemporary
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: I received a free arc at ALA Midwinter! Thanks Harper! This didn't affect my honest review.
Purchase: Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Amazon
My Rating:

Goodreads Summary: When Quinn Sullivan meets the recipient of her boyfriend’s donated heart, the two form an unexpected connection.

After Quinn loses her boyfriend, Trent, in an accident their junior year, she reaches out to the recipients of his donated organs in hopes of picking up the pieces of her now-unrecognizable life. She hears back from some of them, but the person who received Trent’s heart has remained silent. The essence of a person, she has always believed, is in the heart. If she finds Trent’s, then maybe she can have peace once and for all.

Risking everything in order to finally lay her memories to rest, Quinn goes outside the system to track down nineteen-year-old Colton Thomas—a guy whose life has been forever changed by this priceless gift. But what starts as an accidental run-in quickly develops into more, sparking an undeniable attraction. She doesn't want to give in to it—especially since he has no idea how they're connected—but their time together has made Quinn feel alive again. No matter how hard she’s falling for Colton, each beat of his heart reminds her of all she’s lost…and all that remains at stake.

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My Review

I knew before I even read this book that it was going to be memorable. I knew it was going to pull on my heart strings. I knew it would make a lasting impression on me. I just knew. So I took a deep breath, picked up Things We Know by Heart,  and braced myself for what I knew was going to be an emotional read. I actually became so engrossed while reading this book that I fell off the couch at one point! Talk about not paying attention to your surroundings while reading.

Quinn is a teenager who is traumatized by the death of her boyfriend. No young person should have to go through what Quinn did, but sadly it does happen. The writing was so poetic and beautiful, so much that I could feel Quinn's pain through the words on the page. I have dealt with the pain of having two friends pass away when they were younger so I felt a special bond with Quinn. I found Colton to be a true fighter. These two come together and try to appreciate life and not take it for granted. Reading about these two characters come together with their struggles and seeing how they need each other (they make each other better) pulled on my heart strings. I loved these characters. 

In my opinion, I think there are two very important things to take away from this book. First, be an organ donor if you can. I am already an organ donor and I think everyone should be. I know for some it is against their religion and I respect that. Personally, I think being an organ donor is very important and should be done. It could save a life, maybe several. (I don't think of anyone less who isn't one. I am simply giving my opinion on the matter.) The second significant thing I took away from this book, life is short. It really is. I am going to try and start thinking of that before I do something that I don't really want to do. I want to fit in as many crazy wonderful adventures that I can.

Things We Know by Heart is unique, memorable, and it gave me all the feels. I sped through it and cherished it. It was everything I thought it would be. I won't be forgetting this story any time soon. It may have been a tiny bit slow for some people's tastes in the middle of the book, but besides that I don't think I have a single bad thing to say about Things We Know by Heart. I simply think you should read it.