I didn’t read “If I Stay”, but this didn’t deter me from enjoying “Where She Went” by Gayle Forman tremendously. In a way, it reminded me of one of my favourite movies “Before Sunset” because of the similarities in plot.

Adam Wilde, the protagonist has made it big as a rock star, but he is spiralling rapidly, smoking incessantly, and distancing himself from his band mates. I soon find out why - he’s raging and grieving over how his high school girlfriend, Mia, has left him without a single word. Mia is gearing up to be an accomplished cello player in her own right. She puts up a concert at Carnegie Hall, upon which Adam enters on a whim.

He intends to leave in obscurity, but Mia gets her personnel to be the messenger so that Adam can meet her backstage. Thus begins the tension-laden, passion-filled night that Adam and Mia spend together. They go bowling; they take a ferry to Brooklyn Bridge; but these activities take a backseat to the confrontational drama that eventually erupts between them. You see, Mia’s entire family was killed in a car crash. While Mia was hovering between life and death in the ICU, Adam made a promise that he would do whatever it took for her to have a second chance at life, even to the extent of leaving her.

Lest I get a tad metaphysical, Mia apparently remembers his promise. She chooses to cut off ties from him because she hates him for reviving her fighting spirit. She would rather die like the rest of the family.

Quite an explosive page-turner, isn’t it? Their trauma explains why I was glued to the book, desperate to find out if they would have a happy ending. I shall not spoil it for you. So, I will end this review with an example that clarifies why I enjoyed Gayle’s writing. She has a unique way of personifying stuff. Take for instance “fingers of light” and “caterpillar of anxiety”. Have never come across inanimate objects being described in this manner. Her words are sheer beauty.