Maddie’s older brother Josh died of cancer before he turned 30. He was the adventurous one, always trying to get Maddie to try new things and have fun. And this didn’t stop with his death: in his will he requested that she spread a portion of his ashes in each of the 8 states he never visited.
But Josh had one more trick up his sleeve, in that he assigned her a partner for her trips—Dom, his best friend. Maddie was in love with him for as long as she can remember, until one thing sent her running across the country to get away from him. Dom has always been a stickler for rules, so he’s not letting Maddie handle the ash-spreading herself, no matter how much vitriol she sends his way.
As they make each trip, there are awkward moments and emotional ones, as well as times when all Maddie wants is to be as far from Dom as possible. Along the way, they discover things about one another and each of their relationships with Josh, and Maddie realizes she must come to terms with her other fears and issues. She also must realize that her feelings for Dom have never dissipated; they’ve just grown stronger.
I’m a sucker for the found family trope, and I loved Maddie’s relationship with Dom’s family. Her mother and grandmother were written as one-dimensional monsters, and it broke my heart to see the way they treated her.
I wanted to love this book but it felt so schizophrenic to me. At times it was so moving and powerful; other times, Maddie was difficult to sympathize with and the miscommunication between her and Dom drove me crazy. It also got sooo steamy and it felt odd to me. But even with all that, I still cried, so…
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