A cruise is not where Natalie wanted to be for her seventeenth birthday. Ever since the love of her life, Paul, died in a car accident one tragic day a few months ago, Natalie can’t help but mourn him months later. Ever since then she constantly wonders if she could have done something to prevent it.

To cheer her up, her parents are taking her and her three best friends on a “sail-a-bration” cruise, which is the last place she wants to be right now. The first night on the boat, Natalie and her friends are in the teen lounge hanging out when she runs into a mysterious guy. She immediately feels the sparks flying between them. She knows she shouldn’t be ready for a new fling, but she feels connected to this guy for some reason. They start hanging out that night on one of the ships many decks, but when she gets back from her room to change into a bathing suit, he’s gone.

"THE OPPOSITE OF HERE was like nothing I have never read before.... It was a fast-paced, easy to read story.... I was not able to put it down!"

Natalie takes that to heart and starts obsessing over him…why would he ditch her? Is he okay? She keeps returning to their conversation they had that night, and something about it bothers her. Some of the things he was saying to her that night he disappeared makes her believe he may have jumped over the railing. Natalie’s friends don’t think that that is something to worry about, especially after the ship’s headcount came back without any missing numbers. Something about that night doesn’t sit well with her, and she has to figure out what’s actually going on.

THE OPPOSITE OF HERE was like nothing I have never read before. I usually don’t read mysteries, and this was a great first experience! I really enjoyed this book, it introduced a whole new genre of reading for me. It was a fast-paced, easy to read story. I was able to read it in one sitting, and that is a good thing! I was not able to put it down! When I first started this book, I didn’t know what to expect. At first, it seemed like any other book about a girl losing her boyfriend, but that belief changed completely as I kept digging into the story.

There were some parts of this book that I did not like. Natalie repeatedly referred to events from her past that just added more to the story than was necessary. Some things just seemed completely separate than what the story was actually about. There are some parts of the book I found confusing at times because Natalie would feel one way about her friends, and the next she is treating them very poorly.

I recommend this book to any teen who is searching for a fast-paced young adult novel that includes a bit of mystery and a lot of suspense.