Review: Maybe One Day by Melissa Kantor

Title: Maybe One Day
Author: Melissa Kantor
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release date: February 18th 2014
Source: Edelweiss
Format: eARC

Rating: 4/5

Buy on: Amazon | B&N | BookDepository

Zoe and her best friend, Olivia, have always had big plans for the future, none of which included Olivia getting sick. Still, Zoe is determined to put on a brave face and be positive for her friend.

Even when she isn't sure what to say.

Even when Olivia misses months of school.

Even when Zoe starts falling for Calvin, Olivia's crush.

The one thing that keeps Zoe moving forward is knowing that Olivia will beat this, and everything will go back to the way it was before. It has to. Because the alternative is too terrifying for her to even imagine.

In this incandescent page-turner, which follows in the tradition of The Fault in Our Stars, Melissa Kantor artfully explores the idea that the worst thing to happen to you might not be something that is actually happening to you. Raw, irreverent, and honest, Zoe's unforgettable voice and story will stay with readers long after the last page is turned.

Maybe One Day is compared (at least in the synopsis) with The Fault in Our Stars, a book that I have not read yet, so I can´t say if the comparison is true or not. Actually I think this is the first book I´ve read about a cancer patient (if I remember correctly) and the theme is a little difficult for me because my father died of cancer and although it was a different type of cancer that the one that Olivia had in this story, I could not help to relate with the story.

This is the story of seventeen year-old Zoe and Olivia, they have been best friends for thirteen years, they have always been just the two of them, had never been anyone more between them, they have gone to the same school, belonged to a professional ballet school, so they spend almost all the time together, at school, after school, at sleepovers, etc. (they are together 24/7). So when they learn that Olivia has a rare type of leukemia (at least for teenagers), which is very aggressive and needs immediate treatment, .... their world falls apart, since both are very dependent on each other.

The main idea of ​​the story and most importantly is FRIENDSHIP, because Zoe is always there for Olivia and how Olivia needs Zoe by her side in these difficult times between treatments and remissions. The friendship between them is pure, they never resent or envy the other, they literally know each other completely and they´re like family to each other.

The story is told from Zoe´s POV, and from the two of them, she´s doesn´t know what to do with her life, she doesn´t has the best feelings (because at the time she learns Olivia is sick, she wish that Jake, Olivia 's brother was the one that was sick and not Olivia), she´s a little bitter and snarky with her comments about other classmates ..... so Zoe is totally imperfect and there were times that I didn´t like her. Olivia meanwhile is a good person, she likes to help others, has good feelings and she´s stronger than Zoe. But both are very loyal to each other.

Overall, the most important in the book is the FRIENDSHIP between Olivia and Zoe, the way they complement each other and how they support each other during difficult times. There is a little bit of romance but not the focus of the plot. I really enjoy reading Maybe One Day, is a very emotional book and it made my cry (nothing new to me).

I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange of an honest review.