It’s been three years since the devastating accident . . . three years since Mia walked out of Adam’s life forever.

Now living on opposite coasts, Mia is Juilliard’s rising star and Adam is LA tabloid fodder, thanks to his new rock star status and celebrity girlfriend. When Adam gets stuck in New York by himself, chance brings the couple together again, for one last night. As they explore the city that has become Mia’s home, Adam and Mia revisit the past and open their hearts to the future – and each other.

This story is told from Adam’s perspective three years after the events of If I Stay, which I think is brilliant because it makes you wonder right away, “what happened to Mia?” We do find out a few chapters in, as Adam does run into her while he’s in New York City, and the two end up spending a night together going to different places in the city, and learning to understand a little more of what they’ve gone through since Mia’s accident.

At first, I wasn’t sure if I’d like this sequel, but I was pleasantly surprised. Both characters didn’t disappoint because not only did we see Adam’s side of everything in the aftermath of Mia’s accident, but we eventually learn why these two didn’t stick together after that tragedy. Neither character fell flat; both were full of flaws that made them come alive off-paper, and I would believe that there’s an Adam and Mia somewhere out in the world right now. The real twist of the story is how Adam was the one who went on a downward spiral after If I Stay, when you would’ve expected it to be Mia. Which just goes to show how tragic events affect not only the person it happens to, but those around that person.

What I really love about this story is that it’s a second-chance one. Two people who are no longer in each other’s lives happen to meet again and reconnect, even if it’s just for one night, and learn why they fell apart and if they can fix it. I mean, there really is no fixing the past – what happened, happened – but there’s always that chance of possibly starting over and learning to move on from the past, which is what Adam and Mia have to decide when the sun rises on a new day.

This is a wonderful follow-up to If I Stay, so if you’ve read that and have had reserves about the sequel, I say you have no worries. And if you haven’t read either book, you should. They’re wonderfully heartbreaking and heartwarming.

Rating: 4/5 stars