Zac and Mia, by A.J. Betts

Blurb

"When I was little I believed in Jesus and Santa, spontaneous combustion, and the Loch Ness monster. Now I believe in science, statistics, and antibiotics."

So says seventeen-year-old Zac Meier during a long, grueling leukemia treatment in Perth, Australia. A loud blast of Lady Gaga alerts him to the presence of Mia, the angry, not-at-all-stoic cancer patient in the room next door. Once released, the two near-strangers can’t forget each other, even as they desperately try to resume normal lives. The story of their mysterious connection drives this unflinchingly tough, tender novel told in two voices.

       Zac and Mia (57%) was an okay book to get me out of my reading slump, but not something I would recommend as a quality romance novel. If you had The Fault in Our Stars and took away John Green's amazing writing style and flow, you would get Zac and Mia.
       For me, the flow of the story wasn't really there. There were lots of events, but some of them never really connected to anything. One page was in the hospital, the next was with Mia and her boyfriend, the next was at Zac's family farm two months later. I was confused on multiple occasions where they were and how much time had passed.
       I didn't feel like the character development was very real, either. Mia seemed to change from a moody teenager into someone very wise and caring in a matter of a chapter or two. She was never someone I could relate to or even feel bad for at times.
       I did, however, really like Zac's character. He always had a positive outlook on his situation. I especially liked how he called his bone marrow transplant Helga. It made me smile every time.

Review

       What did you think of A.J. Betts's novel? Let me know in the comments below!

As she breaks out of her reading slump like an egg,
Ashton

Perhaps courage is simply this spur-of-the-moment acts when your head screams don't, but your body does it anyway.” 
― A.J. Betts, Zac and Mia