In a move reminiscent of Amy Efaw’s After (2009), Graham takes a vilified behavior—in this case, stalking—and assigns it to her protagonist, and along the way manages to generate a surprising amount of sympathy. Seventeen-year-old Carly is a normal girl: she’s got a good family that is nonetheless drifting apart and a best friend growing distant as college looms. Most importantly, though, she has Brian, the cute bass player of a band that is seriously on the rise. As the band’s popularity skyrockets, Carly mishandles her jealousy over the growing number of groupies and ends up dumped. The chance discovery of Brian’s new flame starts her along a path that seems fairly harmless to Carly—Graham gets inside of her head to an impressive degree—even as it becomes legally criminal. Graham starts with the stalking and backtracks, successfully bestowing a bit of whiplash on her readers. It’s a patient read heavied with lots of character development, so mileage will vary, but there’s no doubting the intelligent structure and execution.
— Daniel Kraus