Gone, Gone, Gone by Hannah Moskowitz

It's a year after 9/11. Sniper shootings throughout the D.C. area have everyone on edge, trying to make sense of the random acts of violence. Meanwhile, Craig and Lio are just trying to make sense of their lives.
Craig's crushing on quiet, distant Lio, and preoccupied with what it meant when Lio kissed him...and if he'll do it again...and if kissing Lio will help him finally get over his ex-boyfriend, Cody.
Lio feels most alive when he's with Craig. He forgets about his broken family, his dead brother, and the messed up world. But being with Craig means being vulnerable, and Lio will have to decide whether love is worth the risk.

This book left me speechless. Over the past two years, Hannah Moskowitz has climbed up to the top of my “favorite authors” list and Gone, Gone, Gone has secured her a tight spot up there. I’ve said this many times and I’ll say it again- Hannah knows how to write from a boy’s perspective so well, it’s amazing. Gone, Gone, Gone is told from the point of view of two gay teen boys during DC sniper shootings. This book isn’t just about the DC sniper shootings. The two main characters Craig and Lio are both so lovely. If they were real people I would do all in my power to know them because they were so real.

Hannah did a wonderful job portraying Craig and Lio and their relationship with each other, as well as their relationship with themselves. Fifteen year olds are angsty, and fifteen year old that have struggled with all that these to characters struggled with are even more angsty- that is why I loved them. In Gone, Gone, Gone the author doesn’t feed you bullshit about how even though these guy’s have completely effed up lives, they are fine with it. These characters are injured and they know that. Hell, even one of them continuously admits to himself and to other people that he is effed up. This book isn’t just about what went on in DC. It’s about two boys who are struggling with love, themselves, death, coping with normal crap that teenagers face, and genuinely trying to find where they fit in.

The writing was just as amazing as the characters. I read this book in way less then a day and even right after reading it, I feel the need to reread it over and over again. This is true for all of her books but the reason I love Hannah Moskowitz’s writing is that it is so raw and truthful that you can’t help but feel for the characters and the story in general. Reading Gone, Gone, Gone felt so natural it was unreal. The writing fits together fluidly and everything aligns just right.

I cannot wait to read the books Hannah has coming up next because each one is even better than the last (if that’s even possible). These books resonate with people in a way that a lot of books don’t. Even though I don’t remember when the sniper shootings happen* because I was either 4, 5, or 6 when it happened- I felt like I was right there feeling everything with the characters. That’s how you know when a book is good.
This, dear readers is what a proper good book looks like. I wholeheartedly recommend you read it, because if you don’t you will be missing out on one of the best YA books to be published in years.
FTC- Simon and Schuster GalleyGrab

*I also don’t remember 9/11.