Since Bo lost his girlfriend, Sofía, his world has been upside down. They both attended Berkshire Academy, a boarding school for troubled youth, but Bo likes to believe he knows the truth: that the school is for kids with special abilities. After all, Bo can time travel. That’s how he lost Sofía in the first place; he left her behind in the past. While everyone else seems to believe Sofía committed suicide, Bo know he can get her back using his powers. Fighting the government officials always watching and even those he once considered friends, Bo is left not knowing who to trust.

“A WORLD WITHOUT YOU is an powerful and heartbreaking story that is unlike anything I have ever read previously.”

Reading this book was an experience like no other for me. A WORLD WITHOUT YOU made my head spin page after page, making me just as unsure as Bo. The book was fast paced and was impossible to put down. The powers each character had were intriguing and the parallels between Bo’s fantasy and reality were extremely well written.

One of my favorite things about the novel was how it was written in alternate point of views between Bo and his sister. Hearing his sister’s view on all of the events was incredibly interesting. In novels about mental illness, we barely hear direct thoughts from the people around the protagonist so it made the novel very refreshing. Besides that, the role Bo’s family played was very well done. In books dealing with mental illness, we don’t see the full impact the illness has on outsiders, but A WORLD WITHOUT YOU includes that with lots of detail.
 
Though there were many aspects I enjoyed, the book was not what I expected. I thought we would hear more about Sofía and Bo together and their love story. When that wasn't included, it was harder for me to cheer on Bo to save Sofía. Also, I would have enjoyed the novel more if I didn’t know it was centered around mental illness. It would have made the plot more suspenseful and the overall story more impactful.
 
A WORLD WITHOUT YOU is an powerful and heartbreaking story that is unlike anything I have ever read previously. The different narratives make it stand out from the other books on the same topic. I recommend it to anyone who wants to read a book dealing with mental illness that breaks away from the traditional narrative.