Bookish Brit Adam Gibson is one wonky heartbeat away from a fatal arrhythmia.

But staying alive requires Adam to become keenly focused on both his pulse and the many different daily medications he must take in exactly the right dosages. Adam's torn between wanting to live and knowing that someone else must die in order for him to do so. He needs a new heart. The pressure is getting to him. Adam stops talking to his friends back home, refuses to meet kids at his new school, and shuts his parents out entirely. His days are spent wondering if he can cope with having a dead man’s heart beating inside his chest, or if he should surrender to the thoughts of suicide swirling around in his head. And then a donor is found…

Outspoken artist Darby Fox

rarely lets anything stand in her way of achieving her goals. Whether it’s painting, ignoring her homework (dyslexia makes a mess out of words anyway), kissing a hot boy she doesn’t even know, or taking the head cheerleader down a peg, no one has ever accused Darby of being shy. She also happens to be the twin sister to a perfect brother with good looks, good grades, manners, and the approval of their parents - something Darby has never had.

Darby’s always had bad timing. She picks the worst time to argue with her brother Daniel. In a car with bald tires, on an icy road in the freezing cold, the unthinkable happens. In a split-second, everything changes forever. Daniel is brain-dead. Darby suffers a broken neck. Is Daniel’s heart the match Adam has been waiting for?

When Adam and Darby meet in the hospital

the attraction between them is immediate. Neither is aware of the connection they share through Adam’s receipt of Daniel’s heart. All they know is they both want to start over, making a pact not to talk about their pasts. Adam quickly becomes Darby’s muse and Darby becomes Adam’s lifeline, his reason to live. While Adam drafts his Live Life List and Darby picks up her paintbrush, their feelings for one another grow, right along with the one secret that could destroy them both forever.