I think this book tackles some important issues in an effective way. While I did grow to care about the outcome for certain characters I felt in general that the characters fell a little flat. I loved the flashbacks and that did help, but the present day things happened so quickly they didn’t feel genuine. The two main characters come from different worlds Galan is a Cuban immigrant now living in Puerto Rico. Patrick is in the Coast Guard stationed out of Puerto Rico tasked with stopped illegal immigrants from reaching American soil. The two met and then instantly were each other’s best friend in the world which felt a little odd. I also didn’t really understand the point of Patrick’s birthday out and all the drama that caused. I do think the book did a good job showing the desperation of people who attempt the rafts to try for a better life and adding much needed humanity to their stories.