I was completely fascinated with Numbers from the beginning. The writing is superb and the characters are magnetic in their realty! There's no sugar coating in this book... Jem is completely and irrefutably PERFECT in her imperfections.Jem's life sucks. Period. She's an outcast, passed from foster home to foster home throughout her 15 years. Jem tries not to look people in the eye, for if she does- she sees the date of their death.Creepy right?This book was over-flowing with irresistible characters, each one with a uniqueness all their own. I especially liked Spider's 'Nan', while she didn't play a huge part in the story I felt her presence was huge!Jem and Spider had the sweetest romance ever... tainted by the little fact that she knew the exact date of his impending doom.Bummer.These kids have absolutely nothing to lose- except each other. Heartbreaking, gut-wrenching, and action packed are just a few of the things I could say about this book. I laughed, I cried, I pounded my fists in frustration! Ward gets you standing behind Jem and Spider, rooting for them the every step of the way.