Silence by Natasha Preston | Book Review

Reading Group: Sensitive Material 

Personal Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Synopses: For eleven years, Oakley Farrell has been silent. At the age of five, she stopped talking, and no one seems to know why. Refusing to communicate beyond a few physical actions, Oakley remains in her own little world. Bullied at school, she has just one friend, Cole Benson. Cole stands by her, refusing to believe that she is not perfect the way she is. Over the years, they have developed their own version of a normal friendship. However, will it still work as they start to grow even closer? When Oakley is forced to face someone from her past, can she hold her secret in any longer?

Cover: This cover shows Oakley facing away from the reader.  I think this is symbolic of how she is really only allowing the world to know half of who she is since she decided to stop talking.

My Review: I got this book free from iBooks, and I really enjoyed it because I thought it was an interesting and important theme about a possible side effect of abuse as a young child.  Oakley was abused by her father's friend and then told that no one would believe her if she said anything, so she stopped talking altogether.  During the book, she's growing up, and she and her best friend Cole start dating, but towards the end, she comes face to face with her abuser again and finally speaks up for herself.  The thing I really didn't like about this book was that you never actually saw her come face to face with Frank.  I liked that Oakley talking came from Cole's point of view because I thought his reaction to his phone ringing and hearing the ringtone was important, but I thought there should have been a chapter before that showing Oakley with her dad and how Frank showed up and how she ran away from them.  I think that would have been an essential scene in the story because it was what finally drove Oakley to call Cole and talk to him after eleven years of not speaking.  To me, it just felt that the whole book was leading up to that moment and then it never really came.  I wanted to know what was going through Oakley's head and what it felt like to speak again.  But other than that I enjoyed the story.  Not talking was how Oakley coped with what happened to her and even though she could never forget the events she was still able to have a normal relationship with Cole and her brother at least.  It made me sad that she didn't think anyone would believe her if she told the truth, but I'm sure there are plenty of people out there who can relate to not speaking out because someone with more authority told them it was a waste of time.  And especially for Oakley, that person was her father, who was supposed to be someone she could depend on to protect her.

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Last Train to Babylon by Charlee Fam | Book Review

Last Train to Babylon by Charlee Fam 

Reading Group: High School+

Personal Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Fans of Alice Sebold and John Green will be transfixed by this sophisticated, edgy debut novel packing dark humor, biting wit, and a lot of Jack Daniels.

Who put the word fun in funeral? I can’t think of anything fun about Rachel’s funeral, except for the fact that she won’t be there.

Aubrey Glass has a collection of potential suicide notes—just in case. And now, five years—and five notes—after leaving her hometown, Rachel’s the one who goes and kills herself. Aubrey can’t believe her luck.

But Rachel’s death doesn’t leave Aubrey in peace. There’s a voicemail from her former friend, left only days before her death, that Aubrey can’t bring herself to listen to—and worse, a macabre memorial-turned-high-school reunion that promises the opportunity to catch up with everyone . . . including the man responsible for everything that went wrong between Aubrey and Rachel.

In the days leading up to the funeral and infamous after party, Aubrey slips seamlessly between her past and present. Memories of friendship tangle with painful new encounters while underneath it all Aubrey feels the rush of something closing in, something she can no longer run from. And when the past and present collide in one devastating night, nothing will be the same again.

But facing the future means confronting herself and a shattering truth. Now, Aubrey must decide what will define her: what lies behind . . . or what waits ahead.

Cover: The cover of this novel is dark, but you can see that it's an aerial view of a girl.  

My Review: This book was another one that I got in the Barnes&Noble sales bin, but I ended up enjoying it.  I liked how the chapters went from the past to present so that you could figure out all the reasons why Aubrey didn't want to go to Rachel's funeral and why they had such a big falling out after being friends for ten years.  I thought it was interesting how the girl that may or may not have been assaulted by Max was Tonya and she had the ring that Aubrey gave her.  I thought it made the book kind of come together in a full circle, showing that we really aren't that different from the people around us and we all go through traumatic events.  I also thought that Aubrey's reaction to her rape was very real.  She was struggling to put the night back together and see if she could hold any of the blame for what happened and even though I don't think anything that happened was her fault I think she responded the way most people would.  What she went through was very complicated, and it affected her for the rest of her life.  It was sad that what happened with her friend and boyfriend after that went the way it did because Aubrey was going to tell Adam everything, but Rachel got to him first.  Rachel was never a good friend, but I understand why Aubrey didn't cut her off sooner.  When your friends with someone for so long, it is harder to cut them out of your life.  The most frustrating thing about this book was that we never heard the voicemail, but at the same time I liked that we didn't.  It was something that was just between Rachel and Aubrey, so from a literary aspect I respect that the reader didn't get to know what Rachel said, but from a reader's point of view, I am super curious.    

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Still Missing by Chevy Stevens | Book Review

Still Missing by Chevy Stevens

Reading Group: 17+ (Sensitive Subjects ~ kidnapping, rape, etc.)

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: On the day she was abducted, Annie O’Sullivan, a 32-year-old realtor, had three goals—sell a house, forget about a recent argument with her mother, and be on time for dinner with her ever-patient boyfriend. The open house is slow, but when her last visitor pulls up in a van as she's about to leave, Annie thinks it just might be her lucky day after all. 

Interwoven with the story of the year Annie spent as the captive of a psychopath in a remote mountain cabin, which unfolds through sessions with her psychiatrist, is a second narrative recounting events following her escape—her struggle to piece her shattered life back together and the ongoing police investigation into the identity of her captor.

Still Missing is that rare debut find--a shocking, visceral, brutal and beautifully crafted debut novel.

Cover: The cover of this novel shows part of a face and some shattered glass.  I think the shattered glass is a nice addition to the cover because if something like this were to happen to anyone, their life would be shattered.  There is no way someone can completely come back from an experience like this.  The title of this novel also plays on the idea that even when you're found and returned home you can't pretend the past year never happened.

My Review: I originally read this novel for my Psychology class.  However, once I started reading it I just couldn't stop and ended up finishing it in less than 24 hours.  This novel was gripping and the plot twist that the mom set up the whole thing floored me.  I wasn't expecting it at all!  How can a mother do something like that?  Annie was taken for a year and during that time she was continuously raped and even had a baby.  I was heartbroken when that baby died.  Especially because it wasn't exactly clear how she died.  And that her body was never found was so sad.  And when the duck gets shot.  This book is just a roller coaster of emotions.  However, it was over too soon.  I wanted to know what happened between her and the detective and what happened with her mom and stepdad in more detail.  I never wanted this book to end.  This book isn't necessarily one that people can relate to.  If you can, I am so sorry, but I would also love to sit and talk with you.  But this book does have some parts that we can kind of relate to.  Annie does whatever she needs to do in order to survive in the cabin, and it was kind of interesting to think how I would react.  Obviously it's impossible to know until you're living it what you would do, but it still raises interesting questions.  Also, I think we can all relate to family problems in one way or another.  Not as extreme as Annie's case, but we all know what it's like for a family member to do something involving us that we don't like in order to get something for themselves out of it.  I would definitely recommend this book, but only to people who can handle reading about this sort of thing in detail.  Annie is kidnapped, raped, and then somewhat manually unstable for a while afterwards, which is sensitive to some people.  But to anyone who can, read it.  It was amazing.

Have you read this book?  What parts broke your heart into a million pieces?

My Review:

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Fault Line by C. Desir | Book Review

Fault Line by C. Desir

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Reading Group Rating: Sensitive Subject Matter (Rape)

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Ben could date anyone he wants, but he only has eyes for the new girl—sarcastic, free-spirited Ani. Luckily for Ben, Ani wants him, too. She’s everything Ben could ever imagine. Everything he could ever want.

But that all changes after the party. The one Ben misses. The one Ani goes to alone.

Now Ani isn’t the girl she used to be, and Ben can’t sort out the truth from the lies. What really happened, and who is to blame?

Ben wants to help Ani, but the more she pushes him away, the more he wonders if there’s anything he can do to save the girl he loves

Cover: The cover of this book shows a lighter.  Obviously the lighter has very important meaning in this novel.  Ani has to get a lighter surgically removed from her after she is raped.  But more than that, a lighter produced fire and fire can spread and destroy everything in its path.  The lighter shows how quickly things can change, like a domino effect.  After Ani is raped everything changes faster and faster.

Summary: Find out why I no longer write summaries

My Review: This book was unlike anything I've ever really read before.  I loved it.  I liked that it could be a book that you read in class or in a book club and have a really sophisticated conversation about it.  What is your fault line?  What has to be the final straw to break you?  How long can you keep a secret for a loved one?  It takes Ben maybe a little too long to call Ani's mom and tell her what happened at the party months before.  He gives up everything for a girl who seems to no longer love him.  And Ani, something terrible happens to her and she seems to self-distruct.  She sleeps around with random people to prove to herself that she still as control over her body.  She makes her own choices, even if they're aren't the best choices.  We may not agree with any of the choices either of these characters made, but at the same time who are we to say anything?  Everyone reacts to every situation differently.  I hope none of you have ever been in either of these situations and if you have maybe you want to explain how you reacted, but if you haven't then you don't know how you would react and I hope you never will.  One of the most interesting/important parts of the novel (in my opinion) is when Ben says something like 'I don't share my girlfriend' and Ani replies that he already has.  Ani is clearly hurting and needs help, but doesn't want to ask for it.  She's afraid of how her mom will react and what she'd have to do after the truth is told to her mom.  Ani needs someone to tell for her, even though she said she didnt want anyone to.  Part of me thinks that she was seeing how far she could push Ben until he would break his promise and rat her out to her mom.  She sleeps with random kids at school: nothing.  She tries to seduce his best friend: nothing.  She goes for the percy teacher:  bingo.  That's the final straw for Ben.  What would be the final straw for you?

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