Lara Jane Robinson (Author of The Granger Girls)

Lara Robinson rated a book really liked it The Other Half of Me by Brianna North (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
This was a pretty strong YA thriller that I enjoyed overall. Set in Canada (and I loved all the references to different parts of the country, even though I had to Google a lot of them), it follows fifteen-year-old twins Tyson and Tyler in the afterma ...more
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Lara Robinson rated a book it was amazing What The Sun Touches by Miya J Keetch	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Genre: YA mystery, with strong coming-of-age elements Rating: 4.5/5, rounding up Content warnings: Discussions of murder, drugs, and car accidents. Absolutely no graphic scenes of any kind though, so I'd say this book is suitable for ages 13+ Finally go ...more
Aug 23, 2025 03:51PM · 2 likes · like · see review
Lara Robinson liked Kelly's review of The Boys Left Behind (The Hayford Murders Duology Book 2): "great follow up The Granger Girls was so dark. It was refreshing to see the approach this time was more hopeful within the darkness. For good reason I guess as these characters are truly good at their core. Definitely recommend to read as a follow up " Read more of this review »
Jun 25, 2025 02:16PM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Boys Left Behind by Lara Jane Robinson. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Boys Left Behind by Lara Jane Robinson <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Lara Robinson rated a book it was amazing Penance by Eliza Clark	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 14, 2025 01:41PM · like
Lara Robinson rated a book it was amazing V is for Vignettes & Verses: A decade of Microfiction, Shorts & Poetry by Claire O'Connor	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I've never read a book like this before and was a little skeptical going into it (poetry is not my thing at all), but I really enjoyed this collection of short stories and poetry. I rate it a 4.5/5, but have rounded it up to a full 5/5 for this revie ...more
Apr 27, 2025 06:33AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of V is for Vignettes & Verses by Claire O'Connor. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — V is for Vignettes & Verses by Claire O'Connor <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Lara Robinson rated a book really liked it Homebound by Hayley Anderton (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Genre: YA issue fiction/coming-of-age Rating: 4.5/5 Content warnings: Grief (loss of a close family member) is a main theme of this book, as is mental illness (specifically depression, anxiety, and agoraphobia.) There are also some brief mentions of st ...more
Apr 22, 2025 03:29PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Homebound by Hayley Anderton. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Homebound by Hayley Anderton <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Lara Robinson rated a book really liked it Homebound by Hayley Anderton (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Genre: YA issue fiction/coming-of-age Rating: 4.5/5 Content warnings: Grief (loss of a close family member) is a main theme of this book, as is mental illness (specifically depression, anxiety, and agoraphobia.) There are also some brief mentions of st ...more
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Lara Robinson rated a book really liked it Where the Sun Won't Shine by Brianna North (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Genre: YA contemporary/social issue fiction Rating: 3.5/5 (rounded up) Content warnings: Teenage suicide and grief are the main themes of this novel. There's also strong language, some smoking and underage drinking, mentions of vomiting, and very brief ...more
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Lara Robinson is now following J.A.G. Gonzales Author of Law Bringer: The Return
Mar 03, 2025 03:29PM · like
Lara Robinson rated a book liked it Gang Girl by Don Elliott	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Lara Robinson rated a book really liked it

The Other Half of Me
by Brianna North (Goodreads Author)

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This was a pretty strong YA thriller that I enjoyed overall. Set in Canada (and I loved all the references to different parts of the country, even though I had to Google a lot of them), it follows fifteen-year-old twins Tyson and Tyler in the afterma This was a pretty strong YA thriller that I enjoyed overall. Set in Canada (and I loved all the references to different parts of the country, even though I had to Google a lot of them), it follows fifteen-year-old twins Tyson and Tyler in the aftermath of the death of their parents, in a car accident which they soon suspect might not have been an accident after all.

This is very much a plot-driven story, I felt: the characters, while likeable (or hateable, in the case of the villains), are not super memorable (except maybe Gabe, I think he will stick with me.) The plot is the stronger part, as Tyson's road trip travelling across the country as a runaway is exciting and mostly realistic.

The writing is consistently strong. Like with Brianna's other works I've read so far, it's fairly simple, but highly engaging and easy to binge. Especially towards the end, I was telling myself I needed to stop reading, but would then find myself starting a new page almost involuntarily. You know a book is good when that happens. I would've liked a little more description in some places, but there was still enough that I was mostly able to picture scenes and characters quite vividly by myself.

I thought the depiction of grief was realistic and appropriate for the YA target audience. It's not as in depth or emotional as in Brianna's other work Where the Sun Won't Shine, and I thought this book in general felt less realistic than WTSWS and also A Familiar Betrayal, but I don't think that's a bad thing: it's just a different type of book, more of a straightforward thriller/mystery, which plenty of people will prefer over a deeper issue-based story.

The pacing is medium. It starts off quite slow for roughly the first half of the book, but it speeds up later on. I did feel the thriller aspects started to ramp up a little too late for my taste (I think things only really started to get crazy around 60-70% of the way through), but once they did start, they kept getting wilder and wilder until a very exciting end scene. I did predict a lot of the events regarding the mystery and villains, but what happened with Gabe took me by surprise.

Overall, this is a pretty good YA thriller which would be a great read for someone looking for a fairly simple thriller story, perhaps someone who's new to the genre or a little younger (there is some possibly triggering content, which I will list here with a spoiler tag to be on the safe side (view spoiler) but I would say it'll be fine for most people 13+.) This is the third book I've read so far by Brianna North, and I would rank it in the middle of the three: I liked it a little more than WTSWS, but not quite as much as A Familiar Betrayal (which is one of the best standalone thrillers I've ever read.) ...more

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What The Sun Touches
by Miya J Keetch

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Genre: YA mystery, with strong coming-of-age elements

Rating: 4.5/5, rounding up

Content warnings: Discussions of murder, drugs, and car accidents. Absolutely no graphic scenes of any kind though, so I'd say this book is suitable for ages 13+

Finally go Genre: YA mystery, with strong coming-of-age elements

Rating: 4.5/5, rounding up

Content warnings: Discussions of murder, drugs, and car accidents. Absolutely no graphic scenes of any kind though, so I'd say this book is suitable for ages 13+

Finally got round to reading Miya J Keetch's second novel, and it was so good, although I didn't enjoy it quite as much as her first, It Takes 1 Second (which will be referenced a lot in this review.) Set in Bear Lake, Idaho - the same town as IT1S - What The Sun Touches follows eighteen-year-old Ellie, who has been wandering the US alone for as long as she can remember, with no memories of her family or where she came from. Two years after the disappearance of her best friend - the fun yet secretive Annie/Keres - Ellie returns to Bear Lake to try to get answers, and ends up befriending a group of five other teens as she does so.

Firstly, I noticed a HUGE improvement in Miya's writing style in this second novel compared to IT1S. That's not to say that IT1S wasn't well-written, but I did struggle with it in places, as I found it was sometimes excessively wordy, with unnecessary description and odd phrases. That's to be expected, as Miya was sixteen when she wrote it. This book - published when she was eighteen - flowed so much better, with description being used more sparingly (making it a lot more impactful in my opinion), and also fewer typos/grammar errors. It's a really impressive improvement which I'm sure will continue even further with Miya's third book.

In terms of the plot, this novel does have a lot of similarities to IT1S, and even a few direct references to it (which I LOVED noticing), but quite a lot of differences too. The plot is very unique, but also feels familiar at the same time, and the writing has a dream-like, almost abstract quality to it in places, whereas IT1S felt more grounded in reality. Ellie reminded me of Evie in some ways - both characters are fearful and introverted - although their personalities and stories overall are quite different. Isaac reminded me a TONNE of Carter, especially in how he cares for Ellie. But the rest of the characters are very different to the ones in IT1S.

I really enjoyed the mystery elements of the story, and thought they were well explained: the plot is a little far-fetched, yet it is written in a way that makes it believable regardless. And the last few chapters in particular were amazing: Miya did such a good job at revealing the final parts of the mystery, and wrapping the plot up in a way that was emotional, realistic, and also suited the tone of the rest of the story. Unfortunately I can't really comment on whether or not the twists were shocking, as I saw some pretty major spoilers early on while skimming through the book (my own stupid fault lol.)

The only aspect of this book which I didn't particularly enjoy (hence a 4.5 rather than 5/5 rating) was the pacing. Despite being less than 300 pages, this book is quite slow-paced, with a fair few filler scenes. This is understandable given the plot - Ellie's situation means she spends a lot of time not really doing anything - but regardless, I did find myself wishing it would hurry up on a couple of occasions. This was never the case with IT1S, which always felt very fast paced, with a new event or revelation in almost every chapter. I also did find myself thinking for a lot of the book that some of the characters (Echo, Noah, and Jainey) could've used a bit more development, BUT one of the twists in the story (which is revealed towards the end) explains why these characters are a bit two-dimensional, so bear this in mind if you read this book and also think that at first.

Overall, What The Sun Touches is a really great YA/NA book (it reads more as YA, but I think it could also fit with NA as the main characters are all aged 18+ and not in school), that I would recommend to lovers of small town mysteries and books with strong summer vibes. ...more

Lara Robinson liked Kelly's review of The Boys Left Behind (The Hayford Murders Duology Book 2):

The Boys Left Behind by Lara Jane Robinson

"great follow up

The Granger Girls was so dark. It was refreshing to see the approach this time was more hopeful within the darkness. For good reason I guess as these characters are truly good at their core. Definitely recommend to read as a follow up " Read more of this review »

Lara Robinson rated a book it was amazing

Penance
by Eliza Clark

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Lara Robinson rated a book it was amazing

V is for Vignettes & Verses by Claire O'Connor

V is for Vignettes & Verses: A decade of Microfiction, Shorts & Poetry
by Claire O'Connor

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I've never read a book like this before and was a little skeptical going into it (poetry is not my thing at all), but I really enjoyed this collection of short stories and poetry. I rate it a 4.5/5, but have rounded it up to a full 5/5 for this revie ...more

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Homebound
by Hayley Anderton (Goodreads Author)

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Genre: YA issue fiction/coming-of-age

Rating: 4.5/5

Content warnings: Grief (loss of a close family member) is a main theme of this book, as is mental illness (specifically depression, anxiety, and agoraphobia.) There are also some brief mentions of st Genre: YA issue fiction/coming-of-age

Rating: 4.5/5

Content warnings: Grief (loss of a close family member) is a main theme of this book, as is mental illness (specifically depression, anxiety, and agoraphobia.) There are also some brief mentions of study drug use and past abuse. This book is a prime example of why I prefer to use content warnings over age ratings for books: there isn't any graphic or "mature" content at all here, so it could be read by any age group, but having grief and depression as main themes make the book very dark and heavy at times, and therefore maybe not well suited to a very young audience.

"Homebound" is a bittersweet YA story, following a seventeen-year-old girl in the aftermath of a close family member's death. It is very much a character-driven novel, without much plot outside of the protagonist's day-to-day struggles. That may sound a little dull, but the wonderfully written, realistic characters, clear but descriptive writing style, and multitude of small subplots kept me intrigued throughout: this is one of the best indie books I've ever read.

I'll start by talking about the characters, as they were the most important aspect of this book. "Homebound" focuses on a family led by lesbian parents Rita and Marigold, and later Rita's sister Wilda. These three women all have their own distinctive, yet subtle personalities, but the real stars of the book are Rita and Marigold's three daughters. Honey is the only biological child (it's stated she's Rita's bio daughter, although there are no further details given clarifying if she was conceived during Rita and Marigold's relationship through IVF/donor, or a previous relationship Rita had - not that it's important to the story, but I was curious), and the differences between her and her two adopted sisters are so well written: subtle, yet clear as day at the same time. At the start of the story, Honey is a very well-adjusted teen, with no real trauma, and aspirations to work in medicine. Arguably, she undergoes the biggest personality change of all the characters after the loss, and again, I felt these changes to her characters were well-written, her grief realistic. Rowena is the youngest sister - adopted, and of no biological relations to any of the other characters - and as a thirteen-year-old with an implied traumatic past, she's deep in a rebellious stage. Her character development was lovely to read about it - so much so that I wish we could've seen more of her. The protagonist of the story, though, is the middle sister, Lori. Lori is another adoptee, and she is one of the best protagonists I've read about in some time. Personality wise, she sits somewhere in between Honey and Rowena - usually well-behaved like Honey, but with similar trauma to Rowena - and the entire time, I just wanted to give her a big hug. I've been comparing almost every YA book I've read in the last few months to Speak, desperately trying to find one that feels like that book did, and I finally got that somewhat with Homebound, as Lori and Melinda were kind of similar as protagonists. Although Melinda's narrative is much more sarcastic than Lori's, and the girls have suffered different types of trauma, both characters are terrified - and relatable - outcasts, who I was rooting for the whole way through. If you like Speak, I think you'd like Homebound, too.

I cannot fault any of the technical aspects of this book. The writing style is perfect. It's easy to understand, but also descriptive enough that I felt fully immersed, and raw and emotional when it needs to be. I spotted maybe two or three typos throughout the whole book - whoever edited this did a great job. The pacing is surprisingly fast for a novel following a girl afraid to leave her house, with lots of small subplots as I mentioned before.

The representation in this book was really well done and refreshing. There are quite a few groups here that aren't often represented in YA fiction - lesbian parents, adoptees, agoraphobics - and I felt all were realistically and sensitively portrayed. Homophobia was only very briefly discussed as something Rita and Marigold experienced in the past; in the present, they and the other sapphic characters are accepted by everyone around them, which was especially nice to read given all the dark stuff in this story. The adopted daughters are treated with just as much love as the biological one is, with the act of adoption portrayed as a positive thing, while also touching on the issues with the care system and the trauma many adoptees live with. As stated earlier, all the mental health issues portrayed are done so with care. This book does not sugarcoat at all; Lori's struggles are very realistic and sometimes upsetting to read about as a result, but there is still a hopeful tone throughout and progress is slowly made. This is exactly how I believe mental illness should be portrayed in fiction, especially YA.

There was one aspect of this book that I have to admit I did not enjoy, though, and that is the romance. (view spoiler) I'm also of the opinion that, for the most part, novels revolving around severe mental illness and healing should not feature major romance subplots, especially in YA. That's a complex debate topic that I could probably write a whole essay about, but I mostly just think that including romance in stories like these takes the focus away from the character's healing and risks going into the territory of "mentally ill person is magically cured thanks to the power of romance." That was NOT what happened in Homebound - the romance in this book was sensitively handled - but I still think I would've enjoyed the story a little more without it (or maybe if there were hints of attraction, but it wasn't made official.)

It also would've been nice to have see more development for "Dream", and the plotline of Lori being mentored by her writing teacher: I am an absolute sucker for the trope of a struggling teen finding solace in some form of art, and I love it even more when a wise teacher steps in to guide them. We had the basics of that here (another similarity between Homebound and Speak), but I feel a lot more could've been done with that subplot, and I was disappointed it didn't take more prominence.

Overall, Homebound is a well-written YA novel that sensitively handles a variety of difficult topics. While it isn't perfect, it does feature some great representation, with good pacing and a strong writing style. I would definitely recommend. ...more

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Homebound
by Hayley Anderton (Goodreads Author)

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Genre: YA issue fiction/coming-of-age

Rating: 4.5/5

Content warnings: Grief (loss of a close family member) is a main theme of this book, as is mental illness (specifically depression, anxiety, and agoraphobia.) There are also some brief mentions of st Genre: YA issue fiction/coming-of-age

Rating: 4.5/5

Content warnings: Grief (loss of a close family member) is a main theme of this book, as is mental illness (specifically depression, anxiety, and agoraphobia.) There are also some brief mentions of study drug use and past abuse. This book is a prime example of why I prefer to use content warnings over age ratings for books: there isn't any graphic or "mature" content at all here, so it could be read by any age group, but having grief and depression as main themes make the book very dark and heavy at times, and therefore maybe not well suited to a very young audience.

"Homebound" is a bittersweet YA story, following a seventeen-year-old girl in the aftermath of a close family member's death. It is very much a character-driven novel, without much plot outside of the protagonist's day-to-day struggles. That may sound a little dull, but the wonderfully written, realistic characters, clear but descriptive writing style, and multitude of small subplots kept me intrigued throughout: this is one of the best indie books I've ever read.

I'll start by talking about the characters, as they were the most important aspect of this book. "Homebound" focuses on a family led by lesbian parents Rita and Marigold, and later Rita's sister Wilda. These three women all have their own distinctive, yet subtle personalities, but the real stars of the book are Rita and Marigold's three daughters. Honey is the only biological child (it's stated she's Rita's bio daughter, although there are no further details given clarifying if she was conceived during Rita and Marigold's relationship through IVF/donor, or a previous relationship Rita had - not that it's important to the story, but I was curious), and the differences between her and her two adopted sisters are so well written: subtle, yet clear as day at the same time. At the start of the story, Honey is a very well-adjusted teen, with no real trauma, and aspirations to work in medicine. Arguably, she undergoes the biggest personality change of all the characters after the loss, and again, I felt these changes to her characters were well-written, her grief realistic. Rowena is the youngest sister - adopted, and of no biological relations to any of the other characters - and as a thirteen-year-old with an implied traumatic past, she's deep in a rebellious stage. Her character development was lovely to read about it - so much so that I wish we could've seen more of her. The protagonist of the story, though, is the middle sister, Lori. Lori is another adoptee, and she is one of the best protagonists I've read about in some time. Personality wise, she sits somewhere in between Honey and Rowena - usually well-behaved like Honey, but with similar trauma to Rowena - and the entire time, I just wanted to give her a big hug. I've been comparing almost every YA book I've read in the last few months to Speak, desperately trying to find one that feels like that book did, and I finally got that somewhat with Homebound, as Lori and Melinda were kind of similar as protagonists. Although Melinda's narrative is much more sarcastic than Lori's, and the girls have suffered different types of trauma, both characters are terrified - and relatable - outcasts, who I was rooting for the whole way through. If you like Speak, I think you'd like Homebound, too.

I cannot fault any of the technical aspects of this book. The writing style is perfect. It's easy to understand, but also descriptive enough that I felt fully immersed, and raw and emotional when it needs to be. I spotted maybe two or three typos throughout the whole book - whoever edited this did a great job. The pacing is surprisingly fast for a novel following a girl afraid to leave her house, with lots of small subplots as I mentioned before.

The representation in this book was really well done and refreshing. There are quite a few groups here that aren't often represented in YA fiction - lesbian parents, adoptees, agoraphobics - and I felt all were realistically and sensitively portrayed. Homophobia was only very briefly discussed as something Rita and Marigold experienced in the past; in the present, they and the other sapphic characters are accepted by everyone around them, which was especially nice to read given all the dark stuff in this story. The adopted daughters are treated with just as much love as the biological one is, with the act of adoption portrayed as a positive thing, while also touching on the issues with the care system and the trauma many adoptees live with. As stated earlier, all the mental health issues portrayed are done so with care. This book does not sugarcoat at all; Lori's struggles are very realistic and sometimes upsetting to read about as a result, but there is still a hopeful tone throughout and progress is slowly made. This is exactly how I believe mental illness should be portrayed in fiction, especially YA.

There was one aspect of this book that I have to admit I did not enjoy, though, and that is the romance. (view spoiler) I'm also of the opinion that, for the most part, novels revolving around severe mental illness and healing should not feature major romance subplots, especially in YA. That's a complex debate topic that I could probably write a whole essay about, but I mostly just think that including romance in stories like these takes the focus away from the character's healing and risks going into the territory of "mentally ill person is magically cured thanks to the power of romance." That was NOT what happened in Homebound - the romance in this book was sensitively handled - but I still think I would've enjoyed the story a little more without it (or maybe if there were hints of attraction, but it wasn't made official.)

It also would've been nice to have see more development for "Dream", and the plotline of Lori being mentored by her writing teacher: I am an absolute sucker for the trope of a struggling teen finding solace in some form of art, and I love it even more when a wise teacher steps in to guide them. We had the basics of that here (another similarity between Homebound and Speak), but I feel a lot more could've been done with that subplot, and I was disappointed it didn't take more prominence.

Overall, Homebound is a well-written YA novel that sensitively handles a variety of difficult topics. While it isn't perfect, it does feature some great representation, with good pacing and a strong writing style. I would definitely recommend. ...more

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Where the Sun Won't Shine
by Brianna North (Goodreads Author)

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Genre: YA contemporary/social issue fiction

Rating: 3.5/5 (rounded up)

Content warnings: Teenage suicide and grief are the main themes of this novel. There's also strong language, some smoking and underage drinking, mentions of vomiting, and very brief Genre: YA contemporary/social issue fiction

Rating: 3.5/5 (rounded up)

Content warnings: Teenage suicide and grief are the main themes of this novel. There's also strong language, some smoking and underage drinking, mentions of vomiting, and very brief, non-graphic mentions of sex. This one is hard to give an age rating for, as I think it depends heavily on a person's maturity level and personal experiences/understanding of suicide, but I think 15+ would be reasonable. There are no graphic scenes of any kind, but obviously the main subject matter is a very dark one.

"Where The Sun Won't Shine" is a bittersweet YA novel which I think did a job good of handling the sensitive topics it discusses. It is well-written, and while I didn't like it as much as the first book I read by Brianna (A Familiar Betrayal, an amazing thriller that I rated a 4.5/5), I would still recommend this book; I especially think it could be a helpful, reassuring read for young people who are going through something similar to Shiloh.

The story is told through two timelines - "Before" and "After" - and it centres around seventeen-year-old Shiloh Green as she deals with her grief after the sudden suicide of her boyfriend, talented drummer Braxton whose band Contained Chaos are on the brink of making it big. The band and the overall theme of music features heavily in this story, and it was an aspect I enjoyed. Contained Chaos are a pop-rock boy band who have gained most of their following through their YouTube channel. This, along with frequent references to vlogging and even a mention of VidCon, gave the story a very 2012-2015ish type feel to it - the years when daily vlogs and YouTube in general was at the peak of its popularity - which was very nostalgic for me as someone who was a preteen during that era. I don't think the book is canonically set during that time period, but I do wonder if the first draft was maybe written around that time, or perhaps inspired by Brianna's own nostalgia, as I believe she's only a few years older than me. Either way, it was a detail I enjoyed which I think sets it apart a little from other similar books.

The writing style is quite simple for the most part, but not so simple that it seems amateur. It's a style which makes the story accessible for teenagers or reluctant readers - never confusing, with just the right balance between description, narrative, and dialogue. I also didn't notice a single typo or grammar error, which is extremely rare and impressive for a self-published novel, so major props to whoever edited it (I'm assuming Brianna herself; as a fellow indie author, I know how much professional editors cost lol.)

As I stated earlier, I think Where The Sun Won't Shine handles the issues of suicide and grief very well. The depiction is sensitive and non-graphic, and Brianna shows the emotional aspects perfectly. Shiloh's grief is non-linear, and she goes through a huge spectrum emotions: we see her heartbroken, angry, confused, and even seemingly fine in some scenes. As for Braxton, the signs he is suicidal are there for us to see in the "Before" chapters, and they grow more intense towards the end of his life, but they are realistically subtle. Braxton doesn't cry or scream, and he certainly doesn't say outright what he's planning to do: these signs are so much quieter. They are signs that - as much as we might want to believe otherwise - most people would miss, and this is sadly the case for most real life suicides. Usually, the signs aren't obvious until it's too late. I commend Brianna for depicting both suicidal individuals and the grieving loved ones they leave behind in a way that is equally sensitive and realistic.

It's important to note, though, that as sad as this book and its subject matter is, it isn't all depressing - in fact, this book didn't feel at all depressing to me. Sad, of course, but not depressing, if that makes sense. Another review worded this better than I think I could, so I'm going to include some quotes from it: "I think my qualms come mostly from never feeling like I properly grieved. I was led down a path towards, "Life goes on, and it WILL still be beautiful, just different with a hole." The relationships Shiloh has around her are amazingly supportive and loving, which is also refreshing in books with heavy subject matter", and also "This book felt overwhelmingly, "It will be ok, it's not your fault," vs a book rife with all the stages of grief for the reader. I, again, really admire how the author DID choose to write the stages of grief with the beautiful moments of finding joy again. But I want to feel deeply, and every time I felt close to straight ugly crying, I was given a moment of happiness." This is exactly how I felt reading this. I went into this book expecting a heartwrenching, messy read - something along the lines of Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak, although that does deal with a completely different set of issues - but this felt neater and much more emotional for the characters than for me as the reader. I felt like an outsider watching in on Shiloh's life, rather than inside the story experiencing the emotions with her. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing; I just would've personally preferred something a bit heavier. I do think, though, that this slightly more surface-level approach is probably a better option for younger readers or somebody who is going through a loss of their own, as I think Where The Sun Won't Shine is much less likely to be triggering than something more Speak-esque.

Onto the characters. Across the board, I felt their development was quite slow, but by the end of the book, most of them were well-rounded and realistic. Alex was easily my favourite, and I really liked his friendship with Shiloh. I did feel that both Nathan and Carson could've used more development, though; I felt they had no real personalities other than being in the band, and were pretty much interchangeable. While I understand they play less of an active role in the story than their bandmates Alex, Braxton, and Dalton, they were still present in almost every chapter, and for that reason, I think further development would've absolutely been justified.

Another criticism I have is that I felt the overall pacing of this book was a bit too slow, particularly in the "Before" chapters: I really hate to use this word, but I found some of them a little boring, and feel they easily could've been cut without affecting the plot. I understand that Brianna wanted to tell the story of everything that happened in the build up to Braxton's death, but I think this could've been better done by having the "Before" chapters simply show highlights (or lowlights) of Shiloh and Braxton's relationship over the years, rather than every detail of events like the Contained Chaos tour, which started to feel a bit repetitive after a while. At 308 pages (Kindle edition), this book is of average length for its genre, but I think it could've benefitted from being 30-50 pages shorter. Having said that, though, I felt the pacing with the "After" chapters was much better, and I don't remember feeling bored at all while reading those.

Overall, this is a book I would recommend to anyone who's looking for a sensitive depiction of suicide, grief, and the other issues surrounding these topics. It is well-written and easy to understand, with likeable characters. It impressively manages to be both realistic and hopeful, rather than depressing, which I think could be helpful to many young people - this is definitely a book I would put in a high school library if I were a teacher. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of Brianna's books in the near future. ...more

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