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Whisper to Me
Cassie is writing a letter to the boy whose heart she broke. She’s trying to explain why. Why she pushed him away. Why her father got so angry when he saw them together. Why she disappears some nights. Why she won’t let herself remember what happened that long-ago night on the boardwalk. Why she fell apart so completely.
Desperate for his forgiveness, she’s telling the whole story of the summer she nearly lost herself. She’s hoping he’ll understand as well as she now does how love—love for your family, love for that person who makes your heart beat faster, and love for yourself—can save you after all.
Desperate for his forgiveness, she’s telling the whole story of the summer she nearly lost herself. She’s hoping he’ll understand as well as she now does how love—love for your family, love for that person who makes your heart beat faster, and love for yourself—can save you after all.
530 pages, Paperback
First published May 3, 2016
118 people are currently reading
6996 people want to read
About the author
Nick Lake
22 books454 followersMy name is Nick and I write and edit books for young adults. My first YA novel IN DARKNESS, was published by Bloomsbury in 2012 and won the Michael L Printz Award for Excellence in YA Literature. I also wrote a book called HOSTAGE THREE about a girl kidnapped by Somali pirates.
THERE WILL BE LIES is coming in January 15 and is about a girl who learns that everything she knows is a lie. To say it's a book with a twist in the story would be a massive understatement. There is also a talking coyote in it.
I live with my wife, daughter and son in a 16th century house in England with almost 19th century amenities. Sometimes the heating even works.
I like: reading, art, music, food containing sugar, cities at night, the countryside in the daytime, vintage furniture, modern standards of heating (see above), travelling.
I dislike: being sick, failing, being underdressed in the cold, being overdressed in the heat, the unnecessary suffering of children, being punched in the face.
THERE WILL BE LIES is coming in January 15 and is about a girl who learns that everything she knows is a lie. To say it's a book with a twist in the story would be a massive understatement. There is also a talking coyote in it.
I live with my wife, daughter and son in a 16th century house in England with almost 19th century amenities. Sometimes the heating even works.
I like: reading, art, music, food containing sugar, cities at night, the countryside in the daytime, vintage furniture, modern standards of heating (see above), travelling.
I dislike: being sick, failing, being underdressed in the cold, being overdressed in the heat, the unnecessary suffering of children, being punched in the face.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 474 reviews
April 16, 2020
This book is 500 pages long. It contains a murder mystery, a mental health plotline, and a romance. And it manages to do none of it satisfactorily.
But somehow I read it in a day, so. Take that with a grain of salt I guess.
SUDDEN WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS PLOT SPOILERS.
All of the spoilers are things that are heavily foreshadowed and/or covered in the first half of the book, but still. Don’t say I didn’t warn ya. (And please do NOT yell at me.)
To elaborate on those three very non-cohesive plots: This is written in the form of a letter from our main character, Cassie, to some random dude she’s into. (Yes, a five hundred page letter. Poor guy. Poor Cassie’s wrists and fingers.)
In it, Cassie explains her entire summer - a summer in which she a) begins hearing voices, b) falls in love I guess, and c) meets a new best friend and then that best friend is murdered.
So. A whole lot.
In addition to the fact that I felt like all of those were not given their due course (the hearing-voices narrative didn’t sit right with me! The romance was not convincing! The murder plot happens at the end of the book and is left unresolved!), I had some small annoying issues with this. Because I’m annoying.
For one thing, in the synopsis of this (which is also the beginning of the book), good ol’ Cassie tells Nick (the boring guy she boringly makes goo-goo eyes at) via letter the following: “What they said in the news, what they said I did. It’s not true. You don’t have to worry about that.”
At no point in this book do they address what this News Thing is.
Now granted, I may have skimmed a couple pages. I may have accidentally skipped over a sentence or two. This book is over 500 pages long and I read it in a day. But I definitely didn’t miss 20% of the book. And that makes up approximately 20% of the plot points indicated in the synopsis.
Also, I REREAD THE LAST PAGES. TWICE. This is the type of story gap that breaks my brain.
Here’s another annoying thing: Remember that murder I mentioned earlier? It’s Cass’s friend Paris who’s murdered. Paris strips at parties. She does the booking for these parties on her own. Paris is murdered at a supposed party she was supposed to strip at. So you’d think her phone records would be a major lead. AU CONTRAIRE MON FRÈRE. Apparently of the cast of characters on the case (including an entire police force, multiple FBI agents, several internet forums, and a ragtag group of teens), I am the only one this occurred to.
I love being part of a quirky gang of crime-solvers, though.
On top of everything else, Paris was the only character I liked.
And we all know how that turned out.
Bottom line: So much was going on in this book...AND YET NOT ENOUGH.
-----------
it should be illegal for a story this dark to have a cover that looks like cotton candy in book form.
review to come / ~2 stars
-----------
please do not ask me if i only want to read this book because of the cover...neither of us will be happy with my answer
But somehow I read it in a day, so. Take that with a grain of salt I guess.
SUDDEN WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS PLOT SPOILERS.
All of the spoilers are things that are heavily foreshadowed and/or covered in the first half of the book, but still. Don’t say I didn’t warn ya. (And please do NOT yell at me.)
To elaborate on those three very non-cohesive plots: This is written in the form of a letter from our main character, Cassie, to some random dude she’s into. (Yes, a five hundred page letter. Poor guy. Poor Cassie’s wrists and fingers.)
In it, Cassie explains her entire summer - a summer in which she a) begins hearing voices, b) falls in love I guess, and c) meets a new best friend and then that best friend is murdered.
So. A whole lot.
In addition to the fact that I felt like all of those were not given their due course (the hearing-voices narrative didn’t sit right with me! The romance was not convincing! The murder plot happens at the end of the book and is left unresolved!), I had some small annoying issues with this. Because I’m annoying.
For one thing, in the synopsis of this (which is also the beginning of the book), good ol’ Cassie tells Nick (the boring guy she boringly makes goo-goo eyes at) via letter the following: “What they said in the news, what they said I did. It’s not true. You don’t have to worry about that.”
At no point in this book do they address what this News Thing is.
Now granted, I may have skimmed a couple pages. I may have accidentally skipped over a sentence or two. This book is over 500 pages long and I read it in a day. But I definitely didn’t miss 20% of the book. And that makes up approximately 20% of the plot points indicated in the synopsis.
Also, I REREAD THE LAST PAGES. TWICE. This is the type of story gap that breaks my brain.
Here’s another annoying thing: Remember that murder I mentioned earlier? It’s Cass’s friend Paris who’s murdered. Paris strips at parties. She does the booking for these parties on her own. Paris is murdered at a supposed party she was supposed to strip at. So you’d think her phone records would be a major lead. AU CONTRAIRE MON FRÈRE. Apparently of the cast of characters on the case (including an entire police force, multiple FBI agents, several internet forums, and a ragtag group of teens), I am the only one this occurred to.
I love being part of a quirky gang of crime-solvers, though.
On top of everything else, Paris was the only character I liked.
And we all know how that turned out.
Bottom line: So much was going on in this book...AND YET NOT ENOUGH.
-----------
it should be illegal for a story this dark to have a cover that looks like cotton candy in book form.
review to come / ~2 stars
-----------
please do not ask me if i only want to read this book because of the cover...neither of us will be happy with my answer
November 28, 2020
4.5 Stars
Wowza. I can definitely say I have never read a story like this one before. The way this starts off is I think the best intro to a book I have ever read:
“These are the things that you need to know:
1. I hear voices.
2. I miss you.
3. I wish I could take back what I did to you.
4. What they said in the news, what they said I did. It’s not true. You don’t have to worry about that.
5. I’m going to write it all down, all about Paris and why I broke your heart, and then I’m going to e-mail it to you. It will take you, I don’t know, a couple of days to read. So I will be waiting for you at 5:00 p.m. Friday by the windmill hole of Pirate Golf on Pier One, where we played that one time.
If you forgive me, when you’re done reading this, come and get me. Okay? Think of this as the most screwed-up love letter ever. I hope you come. That isn’t a thing you need to know, it’s just true. I hope you do. I hope that when you’ve read this, you’ll understand why I did what I did.”
Does that not just suck you in? The whole book is essentially an apology letter from Cassie, trying to explain all her actions and get the boy she hurt to forgive her. But for what, we don’t know.
I must say, the cover of this fooled me a bit. I was expecting a light YA love story. But the topics discussed in here are so much deeper than that. There’s a range of everything in here: friendship, mental illness, death, love - all combined in a coming of age story that will lead readers into a murder mystery along the way. Sounds crazy, I know. But it was wildly entertaining and so brilliantly written.
Maybe it's the way the story is told or maybe it was because I was dying to get answers, but I COULDN’T PUT IT DOWN and I read this in record time. I HAD to know what happened to Cassie, what led to her “betrayal,” why she was hearing a voice, how it would all end.
Even hours after I finished, I was STILL thinking about this book. How unique this story was, and how the author just got it all so RIGHT. So many times I read something Cassie thought and said “Wow. Yes. That is so accurate. Yes, I have thought this. YES, I UNDERSTAND.”
Throughout this, there were times I wanted to cry. There were times I did cry (and I rarely ever cry). There were times I wanted to just jump in the pages and hug Cassie. There were times I wanted to jump in the pages and just slap her for being so foolish. Some of her thoughts just got me so emotional I had to stop to take a breather.
“I was shining. Light was blazing from my every pore. My eyes were closed, and the strip lights were turning the inside of my eyelids red, everything red. That’s your color, you know, the one I see and feel when I think of you. Emotions are always associated with colors, aren’t they? Green with envy. Well, when you are in my head you are always there with red: sunlight, warmth, heat.
People are green with envy.
Yellow with cowardice.
I am red with you.”
God that line!
I wanted her to stop being so hurt and blaming herself for things she couldn’t control. I wanted more of her and the mystery boy together. Their awkward encounters were so perfect. BUT MOST OF ALL, I just wanted her to be happy!
"But now I want to be a real girl, not just a voice, I want my body back, and I want you to be the one to hold it; I want to hear my name on your lips. I want you to be the one to whisper to me."
I do want to point out that I don't think this book is for everyone. Not because I didn't love it or because it was lacking in any way. But this focuses so much on the characters, and much less on the plot, and I know not everyone is a fan of these types of books.
Personally, my only "critique" (if you can even call it that) is ...
This really was a truly unique and heart wrenching story. And one I won’t forget any time soon.
Whisper To Me is out now | http://amzn.to/1rSAi35
Find Me On:
Instagram ❤ FB Page ❤ FB Blog ❤ Blog ❤ Twitter
Wowza. I can definitely say I have never read a story like this one before. The way this starts off is I think the best intro to a book I have ever read:
“These are the things that you need to know:
1. I hear voices.
2. I miss you.
3. I wish I could take back what I did to you.
4. What they said in the news, what they said I did. It’s not true. You don’t have to worry about that.
5. I’m going to write it all down, all about Paris and why I broke your heart, and then I’m going to e-mail it to you. It will take you, I don’t know, a couple of days to read. So I will be waiting for you at 5:00 p.m. Friday by the windmill hole of Pirate Golf on Pier One, where we played that one time.
If you forgive me, when you’re done reading this, come and get me. Okay? Think of this as the most screwed-up love letter ever. I hope you come. That isn’t a thing you need to know, it’s just true. I hope you do. I hope that when you’ve read this, you’ll understand why I did what I did.”
Does that not just suck you in? The whole book is essentially an apology letter from Cassie, trying to explain all her actions and get the boy she hurt to forgive her. But for what, we don’t know.
I must say, the cover of this fooled me a bit. I was expecting a light YA love story. But the topics discussed in here are so much deeper than that. There’s a range of everything in here: friendship, mental illness, death, love - all combined in a coming of age story that will lead readers into a murder mystery along the way. Sounds crazy, I know. But it was wildly entertaining and so brilliantly written.
Maybe it's the way the story is told or maybe it was because I was dying to get answers, but I COULDN’T PUT IT DOWN and I read this in record time. I HAD to know what happened to Cassie, what led to her “betrayal,” why she was hearing a voice, how it would all end.
Even hours after I finished, I was STILL thinking about this book. How unique this story was, and how the author just got it all so RIGHT. So many times I read something Cassie thought and said “Wow. Yes. That is so accurate. Yes, I have thought this. YES, I UNDERSTAND.”
Throughout this, there were times I wanted to cry. There were times I did cry (and I rarely ever cry). There were times I wanted to just jump in the pages and hug Cassie. There were times I wanted to jump in the pages and just slap her for being so foolish. Some of her thoughts just got me so emotional I had to stop to take a breather.
“I was shining. Light was blazing from my every pore. My eyes were closed, and the strip lights were turning the inside of my eyelids red, everything red. That’s your color, you know, the one I see and feel when I think of you. Emotions are always associated with colors, aren’t they? Green with envy. Well, when you are in my head you are always there with red: sunlight, warmth, heat.
People are green with envy.
Yellow with cowardice.
I am red with you.”
God that line!
I wanted her to stop being so hurt and blaming herself for things she couldn’t control. I wanted more of her and the mystery boy together. Their awkward encounters were so perfect. BUT MOST OF ALL, I just wanted her to be happy!
"But now I want to be a real girl, not just a voice, I want my body back, and I want you to be the one to hold it; I want to hear my name on your lips. I want you to be the one to whisper to me."
I do want to point out that I don't think this book is for everyone. Not because I didn't love it or because it was lacking in any way. But this focuses so much on the characters, and much less on the plot, and I know not everyone is a fan of these types of books.
Personally, my only "critique" (if you can even call it that) is ...
This really was a truly unique and heart wrenching story. And one I won’t forget any time soon.
Whisper To Me is out now | http://amzn.to/1rSAi35
Find Me On:
Instagram ❤ FB Page ❤ FB Blog ❤ Blog ❤ Twitter
May 6, 2016
What was this author thinking?!
I will admit I have cooled off quite a bit when it comes to this book. I mean....you can't let the stupid ones get you down, am I right?? I haven't one starred a book since the atrocity that was Black Iris (BLEH BLEH BLEH STILL MY NUMBER ONE LEAST FAVORITE BOOK LIKE EVER), and I've had a couple (FEW) stinkers since then.
I'll make this quick because......it's just not worth it. To hate something so strongly is exhausting and I'd rather update some things on my blog and catch up on all of your guys' reviews, so why waste all day ranting about this story (especially since I've calmed my shit significantly).
Now, first-I didn't mean to leave y'all on a cliffhanger yesterday with that pre-review...I SWEAR. The office was busy and I get tired of the repetitive 'RTC' at the end of my pre-reviews. So, anyway, sorry guys, it wasn't on purpose!!
Now. Why did I hate this book so much? The blurb was promising. The love story came off as epic. The mystery and the voices added intrigue.....but none of this was what I thought it would be. Aside from the male lead, whom I adored, there wasn't one character I liked. In fact, I loathed the main character-and this hasn't happened since Between Us and the Moon (My other ranty review last year) and, again, Black Iris. I always love the MC-ask my best friends. It's their story and their path....who am I to judge them? So when I hate a character...you know it isn't good.
And, just a little note to those just tuning in to my psycho friendship they've brought upon themselves.....If EVER you make a male lead I adore, or even just like, cry-I WILL END YOU. You don't fuck with the male leads for no good reason-it's bullshit and I refuse to be a part of that shit. ALSO. I know the blurb says she betrayed him, so I should be okay with this right?? Sure. Yeah I should. I'll admit it. But what that dinky little blurb failed to mention was...this chick is a dick. An absolute dick for no reason at all sometimes-and always to this nice guy who always gives her the time of the day (I don't think she ever earned this right, btw, what did he SEE in her??). Every time he forgave her, or tried to let her in (because he was so shy) she would flip a switch and SNAP at him or not say anything or make it totally cruel and awkward. The worst part??? She didn't hear the mean voice in these moments, so she was just being cruel for no reason WHAT-SO-EVER.
So, sorry. Maybe some of you could handle the snapping for no reason or the absolute-Okay, no, I said I wouldn't do this. /rant. Okay. So, she has a disorder, kind of, right? She can hear voices? Yeah, no. She hears one. And hey, I can't say what that's like, but I can say I didn't....connect with how it was portrayed-this might just be me. I just didn't think it added to the story. Well, wait, of course it did-no, I just mean....Hmm. I mean it just, I felt like it was STUPID. I can't help it.
And, okay, I'm done here, this is it. But, the ONLY reason I didn't DNF this book was because of ONE THING. ONE THING ONLY. And, if I'm being frank and knowing a lot of my friends, they will be the same way looking for the same thing...and it didn't deliver. Not. At. All. In any way. So, that was the first time a book met the broad side of my wall. Never. This has never happened and I hope it never does again (another side note-I have an iPad and can never do this...but luckily this bastard was a paperback arc-lovely though it was-and I could try this anger management maneuver out).
Hey, we all make mistakes, and I was wooed by the beautiful cover and the awesome blurb. I could keep going on and on and on and on...but really. Why?? You all know I hated it, why beat a dead horse. This was repetitive, unrealistic, and just not something I would EVER recommend to anyone. And, frankly, it has fallen into my newest pet peeve for books-LACK OF EXECUTION. This book had so much potential-enough that I hung on until the end-and it just all blew to smithereens, in the end, and that kills me. But I won't lie and I won't endorse it, so take that as you will. Hopefully some of you might like it...I just didn't.
**ARC provided by publisher in exchange for HONEST review**
For more of my reviews, please visit:
***************
I hate this book with the fire of a thousand suns.
FUCK THIS BOOK.
That is all.
For now.
February 13, 2018
2/13/18: Yes, I re-read this...already... it's that good.
Original review:
“It’s not for us to find people. Or to make them pay. You take revenge, all you do is throw away your soul. Sometimes things happen that you can’t control. Sometimes we lose things we can’t get back. And there are some things we just can’t ever know.” (pg. 504).
OH, MY HEART. What just happened??? What just enthralled me and sucked me in for THREE WHOLE DAYS?????? I laughed. I cried. I was captivated. It has been forever since this has happened! *hugs book*
I love Cassie, she’s awkward, sweet, naïve, and yet realistically selfish and blundering at times. It was so nice to read about a girl who actually felt like a teenager like me.
Cassie struggles with schizophrenia, and I’m 99.9% sure that her dad, who was a former Navy Seal suffers from PTSD and trauma, the one percent is that this was never stated. Despite the conflicting relationship, they both did really love each other.
It was amazing to finally read a book that didn’t romanticize mental illness.
The whole book is a really long email (531 pages, whew!) Cassie is sending to her old love interest who she hurt very deeply, in it, she is explaining everything.
Now, let’s talk about the romance…
IT. WAS. SO. AWKWARD. But despite the lack of chemistry between Cassie and the boy who is nameless the entire book, I actually found myself rooting for them???
Okay, so I want a Paris in my life, I need a friend like her! Like, is there something wrong? Are you down? Hurting? Paris will be there. Paris is the sweetest thing, she always puts Cassie and Julie over herself even with her depression. It was SO SWEET.
But small warning for my conservative readers: Paris is a stripper. There are thankfully no explicit scenes and it is only mentioned a few times and is very mild. Her job is not glorified, although Cassie was in awe of her confidence until the danger of such a job was shown later on in the book.
“She shines like a star, doesn’t she?” said Doctor Lewis, more succinctly. “I just hope she doesn’t turn out to be a meteor.”
“Why?” I said.
He looked sad all of a sudden, thoughtful. “Because they fall to the earth. And they burn.” (pg. 146) It’s so sad how ironic this whole conversation turns out to be in a few hundred pages…
The book was a little crude in some places and a bit suggestive, but compared to most YA books it was really clean in that area.
The swearing part was weird. Cassie said from the start that she didn’t like swear words so she used ***** instead, needless to say, my mind easily filled in the blanks but also this was inconsistent. Sometimes she would censor words and other times she didn’t. That was a little annoying.
And for all of my really really conservative readers (no shame in it, but in light of recent events I want to emphasize that I am giving a full honest review), Julie does have a crush on Paris in this book, Cassie figures it out and asks her if she loves Paris as more than just a friend and Julie says yes. It is one sentence and nothing happens between them after that because Paris remains clueless and Julie is quiet.
SO YEAH. This book, although it had its flaws, was a bunch of rambly goodness. When it ended it felt like I was saying goodbye to a friend. :’( This is definitely one of the books I hope to buy, because <3 <3 <3 <3.
I’m a pile of feels. My review can’t do it justice. READ IT SO YOU CAN CRY WITH ME!!!!!!!!
Original review:
“It’s not for us to find people. Or to make them pay. You take revenge, all you do is throw away your soul. Sometimes things happen that you can’t control. Sometimes we lose things we can’t get back. And there are some things we just can’t ever know.” (pg. 504).
OH, MY HEART. What just happened??? What just enthralled me and sucked me in for THREE WHOLE DAYS?????? I laughed. I cried. I was captivated. It has been forever since this has happened! *hugs book*
I love Cassie, she’s awkward, sweet, naïve, and yet realistically selfish and blundering at times. It was so nice to read about a girl who actually felt like a teenager like me.
Cassie struggles with schizophrenia, and I’m 99.9% sure that her dad, who was a former Navy Seal suffers from PTSD and trauma, the one percent is that this was never stated. Despite the conflicting relationship, they both did really love each other.
It was amazing to finally read a book that didn’t romanticize mental illness.
The whole book is a really long email (531 pages, whew!) Cassie is sending to her old love interest who she hurt very deeply, in it, she is explaining everything.
Now, let’s talk about the romance…
IT. WAS. SO. AWKWARD. But despite the lack of chemistry between Cassie and the boy who is nameless the entire book, I actually found myself rooting for them???
Okay, so I want a Paris in my life, I need a friend like her! Like, is there something wrong? Are you down? Hurting? Paris will be there. Paris is the sweetest thing, she always puts Cassie and Julie over herself even with her depression. It was SO SWEET.
But small warning for my conservative readers: Paris is a stripper. There are thankfully no explicit scenes and it is only mentioned a few times and is very mild. Her job is not glorified, although Cassie was in awe of her confidence until the danger of such a job was shown later on in the book.
“She shines like a star, doesn’t she?” said Doctor Lewis, more succinctly. “I just hope she doesn’t turn out to be a meteor.”
“Why?” I said.
He looked sad all of a sudden, thoughtful. “Because they fall to the earth. And they burn.” (pg. 146) It’s so sad how ironic this whole conversation turns out to be in a few hundred pages…
The book was a little crude in some places and a bit suggestive, but compared to most YA books it was really clean in that area.
The swearing part was weird. Cassie said from the start that she didn’t like swear words so she used ***** instead, needless to say, my mind easily filled in the blanks but also this was inconsistent. Sometimes she would censor words and other times she didn’t. That was a little annoying.
And for all of my really really conservative readers (no shame in it, but in light of recent events I want to emphasize that I am giving a full honest review), Julie does have a crush on Paris in this book, Cassie figures it out and asks her if she loves Paris as more than just a friend and Julie says yes. It is one sentence and nothing happens between them after that because Paris remains clueless and Julie is quiet.
SO YEAH. This book, although it had its flaws, was a bunch of rambly goodness. When it ended it felt like I was saying goodbye to a friend. :’( This is definitely one of the books I hope to buy, because <3 <3 <3 <3.
I’m a pile of feels. My review can’t do it justice. READ IT SO YOU CAN CRY WITH ME!!!!!!!!
April 26, 2016
It’s weird. I’m writing this to you, and you haven’t walked into my life yet. But I guess you already know when you first saw me.
It’s like a wood in ancient Greece, a leafy glade. I’m here, and the voice is here—the echo—and we’re just waiting for you, for the real action to start.
Which is soon.
Things are going to go fast from here.
Are you ready?
Whisper to Me is one of those special books that will stay with you long after you put it down. Nick Lake paints a vivid picture of grief and a teen girl's fall into the depths of mental illness. From the first page, Lake captured my attention with Cassie's distinct voice and thrilled me with the story's unique blend of mystery, thriller, and first love.
The catalyst to Cassie's mental breakdown was a grotesque discovery on the beach in her hometown of Oakwood, New Jersey. Perhaps it was a totem from the Houdini Serial Killer who's on the loose. What she finds sends her mind into a frenzy, leaving her with a frightening voice reverberating in her head. After a stint in the psychiatric hospital, she's left in a mental fog due to her medications. Back home, new summer tenants move into the apartment above her father's garage—workers at the Boardwalk for the summer. Her father is a veteran and has his own mental demons to fight with. Cassie finds herself in explicably drawn to one of the boys—referred to in the book as "you".
Whisper to Me is an apology letter and a plea for forgiveness from a girl to the boy whose heart she single-handedly crushed. It's her accounting and explanation of events that led to their break-up. The way this book is written is captivating and draws you in. Written in second-person narrative, you feel an immediate connection to Cassie and get the same sense of longing for a second chance.
I loved Cassie from page one. Her voice is witty and sharp, but there is an undercurrent of fragility seeping through. I loved all of her anecdotal musings of Greek mythology and interjections. It was very conversational, almost like she was there telling you what happened in her own special way.
"Okay, I’ve been sitting here at Dad’s PC in the study trying to think of how to describe you, the way you moved then, the way you always move. And I think I have it, finally. It’s . . .
So, you have to start by thinking of the word “fitness.” I mean, thinking of what it really means. We use it all the time—that person is fit, that person isn’t fit, he’s doing fitness training, whatever. But think about the root word. Fit. To fit. To be fit or apt for a purpose.
That’s you. You’re fit, yeah, in the obvious sense that you’re healthy and have a slow resting heart rate, and all that stuff. From all the swimming. But you also fit, your movements fit with the world, you interlock elegantly with it.
You fit into the world like a key in a lock."
This book is a character study, focusing on human connection and self-acceptance. A candid account of how grief can wreak havoc on one's mind and how it can break down one's ability to connect to others and even to yourself. Each character was multi-faceted and layered, even if they played a small role. I really loved "You" and his unwitting desire to help the girl with a thousand secrets. He was pure and good and had his own set of problems.
What made this book stand out among all other books that speak on mental illness is just how respectful Nick Lake deals with the subject. He doesn't try to romanticize it or let the love story side of things put a band aid or fix Cassie's problems. The portrayal of Cassie's unraveling is honest and real. Even though I've never gone through anything like that, the careful and intentional way Lake handled the subject matter made me feel Cassie's struggles deeply.
There’s a convention: If someone has cancer, they’re “brave” and “fighting.” If someone is having problems with their mind, that person is only ever “struggling.” This is, on one level, stupid and offensive. I mean, the people who die of cancer—what, they didn’t fight hard enough? They weren’t brave enough?
But on another level, when it comes to the mind breaking down, it’s not wrong that you struggle. I struggled. Everything was hard. Getting up. Getting dressed. Going to school.
The ending of this book gave me chills and made me tear up. You know when you finish a good book and you just kind of stare for a little bit and then you go back and read the ending again? Yeah, that happened here and it was awesome.
This book won't be for every person. I say this, not as a deterrent but as a little caveat before you read. People who tend to gravitate more plot-driven books may not enjoy this one as much as I did. But the focus here is on the characters, more than anything else.
* I received an advanced copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
THIS BOOK WAS SO GOOD! I finished this book last night and I can't stop thinking about it. It's about so many things, but most importantly about human connections and how grief affects us all differently. I just loved it. Full review to come closer to release date.
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WHISPER TO ME is one of my Most Anticipated Reads of 2016 !!
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May 4, 2016
(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing Plc (UK & ANZ) and NetGalley.)
This was a YA story about a girl who heard a voice that wasn’t really there.
Cass was a bit of a messed up character, she listened to this horrible voice telling her what to do and how to act, and she followed exactly what it told her to do. The voice drove me nuts, and it would have been awful to have to put up with it the way Cassie did.
The storyline in this was about Cass hearing this horrible voice, and there was also a bit of mystery over some murders that had happened. The pace in this was super-slow though, and there wasn’t enough about the murders for me, it was all about Cass talking to the voice in her head, then talking to her therapist, then talking to her doctor and on and on and on. Even the romance took a back seat to her voice!
The ending to this was also quite disappointing as there was a severe lack of resolution in all parts of the storyline!
5 out of 10
“When you get home, you will slap yourself. Hard. Twice.”
This was a YA story about a girl who heard a voice that wasn’t really there.
Cass was a bit of a messed up character, she listened to this horrible voice telling her what to do and how to act, and she followed exactly what it told her to do. The voice drove me nuts, and it would have been awful to have to put up with it the way Cassie did.
The storyline in this was about Cass hearing this horrible voice, and there was also a bit of mystery over some murders that had happened. The pace in this was super-slow though, and there wasn’t enough about the murders for me, it was all about Cass talking to the voice in her head, then talking to her therapist, then talking to her doctor and on and on and on. Even the romance took a back seat to her voice!
The ending to this was also quite disappointing as there was a severe lack of resolution in all parts of the storyline!
5 out of 10
September 14, 2023
Nick Lake! Nick frickin Lake! EXCUSE ME! YOU AND I NEED TO HAVE A LONG TALK PAL! ARE YOU OK!? WHAT- WHY- WHY WOULD YOU PUT ME THROUGH THIS TORTURE. I CRIED LOADS OF TIMES. DO YOU KNOW HOW BADLY THIS HURT ME!!! It’s one of the most relatable shit I’ve ever read, and quite frankly, I’m not gonna lie to you guys, I understand this completely. Cause Cass is basically me. I hear voices, I suffer from mental illness, and I’m going through shit, hard times. This dad- this dad right here in this book. Cass’s dumbass shit dad- I want you to know how much I hate his guts. This dad right here, ain’t a dad to me. Yes you’re wife died boo boo don’t frickin make that an excuse to not have proper communication with your daughter, and be like a blazing on and off switch. Cause this is the type of shit I had to deal with… An off and on fucking switch. You never know when it’ll turn on, and when they’ll get mad, they just do! I WANT YOU TO KNOW HOW MUCH PAIN IM IN! I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT EVERY HUMAN WHO DOES HAVE PROBLEMS, WHETHER THEY ARE BIG OR SMALL, CAN FRICKIN GET THROUGH ANYTHING! Cassie… Sweet dear Cassie… Girl I wish I could give you, Julie, Whatever the hell the guy’s name is and most importantly Paris a big huge hug. You deserve it. Hell… you deserve the world.
March 31, 2017
I was a bit hesitant to read this in the beginning, worried that the entire book would be written in letter format. I thought it would severely hinder my enjoyment as in my personal experience, books written in that format fail to deliver on the emotional aspects. I am so glad this was not the case here.
I could immediately connect with Cassie & how the trauma of her mother's death is affecting her daily life. She soon begins to hear a voice- someone who wants to punish her, wants to hurt her. It is very heartbreaking to see the interaction between them as Cassie truly believes she deserves to be punished. (Okay, possible spoilers here. Cassie's view of herself is a huge theme; the voice is her coping mechanism, not because Cassie is mentally ill. I really enjoyed how the author went about this, making voices a way to cope with trauma & did it with a compassionate voice.) The interaction between Cassie & her father is also disheartening-- (It is explained that the * in the swears are her way of dealing with her father's anger; she copes by blocking the words out. Because of this it isn't annoying to see all the stars. It adds to the story.)
I also enjoyed the majority of the side characters, including Paris & Julie. Although this is technically a "love letter", Cassie explaining her actions & what led up to where she is now to HIM, I did think the "romance" aspect was a bit unnecessary. It really didn't make any sense, except for her feeling safe with him, but still. This is easy enough to forgive. Cassie defending Paris' actions & challenging her father's views on sex workers were a pleasant added bonus. There are a lot of good bits about receiving help/getting treatment, what it means to truly heal & how to let go.
My biggest gripe would be that I did feel this was too long, not necessarily because it's YA, but just in general. It dragged quite a bit in the middle, making me take a considerable amount of time away from it. This was such a large drag I actually found myself bored & wanting to DNF. With a bit more effective editing, there's no reason this needed to be 531 pages. I also really did not like one of the character's outcome & how that went down. For me, the book went down a different path after that & I didn't feel as strong of an admiration for it. Again, the editing would have really helped here.
Overall, this is still worth checking out as I did feel the tears come a couple of times. WHISPER TO ME is just as important as the other YA mental illness contemporaries because it reassures the fact that you are not crazy; something bad has happened to you & now you must find a way to continue living. I did like Lake's voice & look forward to his future endeavours.
I could immediately connect with Cassie & how the trauma of her mother's death is affecting her daily life. She soon begins to hear a voice- someone who wants to punish her, wants to hurt her. It is very heartbreaking to see the interaction between them as Cassie truly believes she deserves to be punished. (Okay, possible spoilers here. Cassie's view of herself is a huge theme; the voice is her coping mechanism, not because Cassie is mentally ill. I really enjoyed how the author went about this, making voices a way to cope with trauma & did it with a compassionate voice.) The interaction between Cassie & her father is also disheartening-- (It is explained that the * in the swears are her way of dealing with her father's anger; she copes by blocking the words out. Because of this it isn't annoying to see all the stars. It adds to the story.)
I also enjoyed the majority of the side characters, including Paris & Julie. Although this is technically a "love letter", Cassie explaining her actions & what led up to where she is now to HIM, I did think the "romance" aspect was a bit unnecessary. It really didn't make any sense, except for her feeling safe with him, but still. This is easy enough to forgive. Cassie defending Paris' actions & challenging her father's views on sex workers were a pleasant added bonus. There are a lot of good bits about receiving help/getting treatment, what it means to truly heal & how to let go.
My biggest gripe would be that I did feel this was too long, not necessarily because it's YA, but just in general. It dragged quite a bit in the middle, making me take a considerable amount of time away from it. This was such a large drag I actually found myself bored & wanting to DNF. With a bit more effective editing, there's no reason this needed to be 531 pages. I also really did not like one of the character's outcome & how that went down. For me, the book went down a different path after that & I didn't feel as strong of an admiration for it. Again, the editing would have really helped here.
Overall, this is still worth checking out as I did feel the tears come a couple of times. WHISPER TO ME is just as important as the other YA mental illness contemporaries because it reassures the fact that you are not crazy; something bad has happened to you & now you must find a way to continue living. I did like Lake's voice & look forward to his future endeavours.
April 22, 2020
This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life in Books.
I thought that this book was very well done. I have had this book in my review pile for years now but for some reason never picked it up. I decided to finally give it a try and went into the story rather blindly since the only thing that I remembered about the book was that it was a YA story. It turns out that this is a story about dealing with mental illness, grief, romance, and even a bit of a mystery. I am glad that I finally read this emotional story.
This is a rather long book at 544 pages and it tells a big story. I started reading this book as I went to bed and planned to read one chapter before setting it aside to go to sleep. This book is not broken up into chapters like I am used to seeing. The book is broken up into two sections but there are breaks within each of the sections. The story is told as if it were a letter that Cassie is writing to the boy she hopes will give her a second chance.
There is a lot that happens in this book. A lot of those things don't occur until the second half of the story so it would be a bit of a spoiler to discuss those plot points in this review but I did appreciate the way that many later events were foreshadowed in the first part of the book. The first part of the book focuses almost entirely on the evolution of Cassie's mental illness. She describes when the voices start and exactly what they make her do. I felt her anguish and couldn't imagine living with that kind of pain. She has quite the journey as she receives treatment for her condition.
The book also follows Cassie as she deals with moving forward in her life with her illness. We do learn more about her past and the trauma that may have played a part in the development of her condition. We also get to see Cassie making friends and even getting to know the boy that she is writing the letter to. I loved getting to see Cassie having some fun and experiencing some of those typical teenage milestones. The relationship between Cassie and her father wasn't perfect, not at all, but it felt genuine. They both have a lot of pain, and more than a few issues, and don't always know the best way to interact with each other.
I would recommend this book to others. This was quite the emotional journey and I thought that the mental health aspect of the story was very well done. I wouldn't hesitate to read more of Nick Lake's work in the future.
I received a digital review copy of this book from Bloomsbury USA Children's Books via NetGalley.
Initial Thoughts
This was good. I have had an ARC of this book for a very long time but failed to pick it up until now. I selected a book at random to read one evening and it ended up being this book. I found that my digital ARC was nearly unreadable due to poor formatting so I checked a digital copy out from my local library and didn't look back. I was surprised that the book really isn't broken up into chapters in the way that I am used to but there were some natural breaks for those times that I needed to focus on other things.
I really didn't remember what this book was about when I started reading it but was quickly drawn into Cassie's story. The book is written from Cassie's point of view and presented as a letter to a boy. The main focus of the story is Cassie's struggle with mental illness but it also touches on romance, friendships, and a mystery. I really felt for Cassie and hoped to see things go her way.
I thought that this book was very well done. I have had this book in my review pile for years now but for some reason never picked it up. I decided to finally give it a try and went into the story rather blindly since the only thing that I remembered about the book was that it was a YA story. It turns out that this is a story about dealing with mental illness, grief, romance, and even a bit of a mystery. I am glad that I finally read this emotional story.
This is a rather long book at 544 pages and it tells a big story. I started reading this book as I went to bed and planned to read one chapter before setting it aside to go to sleep. This book is not broken up into chapters like I am used to seeing. The book is broken up into two sections but there are breaks within each of the sections. The story is told as if it were a letter that Cassie is writing to the boy she hopes will give her a second chance.
There is a lot that happens in this book. A lot of those things don't occur until the second half of the story so it would be a bit of a spoiler to discuss those plot points in this review but I did appreciate the way that many later events were foreshadowed in the first part of the book. The first part of the book focuses almost entirely on the evolution of Cassie's mental illness. She describes when the voices start and exactly what they make her do. I felt her anguish and couldn't imagine living with that kind of pain. She has quite the journey as she receives treatment for her condition.
The book also follows Cassie as she deals with moving forward in her life with her illness. We do learn more about her past and the trauma that may have played a part in the development of her condition. We also get to see Cassie making friends and even getting to know the boy that she is writing the letter to. I loved getting to see Cassie having some fun and experiencing some of those typical teenage milestones. The relationship between Cassie and her father wasn't perfect, not at all, but it felt genuine. They both have a lot of pain, and more than a few issues, and don't always know the best way to interact with each other.
I would recommend this book to others. This was quite the emotional journey and I thought that the mental health aspect of the story was very well done. I wouldn't hesitate to read more of Nick Lake's work in the future.
I received a digital review copy of this book from Bloomsbury USA Children's Books via NetGalley.
Initial Thoughts
This was good. I have had an ARC of this book for a very long time but failed to pick it up until now. I selected a book at random to read one evening and it ended up being this book. I found that my digital ARC was nearly unreadable due to poor formatting so I checked a digital copy out from my local library and didn't look back. I was surprised that the book really isn't broken up into chapters in the way that I am used to but there were some natural breaks for those times that I needed to focus on other things.
I really didn't remember what this book was about when I started reading it but was quickly drawn into Cassie's story. The book is written from Cassie's point of view and presented as a letter to a boy. The main focus of the story is Cassie's struggle with mental illness but it also touches on romance, friendships, and a mystery. I really felt for Cassie and hoped to see things go her way.
August 11, 2022
this is one of my favorite novels ever. i read it back in 2016, will be re reading to review it soon, look forward to it~!（づ￣3￣）づ╭❤️～
February 25, 2016
Whisper to Me is a beautiful and heart-wrenching story. I was completely consumed from the very first page. Okay, that's a lie. I was hooked from the blurb.
The idea that we are reading an apology and explanation letter to someone really puts you, the reader, into the story. You feel as though you are the person being addressed. You gain a different perspective of things. You're not being told a story, you are living it.
Cassie's voice is an important one. One that we need more of in YA, and literature in general. Too often people are afraid of mental illness. And reading this book makes that even clearer. The idea of her being so embarrassed by the voices she hears is both maddening and tear-inducing. Her struggle is important for everyone to understand, especially those who have never dealt with mental illnesses.
There is so much going on in this story, and as the big reveals come, some will be a surprise, others are easy to spot from the beginning.
I wasn't crazy about Cassie's dad for almost the entirety of the book. I understood his need to protect her, but his way of going about it was all wrong and far too abrasive to be effective.
I also remained on the fence about Paris as a friend. She didn't seem trustworthy. This wasn't because of her past, it was just how she comes across, I think. However, I did like that she took Cassie under her wing and tried to treat her like a normal girl as opposed to a damaged and repressed one. Friendship is one of the most important needs in life, and Cassie was always alone. It was nice to see someone invested in her well-being.
The story itself is powerful. I'm not sure if it's just the way it's being told, or also partially that you're dying to get answers, but I couldn't put it down. I found myself racing to get to the last page. There were times I wanted to cry. There are times I wanted to hug Cassie. There are times I wanted to punch her dad. There are times I wanted to shake her for being stupid. But mostly I just wanted her to be happy. I wanted her to take away the blame from herself. I wanted her to be upfront about her condition with the mystery guy. I wanted more of them together. I never wanted Whisper to Me to end.
Whisper to Me is more than just a book or a story. It's a powerful and gripping tale of one girl's journey to reclaim her life.
The idea that we are reading an apology and explanation letter to someone really puts you, the reader, into the story. You feel as though you are the person being addressed. You gain a different perspective of things. You're not being told a story, you are living it.
Cassie's voice is an important one. One that we need more of in YA, and literature in general. Too often people are afraid of mental illness. And reading this book makes that even clearer. The idea of her being so embarrassed by the voices she hears is both maddening and tear-inducing. Her struggle is important for everyone to understand, especially those who have never dealt with mental illnesses.
There is so much going on in this story, and as the big reveals come, some will be a surprise, others are easy to spot from the beginning.
I wasn't crazy about Cassie's dad for almost the entirety of the book. I understood his need to protect her, but his way of going about it was all wrong and far too abrasive to be effective.
I also remained on the fence about Paris as a friend. She didn't seem trustworthy. This wasn't because of her past, it was just how she comes across, I think. However, I did like that she took Cassie under her wing and tried to treat her like a normal girl as opposed to a damaged and repressed one. Friendship is one of the most important needs in life, and Cassie was always alone. It was nice to see someone invested in her well-being.
The story itself is powerful. I'm not sure if it's just the way it's being told, or also partially that you're dying to get answers, but I couldn't put it down. I found myself racing to get to the last page. There were times I wanted to cry. There are times I wanted to hug Cassie. There are times I wanted to punch her dad. There are times I wanted to shake her for being stupid. But mostly I just wanted her to be happy. I wanted her to take away the blame from herself. I wanted her to be upfront about her condition with the mystery guy. I wanted more of them together. I never wanted Whisper to Me to end.
Whisper to Me is more than just a book or a story. It's a powerful and gripping tale of one girl's journey to reclaim her life.
September 15, 2016
4.5 stars
I have two things to say about this book:
A) It is the most brilliant portrayal of mental illness and its effect on relationships, particularly familial and romantic ones, that I have ever read. It gutted me in a beautiful way and I think it will stay with me for a long time.
B) It is way too long for a contemporary (I mean, 550+ pages is a lot)… but that’s my only complaint.
This was such a beautifully thought-provoking and insightful book about mental illness. Move over Jennifer Niven and John Green. This is how it should be done! Go do yourself a favour right now and give this book a go. It has an amazing protagonist and the themes are handled sensitively and with an open rawness that you’ll want to applaud. It has my highest recommendation.
I have two things to say about this book:
A) It is the most brilliant portrayal of mental illness and its effect on relationships, particularly familial and romantic ones, that I have ever read. It gutted me in a beautiful way and I think it will stay with me for a long time.
B) It is way too long for a contemporary (I mean, 550+ pages is a lot)… but that’s my only complaint.
This was such a beautifully thought-provoking and insightful book about mental illness. Move over Jennifer Niven and John Green. This is how it should be done! Go do yourself a favour right now and give this book a go. It has an amazing protagonist and the themes are handled sensitively and with an open rawness that you’ll want to applaud. It has my highest recommendation.
July 30, 2025
Nick Lake's teen novels can be long and involved, and Whisper to Me is a prime example, clocking in at five hundred thirty-five pages. But when he's on his game, crafting majestic sentences that transport readers to places outside their own experience, his books could be even longer and I wouldn't mind. Whisper to Me takes the form of a letter written by the main character, Cassie, to the boy she fell in love with last summer, the boy she ultimately betrayed despite the fact that hurting him was the last thing she wanted. Fully explaining why she did it requires detail, and Cassie doesn't spare a word in her tell-all message. But why did she and this boy part ways so bitterly after their magical summer together? The whole story is about to be told, even the parts that Cassie hid from him before. When she's spoken her piece, he can decide if there's a future for him with Cassie, or if that sweet possibility has been spoiled beyond recovery.
Cassie was never like other girls in her oceanside New Jersey hometown. A few disturbing incidents marred her childhood and kept her from making friends, but the worst came when her mother died. Cassie tries not to think about it, but the absence stains her own life, including her uneasy relationship with her father, an ex-Navy SEAL with untreated post-traumatic stress disorder. When Cassie finds a human foot washed up on the beach, the first physical evidence of the "Houdini Killer" who's been at work for years in town killing young ladies employed in the vice district, that all happens before Cassie meets the boy; in fact, there's a substantial amount of story to go before she does. Finding the leftover foot of a murder victim seriously damages Cassie's psyche. The voice of a cantankerous middle-aged woman pops into Cassie's head, insulting and threatening her. The woman orders her around and promises to harm Cassie or her dad if she doesn't comply. This slavery-by-psychosis persists until Cassie's father forces her to get mental help, and the drug regimen begins. The caustic voice fades, but so does Cassie's vigor for life, and her father is reluctant to let her out of the house with the Houdini Killer on the prowl. Cassie is no longer in immediate danger from the voice inside her head, but what good is a new lease on life if that life is dreary and pointless?
When the boy and his friend Shane rent the apartment on Cassie's father's property, the new tenants don't make a big difference right away. It's Paris, an energetic, sarcastic, strangely brilliant girl who Cassie meets where she has sessions with the psychiatrist, whose friendship affects Cassie first. Paris and her friend Julie are fun and independent, as Cassie wishes she could be from her overbearing father and his outbursts of scary anger, but Paris has her own psychiatric issues stemming from the past. She invites Cassie to an alternative therapy group that concentrates on the cause of one's psychological disturbance. Cassie's psychiatrist does little more than prescribe medication to eliminate the voice, but Dr. Lewis and the members of Paris's group focus on why the voice is invading her mind in the first place. Is Cassie schizophrenic, or is the voice's true cause a dark memory repressed so Cassie won't have to deal with its anguish? With Paris as friend and mutual support, Cassie starts believing she can overcome the tragedies of her life.
Then she meets the boy, and summer transforms into temperate evenings on the boardwalk adjacent to Cassie's father's pizza restaurant, where tourists play carnival games, go on rides, and stroll beside the ocean. Living in New Jersey all her life means Cassie isn't as dazzled by the boardwalk experience as an outsider like the boy is (and yes, in classic Gary Paulsen fashion, his name isn't revealed in Whisper to Me), but she loves spending time with him, Paris, and Julie by the sea, taking the tourist route as if it were her first time. Cassie's father is tense as ever, uncomfortable with her making friends if it could put her in the crosshairs of the Houdini Killer. He's already lost his wife to violent crime, and he's not going to lose his daughter the same way. He'd rather she not hang around the boy at all, and he's even less fond of Paris, who lands on his bad side early on. Cassie is prone to unstable behavior, going back and forth between taking her medication and skipping doses, and her father becomes agitated when he suspects that her friends may be leading her in unwholesome directions. As Cassie and the boy draw closer, she knows all too well that he isn't privy to her psychiatric history, and wonders how he'd react if he found out. Is their splendid summer hanging by a thread that her father could snip at any time if he decides Cassie's relationship with the boy is detrimental to her mental health?
Sadness has been Cassie's companion her entire life, and it's ready to beget more sadness just when she's starting to feel okay again after her mother's untimely passing. Paris is a borderline sex trader who's tempting disaster with the Houdini Killer still free to mangle and murder; there are traps for Cassie in her relationship with the boy, typical snares of adolescent angst complicated by the frailty of her mental health; Cassie's father could snap at any time, wrecking everything; and then there's the minefield of Cassie's own repressed memories, traumas in her past that may surface without warning. A happy ending seems unlikely as Cassie winds her way through summer, struggling with insecurity and self-contempt while trying to be there for her friends and salvage a future that isn't tainted by violence and mental illness. That future could be with the boy, or not, but Cassie needs to convince her father and the others in authority over her that she's ready to take control of her own life. Who knows, New Jersey's boardwalk may still have a night or two of picturesque romance after the drama is over.
Short or long, Nick Lake's descriptions of scenes, people, and human emotion are evocative. Even before we meet the boy, we're excited about his introduction to the story. We already know what he means to Cassie because of the way she writes about him, and it resonates with our own feelings about anyone we've had who is that important to us. Have you wondered about the special person in your life before you met, before they knew you existed? Probably, and so does Cassie. "It feels weird, thinking about you, before I knew you existed. I wonder what you were doing. I think I like picturing you standing in the wings. A hero, listening for his line, his cue to enter. But a tragic hero. A hero betrayed by me." So much emotion is in those lines, especially the thrill of the lead coming "onstage" for the first time. Life takes on fresh meaning with the introduction of that spectacular someone who puts a buzz in your head and a flutter in your heart, but Cassie's words also hint that her sunny days will be chased by a black cloud. She writes more later about when she met the boy. "It's so hard, when you fall for someone—the temptation is to look back on the past and rewrite things so they seem more significant. There's a part of me going: Did I know? Did I know the first time we met that you would change everything? That you would change me?" Our memories in proximity to our beloved are tinted pleasantly, even moments that weren't so agreeable at the time. That's not a bad thing, but we're better off recognizing this tendency in ourselves.
There are more losses for Cassie than just her mother, but letting the passage of time dull the pain brings a hurt of its own: forgetting. The cliché that "Life goes on" doesn't present an adequate picture. Cassie writes, "Instead, what happens is that things accrete, tiny things, tiny experiences, going to the bathroom, doing makeup, getting dressed, walking places, and they end up covering the shape of the dead person, filling it in, like little bricks, tiny, until the hole is almost filled up and you realize that you're forgetting, and that makes you feel even worse." Your loved one's memory is being buried just as their body was, and that's hard to bear. This is part of Cassie's learning curve, for those lost forever and those she might have a chance to regain, if fate is kind. "I have learned that some people come into our lives, and then are gone. And that part of the thing, part of life, is to accept that fact, to accept that they're gone. But there's something else too: and that's realizing that a part of them will never be gone. We think of lives as stopping, suddenly. But they don't. They are like waves, like ripples, like echoes that continue to resonate from their point of origin, out into the world...And, of course...I can just remember those voices, and that keeps them with me. Remember their lives. Remember their words...But there are also, of course, people you don't have to just remember, because they're still around. And I guess that's the other thing I have learned. There are people who come into our lives, and then are gone. But there are also people who come into our lives and who we need to hang on to." If we can't make that distinction, then we hold on to those who are irretrievably gone and give up on people who should continue being part of our world for a long time. Discerning the difference is key to one's learning, growth, and happiness, which Cassie wants to flourish in spite of her troubles. And the first order of business is to find out if the boy agrees that Cassie belongs in the category of people to hold on to.
Whisper to Me is strong on a variety of themes, but central to Cassie's story is the voice in her head, calling her vile names and bullying her into harming herself. Whether the voices that assault us are internal or external, they do devastating damage. They accuse us of things that aren't true but that we fear others believe are; of things we hope aren't true but we can't know for sure either way, because motives, actions, and perception are so tricky to objectively assess. What if our accuser is right, and we're a wretch not fit to inhabit this world? What if we were taught all our lives to favor good people and condemn the bad, only to realize now that we are bad, irredeemably so? What are we to do when the voice in our head says we deserve our own destruction, and demands we bring it on ourselves? Balancing our emotions with honest self-examination when voices cry out against us is not easy, but it's the only way to lead a satisfactory life. It's the path we all attempt to walk, not knowing where it will end up. But certain special people can turn down the volume on the voices that plague us, as Cassie discovers is one of many happy effects of being with the boy. "(T)he voice couldn't get past the force field that was you." Love from the right person can work miracles to soothe our frazzled mind, signaling that the worst may be behind us. How wonderful when that turns out to be true.
"Never listen to any kind of voice inside you that says things will not get better."
—Whisper to Me, P. 534
I get fooled by Nick Lake's grand style into anticipating bigger plot surprises, so his books tend not to live up to my expectations. I don't know if that's fair, but he is an excellent writer who turns out suave, skillful treatments of complicated issues. Whisper to Me is considerably better, in my opinion, than his previous novel, There Will Be Lies. It's more emotional, insightful, and leaves a lingering mental impression that is going to do me good. I'm not sure I'd give it the full three stars, but I'd at least round my two and a half stars up to three, and I might give it three stars anyway. I probably wouldn't reread Whisper to Me, but I'll do some thinking about this book. I could use the extra time to come to grips with what it taught me.
Cassie was never like other girls in her oceanside New Jersey hometown. A few disturbing incidents marred her childhood and kept her from making friends, but the worst came when her mother died. Cassie tries not to think about it, but the absence stains her own life, including her uneasy relationship with her father, an ex-Navy SEAL with untreated post-traumatic stress disorder. When Cassie finds a human foot washed up on the beach, the first physical evidence of the "Houdini Killer" who's been at work for years in town killing young ladies employed in the vice district, that all happens before Cassie meets the boy; in fact, there's a substantial amount of story to go before she does. Finding the leftover foot of a murder victim seriously damages Cassie's psyche. The voice of a cantankerous middle-aged woman pops into Cassie's head, insulting and threatening her. The woman orders her around and promises to harm Cassie or her dad if she doesn't comply. This slavery-by-psychosis persists until Cassie's father forces her to get mental help, and the drug regimen begins. The caustic voice fades, but so does Cassie's vigor for life, and her father is reluctant to let her out of the house with the Houdini Killer on the prowl. Cassie is no longer in immediate danger from the voice inside her head, but what good is a new lease on life if that life is dreary and pointless?
When the boy and his friend Shane rent the apartment on Cassie's father's property, the new tenants don't make a big difference right away. It's Paris, an energetic, sarcastic, strangely brilliant girl who Cassie meets where she has sessions with the psychiatrist, whose friendship affects Cassie first. Paris and her friend Julie are fun and independent, as Cassie wishes she could be from her overbearing father and his outbursts of scary anger, but Paris has her own psychiatric issues stemming from the past. She invites Cassie to an alternative therapy group that concentrates on the cause of one's psychological disturbance. Cassie's psychiatrist does little more than prescribe medication to eliminate the voice, but Dr. Lewis and the members of Paris's group focus on why the voice is invading her mind in the first place. Is Cassie schizophrenic, or is the voice's true cause a dark memory repressed so Cassie won't have to deal with its anguish? With Paris as friend and mutual support, Cassie starts believing she can overcome the tragedies of her life.
Then she meets the boy, and summer transforms into temperate evenings on the boardwalk adjacent to Cassie's father's pizza restaurant, where tourists play carnival games, go on rides, and stroll beside the ocean. Living in New Jersey all her life means Cassie isn't as dazzled by the boardwalk experience as an outsider like the boy is (and yes, in classic Gary Paulsen fashion, his name isn't revealed in Whisper to Me), but she loves spending time with him, Paris, and Julie by the sea, taking the tourist route as if it were her first time. Cassie's father is tense as ever, uncomfortable with her making friends if it could put her in the crosshairs of the Houdini Killer. He's already lost his wife to violent crime, and he's not going to lose his daughter the same way. He'd rather she not hang around the boy at all, and he's even less fond of Paris, who lands on his bad side early on. Cassie is prone to unstable behavior, going back and forth between taking her medication and skipping doses, and her father becomes agitated when he suspects that her friends may be leading her in unwholesome directions. As Cassie and the boy draw closer, she knows all too well that he isn't privy to her psychiatric history, and wonders how he'd react if he found out. Is their splendid summer hanging by a thread that her father could snip at any time if he decides Cassie's relationship with the boy is detrimental to her mental health?
Sadness has been Cassie's companion her entire life, and it's ready to beget more sadness just when she's starting to feel okay again after her mother's untimely passing. Paris is a borderline sex trader who's tempting disaster with the Houdini Killer still free to mangle and murder; there are traps for Cassie in her relationship with the boy, typical snares of adolescent angst complicated by the frailty of her mental health; Cassie's father could snap at any time, wrecking everything; and then there's the minefield of Cassie's own repressed memories, traumas in her past that may surface without warning. A happy ending seems unlikely as Cassie winds her way through summer, struggling with insecurity and self-contempt while trying to be there for her friends and salvage a future that isn't tainted by violence and mental illness. That future could be with the boy, or not, but Cassie needs to convince her father and the others in authority over her that she's ready to take control of her own life. Who knows, New Jersey's boardwalk may still have a night or two of picturesque romance after the drama is over.
Short or long, Nick Lake's descriptions of scenes, people, and human emotion are evocative. Even before we meet the boy, we're excited about his introduction to the story. We already know what he means to Cassie because of the way she writes about him, and it resonates with our own feelings about anyone we've had who is that important to us. Have you wondered about the special person in your life before you met, before they knew you existed? Probably, and so does Cassie. "It feels weird, thinking about you, before I knew you existed. I wonder what you were doing. I think I like picturing you standing in the wings. A hero, listening for his line, his cue to enter. But a tragic hero. A hero betrayed by me." So much emotion is in those lines, especially the thrill of the lead coming "onstage" for the first time. Life takes on fresh meaning with the introduction of that spectacular someone who puts a buzz in your head and a flutter in your heart, but Cassie's words also hint that her sunny days will be chased by a black cloud. She writes more later about when she met the boy. "It's so hard, when you fall for someone—the temptation is to look back on the past and rewrite things so they seem more significant. There's a part of me going: Did I know? Did I know the first time we met that you would change everything? That you would change me?" Our memories in proximity to our beloved are tinted pleasantly, even moments that weren't so agreeable at the time. That's not a bad thing, but we're better off recognizing this tendency in ourselves.
There are more losses for Cassie than just her mother, but letting the passage of time dull the pain brings a hurt of its own: forgetting. The cliché that "Life goes on" doesn't present an adequate picture. Cassie writes, "Instead, what happens is that things accrete, tiny things, tiny experiences, going to the bathroom, doing makeup, getting dressed, walking places, and they end up covering the shape of the dead person, filling it in, like little bricks, tiny, until the hole is almost filled up and you realize that you're forgetting, and that makes you feel even worse." Your loved one's memory is being buried just as their body was, and that's hard to bear. This is part of Cassie's learning curve, for those lost forever and those she might have a chance to regain, if fate is kind. "I have learned that some people come into our lives, and then are gone. And that part of the thing, part of life, is to accept that fact, to accept that they're gone. But there's something else too: and that's realizing that a part of them will never be gone. We think of lives as stopping, suddenly. But they don't. They are like waves, like ripples, like echoes that continue to resonate from their point of origin, out into the world...And, of course...I can just remember those voices, and that keeps them with me. Remember their lives. Remember their words...But there are also, of course, people you don't have to just remember, because they're still around. And I guess that's the other thing I have learned. There are people who come into our lives, and then are gone. But there are also people who come into our lives and who we need to hang on to." If we can't make that distinction, then we hold on to those who are irretrievably gone and give up on people who should continue being part of our world for a long time. Discerning the difference is key to one's learning, growth, and happiness, which Cassie wants to flourish in spite of her troubles. And the first order of business is to find out if the boy agrees that Cassie belongs in the category of people to hold on to.
Whisper to Me is strong on a variety of themes, but central to Cassie's story is the voice in her head, calling her vile names and bullying her into harming herself. Whether the voices that assault us are internal or external, they do devastating damage. They accuse us of things that aren't true but that we fear others believe are; of things we hope aren't true but we can't know for sure either way, because motives, actions, and perception are so tricky to objectively assess. What if our accuser is right, and we're a wretch not fit to inhabit this world? What if we were taught all our lives to favor good people and condemn the bad, only to realize now that we are bad, irredeemably so? What are we to do when the voice in our head says we deserve our own destruction, and demands we bring it on ourselves? Balancing our emotions with honest self-examination when voices cry out against us is not easy, but it's the only way to lead a satisfactory life. It's the path we all attempt to walk, not knowing where it will end up. But certain special people can turn down the volume on the voices that plague us, as Cassie discovers is one of many happy effects of being with the boy. "(T)he voice couldn't get past the force field that was you." Love from the right person can work miracles to soothe our frazzled mind, signaling that the worst may be behind us. How wonderful when that turns out to be true.
"Never listen to any kind of voice inside you that says things will not get better."
—Whisper to Me, P. 534
I get fooled by Nick Lake's grand style into anticipating bigger plot surprises, so his books tend not to live up to my expectations. I don't know if that's fair, but he is an excellent writer who turns out suave, skillful treatments of complicated issues. Whisper to Me is considerably better, in my opinion, than his previous novel, There Will Be Lies. It's more emotional, insightful, and leaves a lingering mental impression that is going to do me good. I'm not sure I'd give it the full three stars, but I'd at least round my two and a half stars up to three, and I might give it three stars anyway. I probably wouldn't reread Whisper to Me, but I'll do some thinking about this book. I could use the extra time to come to grips with what it taught me.
October 14, 2016
4 stars
“Think of this as the most screwed-up love letter ever.”
This book has been staring at me from my bookshelf begging me to read it. I got it several months ago and just barely started it a few days ago. It was my goal to read this book because I was interested in the plot.
So Whisper to Me. It's a complex book dealing with family relations, friendship, love and mental illness. Cassie, our protagonist, is writing a long, long letter to a boy explaining why she did what she did and why she broke his heart. And while it may be long, it's the story that counts the most and I really enjoyed it. And it may have even made me sad. But there's hope and happiness as well.
From the start, Whisper to Me may seem like an intimidating book to read, but believe me when I say some it has a good pace. Not to mention the writing style helps make the story go quicker. Albeit, some parts were a bit slow, but the overall pacing was good.
(But I mean, over 500 pages!? I bet she's good at writing essays for her English courses.)
Cassie herself, is very multi-dimensional. Since she is suffering from a mental illness, we get to see what she's going through and it's sad to see what's she's going through. And it's because of her illness that she goes on an some-what adventure meeting Paris and the boy she is writing to. That isn't to say she's a perfect character. At times, she can be mean, but it depends on the reader if they can forgive her or hate her. To me, I can cheer for Cassie in trying to cope with her illness because her illness doesn't define her. Not to mention I like her attitude and her description of things and people are great. And her friendship with Paris was another fantastic aspect of the book. It was a genuine friendship.
Verdict
While the size may be intimidating at first sight, there is a good story in this book.
Thanks for reading my review!
-Cesar
“Think of this as the most screwed-up love letter ever.”
This book has been staring at me from my bookshelf begging me to read it. I got it several months ago and just barely started it a few days ago. It was my goal to read this book because I was interested in the plot.
So Whisper to Me. It's a complex book dealing with family relations, friendship, love and mental illness. Cassie, our protagonist, is writing a long, long letter to a boy explaining why she did what she did and why she broke his heart. And while it may be long, it's the story that counts the most and I really enjoyed it. And it may have even made me sad. But there's hope and happiness as well.
From the start, Whisper to Me may seem like an intimidating book to read, but believe me when I say some it has a good pace. Not to mention the writing style helps make the story go quicker. Albeit, some parts were a bit slow, but the overall pacing was good.
(But I mean, over 500 pages!? I bet she's good at writing essays for her English courses.)
Cassie herself, is very multi-dimensional. Since she is suffering from a mental illness, we get to see what she's going through and it's sad to see what's she's going through. And it's because of her illness that she goes on an some-what adventure meeting Paris and the boy she is writing to. That isn't to say she's a perfect character. At times, she can be mean, but it depends on the reader if they can forgive her or hate her. To me, I can cheer for Cassie in trying to cope with her illness because her illness doesn't define her. Not to mention I like her attitude and her description of things and people are great. And her friendship with Paris was another fantastic aspect of the book. It was a genuine friendship.
Verdict
While the size may be intimidating at first sight, there is a good story in this book.
Thanks for reading my review!
-Cesar
June 24, 2017
I knew this was a mental health book going in, but that’s about it. I had no expectations going into this at all. Unfortunately, this just isn’t a very good book at all.
This is a book told as an email a teen girl is sending to a boy to tell him why she did some mysterious thing (kinda gimmicky imo, since this really is told like a normal book for the most part). The book follows Cassie as she copes with beginning to hear a voice telling her to do things.
As a mental health book, it’s pretty meh. There are some good parts, but I don’t love books where the MC has some unspecified mental illness. It feels like an excuse to not have to adhere to how an actual MI works.
There’s definitely a bit of a love cure going on. I mean, the tagline in the book flap is the dramatic, ‘can love fix everything?’, so of course Cassie doesn’t hear the voice when Love Interest (whose name is never revealed, eye roll) is around.
This book had a lot of my pet peeves. There’s cursing censorship, where they use stars, completely unnecessary considering everyone is just reading them as the intended curse words anyway. It also has that narrator trying to be so mysterious and saying shit like “but don’t worry, I’ll tell you about that later”.
Also, this book is over 500 pages, too long for a contemporary imo. And it’s supposed to be an email. I don’t even think it’s possible to send a 500 page email.
Ah, well. This was blurbed by Jennifer Niven, after all. This book didn’t work for me at all, there are much better books on mental health out there.
This is a book told as an email a teen girl is sending to a boy to tell him why she did some mysterious thing (kinda gimmicky imo, since this really is told like a normal book for the most part). The book follows Cassie as she copes with beginning to hear a voice telling her to do things.
As a mental health book, it’s pretty meh. There are some good parts, but I don’t love books where the MC has some unspecified mental illness. It feels like an excuse to not have to adhere to how an actual MI works.
There’s definitely a bit of a love cure going on. I mean, the tagline in the book flap is the dramatic, ‘can love fix everything?’, so of course Cassie doesn’t hear the voice when Love Interest (whose name is never revealed, eye roll) is around.
This book had a lot of my pet peeves. There’s cursing censorship, where they use stars, completely unnecessary considering everyone is just reading them as the intended curse words anyway. It also has that narrator trying to be so mysterious and saying shit like “but don’t worry, I’ll tell you about that later”.
Also, this book is over 500 pages, too long for a contemporary imo. And it’s supposed to be an email. I don’t even think it’s possible to send a 500 page email.
Ah, well. This was blurbed by Jennifer Niven, after all. This book didn’t work for me at all, there are much better books on mental health out there.
July 26, 2016
Disclosure: I received a copy from the author/publisher, in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my review in any shape or form.
Whisper To Me is a book I want to hug and then shove in everyone’s face to read. It is exceptional, emotional, scary, heartbreaking and beautiful all in one.
Whisper To Me is an email written by Cass to the boy whose heart she’s broken. I haven’t really read many books with this approach and I have to say I really liked it. I really enjoyed the writing and I was hooked from the first couple pages. I wanted to know what was going on and where this story was headed. It was an emotional rollercoaster one that I would gladly ride again.
Cass is our main character and the story is told in her point of view. She really starts from the beginning of before she met said boy (I don’t think his name is mentioned). Personally, I really liked that it started with that setting and worked its way toward the present day. I felt like I was there with Cass every step of the way. Cass hears a voice. Not the voice we hear, you know the one that tells you not to do a certain thing. Oh no, Cass hears one that wants to her to hurt herself.
Cass’s character growth was amazing. I felt her grow from the first page to the very end. I didn’t always agree with her decisions but I also understood at that point of time she believed they helped her.
I didn’t really believe the romance when it came to this novel but I think it’s because we only have Cass’s point of view things. Things could’ve been seen totally different from the boy’s side. I’d actually love to see his point of view just to see his perspective on the situation. I think that would’ve brought this book to a 5 star read for me.
"If someone has cancer, they're brave and fighting. If someone is having problems with their mind, that person is only ever struggling."
Mental illness is always a topic that many authors tend to avoid because it is a hard topic to talk about but it is also one that needs to talk about. I personally loved Nick Lake’s approach in Whisper To Me. We experienced the shame of having a mental illness, the thought of telling others and have them look at you differently. We also experienced the getting off medications prescribed to you only to have you feel like a zombie, slowly you start to feel better and begin thinking you don’t need them anymore. I also loved the different medical approach with group. I thought this showed a real scenario with someone who has a mental illness. The misunderstanding others have about your illness.
This is a book that may help a teen out there. Someone who needs the help with his or her illness. Everyone is fighting a battle rather we see it or not so it doesn’t help to reach out to them once in a while it might just help their day be a little better. I personally loved this book and it’s portrayal of mental illness and would recommend it.
Whisper To Me is a book I want to hug and then shove in everyone’s face to read. It is exceptional, emotional, scary, heartbreaking and beautiful all in one.
Whisper To Me is an email written by Cass to the boy whose heart she’s broken. I haven’t really read many books with this approach and I have to say I really liked it. I really enjoyed the writing and I was hooked from the first couple pages. I wanted to know what was going on and where this story was headed. It was an emotional rollercoaster one that I would gladly ride again.
Cass is our main character and the story is told in her point of view. She really starts from the beginning of before she met said boy (I don’t think his name is mentioned). Personally, I really liked that it started with that setting and worked its way toward the present day. I felt like I was there with Cass every step of the way. Cass hears a voice. Not the voice we hear, you know the one that tells you not to do a certain thing. Oh no, Cass hears one that wants to her to hurt herself.
Cass’s character growth was amazing. I felt her grow from the first page to the very end. I didn’t always agree with her decisions but I also understood at that point of time she believed they helped her.
I didn’t really believe the romance when it came to this novel but I think it’s because we only have Cass’s point of view things. Things could’ve been seen totally different from the boy’s side. I’d actually love to see his point of view just to see his perspective on the situation. I think that would’ve brought this book to a 5 star read for me.
"If someone has cancer, they're brave and fighting. If someone is having problems with their mind, that person is only ever struggling."
Mental illness is always a topic that many authors tend to avoid because it is a hard topic to talk about but it is also one that needs to talk about. I personally loved Nick Lake’s approach in Whisper To Me. We experienced the shame of having a mental illness, the thought of telling others and have them look at you differently. We also experienced the getting off medications prescribed to you only to have you feel like a zombie, slowly you start to feel better and begin thinking you don’t need them anymore. I also loved the different medical approach with group. I thought this showed a real scenario with someone who has a mental illness. The misunderstanding others have about your illness.
This is a book that may help a teen out there. Someone who needs the help with his or her illness. Everyone is fighting a battle rather we see it or not so it doesn’t help to reach out to them once in a while it might just help their day be a little better. I personally loved this book and it’s portrayal of mental illness and would recommend it.
March 18, 2019
Don't let the cover fool you. This isn't some cute, fluffy, swoony read.
Quite frankly, this book is dark, and doesn't hold back in its themes of mental illness and trauma. I liked that--it didn't romanticise mental illness, as it showed how it actually damaged the main character Cassie's relationships with her dad, her friends, and the boy she meets that she addresses as 'you', as well as the fact that her illness is addressed by professional medical help and opinions. But that doesn't mean this book was torture porn--it wasn't. There wasn't an overkill in the hardships and challenges Cassie faced, and it included themes of hopefulness, forgiveness, and reconciliation as well. It was the perfect balance of an accurate portrayal of hardship and the light at the end of the tunnel, something that some YA authors can't seem to pull off as skilfully.
And that writing. I loved Nick Lake's There Will Be Lies, and I was hoping his writing style would shine through this book as well--it did not disappoint. I don't know how Lake comes to so artfully conduct the world-building in this book; I mean, there wasn't an unnecessary slew of adjectives in every sentence. But as I read it, I felt like I was actually there.
This took me nearly a week to read, and for a YA contemporary novel it was a bit lengthy. I like my YA contemporaries short and sweet, something I could read in three or four nights, but you know what? Every second I spent reading this book was worth it. Lake made sure every word counted. I don't know how to explain it but, even though this book was lengthy for a YA contemporary (530 pages), Lake's writing style was so breezy and easy to read that it didn't feel like it.
Vivid, poignant, underrated.
Other books you might like:
Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow
Paperweight by Meg Haston
I Was Here by Gayle Forman
Quite frankly, this book is dark, and doesn't hold back in its themes of mental illness and trauma. I liked that--it didn't romanticise mental illness, as it showed how it actually damaged the main character Cassie's relationships with her dad, her friends, and the boy she meets that she addresses as 'you', as well as the fact that her illness is addressed by professional medical help and opinions. But that doesn't mean this book was torture porn--it wasn't. There wasn't an overkill in the hardships and challenges Cassie faced, and it included themes of hopefulness, forgiveness, and reconciliation as well. It was the perfect balance of an accurate portrayal of hardship and the light at the end of the tunnel, something that some YA authors can't seem to pull off as skilfully.
And that writing. I loved Nick Lake's There Will Be Lies, and I was hoping his writing style would shine through this book as well--it did not disappoint. I don't know how Lake comes to so artfully conduct the world-building in this book; I mean, there wasn't an unnecessary slew of adjectives in every sentence. But as I read it, I felt like I was actually there.
This took me nearly a week to read, and for a YA contemporary novel it was a bit lengthy. I like my YA contemporaries short and sweet, something I could read in three or four nights, but you know what? Every second I spent reading this book was worth it. Lake made sure every word counted. I don't know how to explain it but, even though this book was lengthy for a YA contemporary (530 pages), Lake's writing style was so breezy and easy to read that it didn't feel like it.
Vivid, poignant, underrated.
Other books you might like:
Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow
Paperweight by Meg Haston
I Was Here by Gayle Forman
May 6, 2018
Grade: B+
One Word: Gripping
Cass tries to hide the voice she hears in her head. She doesn't tell the guy with whom she falls in love and breaks his heart. In one last effort to make him understand, she writes an email explanation, the entire story of WHISPER TO ME.
In writing to the young man, known only as You, Cass shows her complex character. After losing her mother violently three years earlier, her father, a vet suffering from untreated PTSD becomes emotionally abusive and controlling. She begins hearing The Voice after finding a body part of a missing girl, a likely victim of the serial killer nicknamed Houdini because of the disappearance of fourteen sex workers over the past several years.
I fell in love with Cass because of her strength, vulnerability and constant pursuit of doing the right thing. Nick Lake did his homework, making her psychosis feel authentic and giving her a great voice, no pun intended.
Given that Cass heard The Voice, was noncompliant with her meds and lied to almost everyone, I had to assume she was an unreliable narrator, which made me unsure how much of the plot occurred only inside her head. At the end of WHISPER TO ME, I still had questions, expecting a Big Reveal that part or all of the events in Cass's letter were figments of her imagination. I expected some twists in the Houdini Killer subplot as well as resolution with her mental health compliance and her relationship with her father and You. Some of these issues were left unresolved. I don't necessarily need everything tied up in a bow, but I'm frustrated when major subplots are left hanging. This prevented me from giving WHISPER TO ME five stars. The other factor I didn't like was the insta-romance between Cass and You. It seemed as though they only hung out a few times, yet we're to believe they were so in love she could hurt him so badly,
THEMES: mental illness, psychosis, schizophrenia, family, parents, dating, friendship, emotional abuse
WHISPER TO ME is realistic account of a girl who hears voices trying to reconnect with the guy whose heart she broke.
One Word: Gripping
Cass tries to hide the voice she hears in her head. She doesn't tell the guy with whom she falls in love and breaks his heart. In one last effort to make him understand, she writes an email explanation, the entire story of WHISPER TO ME.
In writing to the young man, known only as You, Cass shows her complex character. After losing her mother violently three years earlier, her father, a vet suffering from untreated PTSD becomes emotionally abusive and controlling. She begins hearing The Voice after finding a body part of a missing girl, a likely victim of the serial killer nicknamed Houdini because of the disappearance of fourteen sex workers over the past several years.
I fell in love with Cass because of her strength, vulnerability and constant pursuit of doing the right thing. Nick Lake did his homework, making her psychosis feel authentic and giving her a great voice, no pun intended.
Given that Cass heard The Voice, was noncompliant with her meds and lied to almost everyone, I had to assume she was an unreliable narrator, which made me unsure how much of the plot occurred only inside her head. At the end of WHISPER TO ME, I still had questions, expecting a Big Reveal that part or all of the events in Cass's letter were figments of her imagination. I expected some twists in the Houdini Killer subplot as well as resolution with her mental health compliance and her relationship with her father and You. Some of these issues were left unresolved. I don't necessarily need everything tied up in a bow, but I'm frustrated when major subplots are left hanging. This prevented me from giving WHISPER TO ME five stars. The other factor I didn't like was the insta-romance between Cass and You. It seemed as though they only hung out a few times, yet we're to believe they were so in love she could hurt him so badly,
THEMES: mental illness, psychosis, schizophrenia, family, parents, dating, friendship, emotional abuse
WHISPER TO ME is realistic account of a girl who hears voices trying to reconnect with the guy whose heart she broke.
October 20, 2016
Review up on blog: https://pagesreviewed.wordpress.com/2...
This book is ah-mazing. If you are not a fan of gooey contemporaties, then today is your lucky, lucky day! This book has all the fells, and is pretty much one of the best ental health YA books I've read in a while. It's quirky, reaslitic, and doesn't make you feel like you eaten some really bad cotton candy. Cassie sees like a normall teenager who's stuck in a bad situation. The title is a bit misleading, so let me clarify. No, this is not a romance novel. It is a YA novel with a sprinkle of romance, aong other things.
The one annoying aspect was the one-word pages, but I got used to it. The rest is history; go and buy this novel.
This book is ah-mazing. If you are not a fan of gooey contemporaties, then today is your lucky, lucky day! This book has all the fells, and is pretty much one of the best ental health YA books I've read in a while. It's quirky, reaslitic, and doesn't make you feel like you eaten some really bad cotton candy. Cassie sees like a normall teenager who's stuck in a bad situation. The title is a bit misleading, so let me clarify. No, this is not a romance novel. It is a YA novel with a sprinkle of romance, aong other things.
The one annoying aspect was the one-word pages, but I got used to it. The rest is history; go and buy this novel.
February 3, 2016
When I picked up this ARC at work, I figured it was just going to be another typical YA romance. Oooh, boy, was I wrong. This was wonderful! First love, screwing up, and forgiveness aren't exactly new fodder for YA, but the apology letter format and the inclusion of so many different factors (crime, PTSD, mental illness) make for a truly unique and heartwrenching story. As soon as I finished I immediately wanted to read it again. Everyone should go read it and then come talk to me about it.
December 23, 2019
This book was good, but not mind blowing. When I began this book, I imagined it going a million different amazing directions. The book, however, didn’t follow any of those directions leading it to be surprising. The bad kind of surprising. I felt like the book dedicated well over 300 pages to random tangents that weren’t followed and had four plots running at the same time that made no sense together. Many loose ends were left and it was overall just missing something. The story itself was interesting but confusing, so I couldn’t rate it higher.
January 24, 2021
The format in this book is fascinating and, for me, it worked. It is a long form email addressed to one of the characters in the book. The lack of chapter breaks both made perfect sense and pushed the story forward. The narrators voice was engaging, conversational, and raw. This book is part of the sub genre of YA books that tackle teens dealing with mental illness. I appreciate, deep down in my heart, the work those books and those authors are doing. Your heart will break for Cassie as she tells you her story and her struggle; you will also feel ridiculously and unreasonably proud of her.
June 14, 2016
There are books that are so profound to leave a mark on you after you read them, and for me, this is one of those books.
September 10, 2016
Review will come some time this week
October 18, 2017
'your movements fit with the world, you interlock elegantly with it'. It's safe to say that Cassie does not.
This was a 500+ page love letter (little too long? can't decide) which took me so completely by surprise. It was heartbreakingly captivating. And YES I wanted more of the little romance throughout, it was quirky and sweet!
5 stars for the writing and cuz it affected me so deeply, couldn't put it down. Loved it!
P.s What is your name sweet boy? Dying to know!
This was a 500+ page love letter (little too long? can't decide) which took me so completely by surprise. It was heartbreakingly captivating. And YES I wanted more of the little romance throughout, it was quirky and sweet!
5 stars for the writing and cuz it affected me so deeply, couldn't put it down. Loved it!
P.s What is your name sweet boy? Dying to know!
July 21, 2016
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
This was an emotional read for me. I always have a hard time reading about mental illness and characters with mental illness. I think Lake did this justice and really just created a wonderful portrayal of everything that goes along with dealing with a mental illness: the wanting to get better, the not doing everything you're supposed to, the lies you tell because you're a little ashamed. I think it was all done wonderfully.
I really liked Cassie, although I feel like the Cassie we saw was a heavily edited Cassie. I liked that she grew as a person throughout this story. I also really liked that she learned how to take care of herself too. I think the positive portrayal of therapy and medication was the best part and I liked that Cassie even admitted that it was good for her. The revelation at the end -- the telling what is happening to you so people understand and can better help you -- was everything I could have wanted from this novel. I liked seeing the world through Cassie's filtered and unfiltered point of view.
However, man was this a heavy novel to take in. Not only was it in stream of consciousness (which I have a super hard time with), it was also a letter. Much like IVORY & BONE by Julie Eshbaugh, it was told in first person but also second person. We were the boy Cassie was apologizing to, which immediately threw us into the story but also distanced us from it because we didn't have the emotional attachment that this boy would have while reading the letter from the beginning. I, personally, didn't get the emotional attachment until the very end (like at 91%). This made it really hard for me to connect with the story at the beginning, but I did like that there was no mention of the boy's name so we were totally immersed in the story and could really BE our character.
I thought the female friendships in this one were great. Everyone knew Paris's profession and NONE of them shamed her for it (except Cassie's dad). I liked that they saw Paris for what she was: the bright spot in their lives. I also really liked Julie. I thought she was a friend that Cassie could really use because she was fun, daring, and still relatively down to earth. I think she really complimented both Paris and Cassie in that sense. I would have liked more Julie, is what I am saying. But I love love love the inclusion of female friendships and that these friendships were about every aspect of their lives, not just romance. Sure, they talked about that too, but Paris was there for Cassie when she had a major breakthrough in her recovery! That is SO important to have in YA stories and in real life as well.
One of the best (and hardest) parts was that it was very long with one natural break, which would make this a hard one to not read all at one time. I was lucky enough to read this at 1am so I could finish it in one go, which I think made it really worked. But I would say you have to read AT LEAST the entire first part before taking a break or else you lose that connection to Cassie and her story. WHISPER TO ME felt like it was being typed up as I read it and that is exactly how it was supposed to be. A letter, a confession, a "I'm sorry" all rolled into one and it totally worked, but I am mentally exhausted after finishing it.
I really enjoyed this one. I liked the positive portrayal of therapy and medication. I really felt for Cassie and thought she was a great main character. I really felt the relationship in this one between her and the boy and the friendships in this one were great. I did have a bit of a hard time because of stream of consciousness, but that's on me not the book itself. Lake really outdid himself with this one and I highly recommend picking it up.
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This was an emotional read for me. I always have a hard time reading about mental illness and characters with mental illness. I think Lake did this justice and really just created a wonderful portrayal of everything that goes along with dealing with a mental illness: the wanting to get better, the not doing everything you're supposed to, the lies you tell because you're a little ashamed. I think it was all done wonderfully.
I really liked Cassie, although I feel like the Cassie we saw was a heavily edited Cassie. I liked that she grew as a person throughout this story. I also really liked that she learned how to take care of herself too. I think the positive portrayal of therapy and medication was the best part and I liked that Cassie even admitted that it was good for her. The revelation at the end -- the telling what is happening to you so people understand and can better help you -- was everything I could have wanted from this novel. I liked seeing the world through Cassie's filtered and unfiltered point of view.
However, man was this a heavy novel to take in. Not only was it in stream of consciousness (which I have a super hard time with), it was also a letter. Much like IVORY & BONE by Julie Eshbaugh, it was told in first person but also second person. We were the boy Cassie was apologizing to, which immediately threw us into the story but also distanced us from it because we didn't have the emotional attachment that this boy would have while reading the letter from the beginning. I, personally, didn't get the emotional attachment until the very end (like at 91%). This made it really hard for me to connect with the story at the beginning, but I did like that there was no mention of the boy's name so we were totally immersed in the story and could really BE our character.
I thought the female friendships in this one were great. Everyone knew Paris's profession and NONE of them shamed her for it (except Cassie's dad). I liked that they saw Paris for what she was: the bright spot in their lives. I also really liked Julie. I thought she was a friend that Cassie could really use because she was fun, daring, and still relatively down to earth. I think she really complimented both Paris and Cassie in that sense. I would have liked more Julie, is what I am saying. But I love love love the inclusion of female friendships and that these friendships were about every aspect of their lives, not just romance. Sure, they talked about that too, but Paris was there for Cassie when she had a major breakthrough in her recovery! That is SO important to have in YA stories and in real life as well.
One of the best (and hardest) parts was that it was very long with one natural break, which would make this a hard one to not read all at one time. I was lucky enough to read this at 1am so I could finish it in one go, which I think made it really worked. But I would say you have to read AT LEAST the entire first part before taking a break or else you lose that connection to Cassie and her story. WHISPER TO ME felt like it was being typed up as I read it and that is exactly how it was supposed to be. A letter, a confession, a "I'm sorry" all rolled into one and it totally worked, but I am mentally exhausted after finishing it.
I really enjoyed this one. I liked the positive portrayal of therapy and medication. I really felt for Cassie and thought she was a great main character. I really felt the relationship in this one between her and the boy and the friendships in this one were great. I did have a bit of a hard time because of stream of consciousness, but that's on me not the book itself. Lake really outdid himself with this one and I highly recommend picking it up.
Books and Ladders | Queen of the Bookshelves | Books Are My Fandom | Twitter | Instagram | Bloglovin'
April 26, 2016
See that gif? Yea, that big one of the clapping hands? That just about sums up every single thing I could possibly say about this book. But, because I'm not awful - even though I want to be - stay tuned for an actual review after some serious fangirling.
BEAUTIFUL. GORGEOUS. ALLURING. DAZZLING. FASCINATING. MARVELOUS. SPLENDID. STUNNING. SUPERB. WONDERFUL. ENTICING. ELEGANT. RADIANT. REFINED. SUBLIME. MAGNIFICENT. DELIGHTFUL. BEWITCHING. TA DA! Whisper to Me has given me all the feels and I don't know what to do with myself right now besides throw as many adjectives at you as I possibly can. This book is heart-wrenching, the characters fantastic, believable, and so relatable it was like looking at myself in a mirror. Just... ugh. GUYS!
"If someone has cancer, they're brave and fighting. If someone is having problems with their mind, that person is only ever struggling."
This book is more than just a book. It is an important and poignant take one something a lot of people cringe at the thought of: mental illness. Mental Illness is scary, sure, but it isn't this horrific Voldemort-like-entity that should not be named. There are so many people who struggle with Mental Illnesses, varying from anxiety to schizophrenia, and seeing it portrayed in a realistic way rather than covered up and sugar coated is something the YA book world lacks. It's either used as a plot device, AKA Manic Pixie Dream Girl's like Vivi from When We Collided, or it is used in such a minimalist way it barely leaves any impact and it might as well be nonexistent (If you guys have any recommendations on the flip side, please share). The struggle that characters go through, these types in particular, should be used to show that people out there are not alone - that it isn't something to be ashamed of or embarrassed about. Whisper to Me does just that.
I can't and don't want to spoil the story for you, which would be inevitable if I decided to tell you more about this. But, I can say this, be patient. This book isn't the "grab you by the throat and throw you around until you scream for mercy" sort of book, it is a gentle ebb and flow of complicated plot lines and even more complex characters that you have to stick around till the end for because it is so, so worth it. It is beautiful and it brought tears to my eyes on more than one occasion.
A personal letter detailing the harrowing journey of a girl trying to desperately reclaim her life, Whisper to Me is anything but typical and, personally, one of my new all time favorite books. It is inspiring, heart-warming, gut-wrenching, relatable, and everything you can want in a contemporary. This is more than just another one of "those young adult books", this is more than just a story to read when you're bored or to put you to sleep - this is a masterpiece and I am so grateful to have been able to read it.
Read
December 12, 2018DNF at page 63.
I'VE started DNFing books this year and it's been the most refreshing thing. I just wasn't grabbed by this one within the first 50 or so pages so I decided I didn't want to spend my time reading it. It's a bit of a shame because I know this has a character with (correct me if I'm wrong) schizophrenia in it and that would've been great to read about as it isn't a Mental Illness I've seen represented very often in YA.
But yeah like I said it just wasn't grabbing me. The 'letter writing' format was odd and alternated from super casual to like a regular book which was not quite jarring but just weird. Maybe just not the book for me.
I'VE started DNFing books this year and it's been the most refreshing thing. I just wasn't grabbed by this one within the first 50 or so pages so I decided I didn't want to spend my time reading it. It's a bit of a shame because I know this has a character with (correct me if I'm wrong) schizophrenia in it and that would've been great to read about as it isn't a Mental Illness I've seen represented very often in YA.
But yeah like I said it just wasn't grabbing me. The 'letter writing' format was odd and alternated from super casual to like a regular book which was not quite jarring but just weird. Maybe just not the book for me.
February 19, 2016
A bookstore by my best friend Brian's school gives ARCs away when you buy books from them which I think like one of the best ideas I've ever heard in my entire life? But Brian brought this one over for me, and even though I usually have to own a book for about a year before I even think about reading it (lol), I was really drawn to this story - a girl who is writing a letter to a boy, an apology love letter, for we don't know what! But it sounds like something serious! So I started it about 2 days after Brian brought it to me which has to be a record.
This book was fantastic! As much as I would love to write a book one day, I feel like I would be awful at pulling someone into a story enough to keep them interested. I feel like my characters would be the most average person with the most average hobbies with no substance. I feel like I would repeat the same used characteristics of people for all my characters? So it really does blow my mind that after all the books in the world there are still characters that are so deep and have such random, awesome, unique characteristics that make them SO real and make you feel all their emotions with them. This book dealt with so many different things from so many different angles and never had a boring moment. I highly recommend, and even though this book felt young adult-y, it was so well written and had so much depth. I have much interest in reading much more by Nick Lake.
This book was fantastic! As much as I would love to write a book one day, I feel like I would be awful at pulling someone into a story enough to keep them interested. I feel like my characters would be the most average person with the most average hobbies with no substance. I feel like I would repeat the same used characteristics of people for all my characters? So it really does blow my mind that after all the books in the world there are still characters that are so deep and have such random, awesome, unique characteristics that make them SO real and make you feel all their emotions with them. This book dealt with so many different things from so many different angles and never had a boring moment. I highly recommend, and even though this book felt young adult-y, it was so well written and had so much depth. I have much interest in reading much more by Nick Lake.
February 8, 2017
Ik weet niet goed wat ik van dit boek moet vinden. Goed boek, nee niet echt. Slecht boek, zeker niet. Middelmatig dan maar.
Positief vind ik de schrijfstijl. Het is eigenlijk 1 hele lange brief en het lijkt echt alsof jij wordt aangesproken. Dat trok me echt mee. Het onderwerp van stemmen horen sprak me ook aan. Dit verdween op een gegeven moment een beetje naar de achtergrond, maar toch vond ik het goed verwerkt.
Negatief vond ik dat er veel saaie en overbodige stukken in zaten. Volgens mij kon er de helft wel geschrapt worden. Daarnaast was vooral op het einde heel veel herhaling, tot aan het vervelende toe. Iets wat ik ook minder vond is dat de schrijver wel vloekwoorden wil gebruiken, maar deze niet wil schrijven en dan maar sterretjes gebruikt. Het las niet fijn.
Dus ja, goede en slechte dingen in dit boek
Positief vind ik de schrijfstijl. Het is eigenlijk 1 hele lange brief en het lijkt echt alsof jij wordt aangesproken. Dat trok me echt mee. Het onderwerp van stemmen horen sprak me ook aan. Dit verdween op een gegeven moment een beetje naar de achtergrond, maar toch vond ik het goed verwerkt.
Negatief vond ik dat er veel saaie en overbodige stukken in zaten. Volgens mij kon er de helft wel geschrapt worden. Daarnaast was vooral op het einde heel veel herhaling, tot aan het vervelende toe. Iets wat ik ook minder vond is dat de schrijver wel vloekwoorden wil gebruiken, maar deze niet wil schrijven en dan maar sterretjes gebruikt. Het las niet fijn.
Dus ja, goede en slechte dingen in dit boek
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