Penny Joelson

Written by the author of the brilliant "I have no secrets", this book takes you along one path ( supernatural) and then steers you completely in another. Kasiah has been struck down with ME ( formally known as CFS) and has been unable to move out of her house for months. One night she looks out her bedroom window and witnesses something that looks like a kidnapping, When she looks away from the woman being bundled in the car, she notices a girl staring out the window of the house opposite. She reports the kidnapping and tells the police about the other witness. But when the police visit that house they are told fitting the description of the girl lives there. Kasiah wonders if she is seeing a ghost.

This all happens in the first two pages but from then on we follow the main character as she battles to keep her school friends ( who rarely visit) and stay up with her school work so that she can pass Year 10. She befriends the lady next door who lives alone as K can walk very short distances and after she saves the old lady who has a stroke, she gets to meet her grandchild, a boy her age. The struggles she has with ME are handled very well in the descriptions of what it feels like and also the mental issues for her and her mother (who has given up work to care for her) . We witness bad moods and crankiness and self pity but also moments of hope and light at the end of the tunnel. I was correct in guessing that the author had been personally effected by ME because her descriptions were so accurate. Although this book isn't as suspenseful as "I have no secrets" it ws still a great mystery read.… (mehr)

Excellent novel that had me hooked until the last page. Jemma lives in a foster home with Finn who has autism and Olivia who is behaviorally challenged. Unfortunately Jemma has severe cerebral palsy which means she cannot communicate or control any of her movements, but there is nothing wrong with her brain and she can read. Jemma is cared for by a lovely girl called Sarah who lives with the foster family so that she can be on hand to help all day. Sarah is dating two men , the timid Richard and the smarmy Dan who has shown his true colours by telling Jemma that he has murdered a local man. Jemma is trapped hearing his secrets and those of her neighbours and Olivia and yet cannot tell anyone until her foster mother takes her to a university that is running a trial on a special communicator. Then Sarah goes missing and Jemma is desperate to let the police know that she thinks Dan has done it. Oh and there is also a twin sister that Jemma never knew about who doesn't have cerebral palsy too. Very suspenseful but also the part where Jemma could finally communicate made me bawl my eyes out.
Overdrive e book read. Very similar to "Everything I've never said".… (mehr)

Jemma has cerebral palsy and is unable to move or speak. Because of this, people around her tend to let their secrets out. But there is one secret she desperately needs to tell: she knows who the murderer is because they told her. A new technology is being created that will hopefully let Jemma communicate but will the murderer try and stop her?

I loved the main character, Jemma, and the author did a wonderful job creating her. The book does have a mystery element to it but it offers so much more than a cheap thrill.… (mehr)

*I WAS PROVIDED A PHYSICAL COPY IN RETURN FOR MY HONEST REVIEW. THIS DOESN'T AFFECT MY OPINION*

Okay, first of all, I'm really happy to know that this book is releasing on my birthday. SQUEEE! for birthday books!

Though this book started out fairly slow in the beginning, it had full reason to. Because of the main character's disability, this book is very character-driven. What that means is that the plot won't move unless she makes a plot-shift herself, which can sometimes be an off-putter to some readers.

However, after those first few chapters, the pace quickly picked up. Through Jemma's view, we're introduced to discrimination against those with disabilities, as well as a suspect of murder and kidnapping. We're given hints and clues throughout the text that lead us in one direction, only to then turn in another.

I found that, while in a time of desperation and worry, these characters were still able to continue every day. I find that to be an important part of this story, as life doesn't just stop when tragedy strikes, and I think that was really important to this story.

I also really loved that we're given a little bit of insight into scientific research being done to help those who can't speak. Be it from one disability to another, I think that was also a really huge part of this novel that spoke volumes of what the potential could be for these individuals.

All in all, I did really enjoy this novel. I look forward to reading more from Penny Joelson in the future, and I hope that all of y'all give this book a fighting chance. For that, I rate it 4 stars.… (mehr)