Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan
Author: Sarah Rees Brennan Website|Twitter
Published: 13 September 2012 (Simon & Schuster Children's Books)
Format: Paperback
Pages: 373
Buy the paperback: Amazon|Hive|BookDepository
Buy the e-book: Kindle|Kobo
Source: Borrowed from library
Plot Summary (from Goodreads):
Kami Glass is in love with someone she's never met - a boy the rest of the world is convinced is imaginary. This has made her an outsider in the sleepy English town of Sorry-in-the-Vale, but she doesn't complain. She runs the school newspaper and keeps to herself for the most part - until disturbing events begin to happen. There has been screaming in the woods and the dark, abandoned manor on the hill overlooking the town has lit up for the first time in 10 years. The Lynburn family, who ruled the town a generation ago and who all left without warning, have returned. As Kami starts to investigate for the paper, she finds out that the town she has loved all her life is hiding a multitude of secrets- and a murderer- and the key to it all just might be the boy in her head. The boy who everyone thought was imaginary may be real...and he may be dangerous.
My Review:
Unspoken tells the story of Kami Glass, resident of Sorry-in-the-Vale, a town dominated by the Lynburn's mansion. Kami makes it her mission to find out more about this mysterious family and whether they are linked to strange events happening in the town.
Unspoken is the first book in the Lynburn legacy series and is also the first novel I'd read by Sarah Rees Brennan. I'd been wanting to read her books for a while and it was Daisy who pushed me towards this one! It definitely won't be my last of Brennan's books. I found the writing to be gripping and filled with sharp humour and great dialogue.
The book is written in third person and predominantly focuses on Kami, who I loved. From the beginning of the book I thought she was slightly older, as she seemed to have quite a mature and intelligent voice, but I soon got used to that. I think she's incredibly clever and quick witted, and I liked her determination to get to the bottom of things. She's working on the school paper with her friend Angela and I love the journalist angle you get on the story.
The plot revolves around Kami's connection with Jared, a guy whose voice she hears in her head, only for him to turn up in real life. Jared himself was a brilliant example of a moody, bad boy type who drew your attention. I really liked the close bond he and Kami had and how they genuinely care for each other. I thought having Jared's cousin on hand, the good looking, nice boy, was a nice contrast between the two and caused some conflicting feelings for Kami. I liked both of the boys, and was glad it wasn't too love triangle-y or romance focused.
Unspoken really does well at getting you swept away with the mystery. Kami is trying to get to the bottom of the strange things happening in Sorry-in-the-Vale and I loved the little clues and way she goes about investigating them. There's also that feel of more going on than meets the eye which isn't revealed until slightly later in the story. It felt quite similar in parts to Beautiful Creatures.
The world building was slightly hit and miss for me. What I did like was the history of both Kami and Jared's families and how that was explored throughout the book. Both characters had a lot to discover about themselves and their past. Towards the end of the book during the climax of the story, I did have to reread bits and try and get my head around just what everything meant. It didn't detract from the excitement at having the mysteries resolved though.
The ending was incredible and I'm dying to read the next book. I think Unspoken will appeal to a wide range of people with its quirky feel, paranormal touch and brilliant writing.
Rating: 4*
What to read next: Untold by Sarah Rees Brennan, the second book in the Lynburn Legacy series
Books like this: Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson
