Review: The Shattering - Karen Healey

Where I got it: ARC from publisher for review

Rating: 3.5 stars  

Cover Rating: 3 stars (I love the color, but other than that...meh.)  
Genre: Young Adult 

Publication Date: September 5, 2011

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Page Count: 311 p.

Buy it: Book Depository / Amazon

When Keri's brother commits suicide, her whole family is devastated. She doesn't understand how this could have happened. Janna's brother had committed suicide too, but she tells Keri she thinks they may have been murdered. Janna knows a boy, Sione, who's brother killed himself too, and he thinks it was murder. There's a pattern to the boys that have been killing themselves, and there's something suspicious about that. The three must come together to figure out what is going on in Summerton and possibly save another young boy from certain death.

This was a really interesting novel. There were a few twists I was not expecting, even though I had read Guardian of the Dead. The story unfolded in three perspectives. We followed Keri in 1st person and Sione and Janna in 3rd. It was interesting watching things unfold from so many different viewpoints, especially when things started to get hairy. If you like mystery and action, make sure you don't skip this one. Despite how much I enjoyed this novel though, it seemed to drag a bit. It felt like I was reading it for forever and not getting any further with the book. Maybe it was just my mood. Maybe it was because there is tons of information in this little book. I love Karen Healey's writing and the story is just fantastic. You can easily get wrapped up in the characters and the chaos that surrounds them as they try to prove to themselves that their brothers didn't really commit suicide. Ir's a touchy subject, but it's handle well and never gets to be too depressing. I can't wait to see what Healey has next for us!

First Line:
"The first time I broke my arm, I was ready for it."

Favorite Line:
"Takeshi smiled straight across the long, light-filled room, and her heart expanded in her chest like an inflatable air bed."