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kvicente's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
tarshka's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
For some reason I just didn't really relate to or care much about the characters. I thought maybe it's because I haven't been a teen in a while now, but then I read other books and I did care about them. So this book just didn't vibe with me for some reason.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Bullying, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Car accident, and Outing
sleepysamreads's review
3.0
Special thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
Honestly, this one isn’t going to be very memorable. It’s a relatively formulaic thriller.
I think the only thing that really stood out as different was that the main character is a lesbian. I loved that, of course.
I knew probably 30% into the story who was stalking Sydney. It wasn’t difficult at all to figure out.
I did really love how palpable Sydney’s grief felt though. It was so raw.
I honestly don’t have much more to say about this book.
Honestly, this one isn’t going to be very memorable. It’s a relatively formulaic thriller.
I think the only thing that really stood out as different was that the main character is a lesbian. I loved that, of course.
I knew probably 30% into the story who was stalking Sydney. It wasn’t difficult at all to figure out.
I did really love how palpable Sydney’s grief felt though. It was so raw.
I honestly don’t have much more to say about this book.
toffee_coffee's review
3.0
As a fan of Savannah Brown, having watched her poetry videos on Youtube and read her poetry collection Graffiti, I’ve learnt that she is someone who tends to subvert the norms of prose. This meant I had high expectations for The Truth About Keeping Secrets, wanting it to be something different to the traditional YA novel.
In some respects, I received what I was hoping for. With the novel exploring commonly under-represented topics, like death and sexuality, the book offered something new. In particular, the portrayal of Sydney’s grief felt genuine and accurate, with Brown not being afraid to describe the brutal suffering the main character was experiencing.
Throughout the book, Sydney’s struggle with maintaining her friendships is also explored (extending the types of death discussed). This allowed for the depth of characters to be seen, alongside relating with their experiences. However, there were times that their behaviours were a little predictable, resulting in my immersion being spoilt.
Despite these elements, The Truth About Keeping Secrets did conform to the typical YA structure – which annoyed me slightly. Initially, the novel presents itself as a mystery and a thriller, where we follow Sydney trying to discover who murdered her father. Yet as the book progresses, this element of the book decreases, with a greater emphasis being placed on the relationships between the characters and the romance between Sydney and June. I believed the exploration of friendships was a fitting aspect to the story, as Sydney is still in school and learning about relationships is an important part of this stage of life. However, I felt the romance story was a little rushed and out of place with the context in which it blooms.
Overall, I would recommend giving The Truth About Keeping Secrets a read, especially if you’re a fan of YA novels, I was simply a little disappointed by the ending.
In some respects, I received what I was hoping for. With the novel exploring commonly under-represented topics, like death and sexuality, the book offered something new. In particular, the portrayal of Sydney’s grief felt genuine and accurate, with Brown not being afraid to describe the brutal suffering the main character was experiencing.
Throughout the book, Sydney’s struggle with maintaining her friendships is also explored (extending the types of death discussed). This allowed for the depth of characters to be seen, alongside relating with their experiences. However, there were times that their behaviours were a little predictable, resulting in my immersion being spoilt.
Despite these elements, The Truth About Keeping Secrets did conform to the typical YA structure – which annoyed me slightly. Initially, the novel presents itself as a mystery and a thriller, where we follow Sydney trying to discover who murdered her father. Yet as the book progresses, this element of the book decreases, with a greater emphasis being placed on the relationships between the characters and the romance between Sydney and June. I believed the exploration of friendships was a fitting aspect to the story, as Sydney is still in school and learning about relationships is an important part of this stage of life. However, I felt the romance story was a little rushed and out of place with the context in which it blooms.
Overall, I would recommend giving The Truth About Keeping Secrets a read, especially if you’re a fan of YA novels, I was simply a little disappointed by the ending.
ellakelynack4's review
4.0
I love how this book was written and the vulnerable, harsh side of coping with grief in which this book displays. I liked the relationships formed between characters. It was hooking too. The mystery element. However it did become slightly predictable
courtneymariejj222's review against another edition
3.0
Sydney world is turned upside down when her dad who’s a psychiatrist gets killed suddenly. We follow Sydney through her journey of grief and a new friendship of an older girl named June.
I found this book quite hard to read, whilst the writing was beautiful and obviously well thought about, it felt slow up until chapter 12. It tackles the subject of ‘messy grief’ quite well.
I found like it lacked something. They friendship with Leo could have been expanded and I still have questions about the ending.
I found this book quite hard to read, whilst the writing was beautiful and obviously well thought about, it felt slow up until chapter 12. It tackles the subject of ‘messy grief’ quite well.
I found like it lacked something. They friendship with Leo could have been expanded and I still have questions about the ending.
powisamy's review
I have loved Savannah Brown's poetry and YouTube channel for the last few years so when she was releasing a book, I knew I had to read it. The Truth About Keeping Secrets is an interesting and thoughtful read and I can't wait to see what she writes next.
Although I am not really a thriller type of person, I knew that I still wanted to give this ago. This also didn't hinder my enjoyment because I actually really enjoyed it and as someone who normally guesses the mystery, I didn't in this one.
One of the main reasons why I enjoyed this so much was because Savannah Brown knows how to write a novel. There was something so special about the way that the forms characters and builds the whole mystery. The characters were also really compelling and interesting to read about.
The way that Sydney was written was raw and realistic. I think that the way that grief and mental health was so great and realistic. This was definitely a strength of the book although and was a major draw for each one.
I was obviously interested in the mystery and I don't think that I guessed what happened but I did read it a while ago. Also, I must mention the queer elements which I did enjoy and added to the book.
The Verdict:
The Truth About Keeping Secrets is a thrilling read that deals with mental health with excellence.
Although I am not really a thriller type of person, I knew that I still wanted to give this ago. This also didn't hinder my enjoyment because I actually really enjoyed it and as someone who normally guesses the mystery, I didn't in this one.
One of the main reasons why I enjoyed this so much was because Savannah Brown knows how to write a novel. There was something so special about the way that the forms characters and builds the whole mystery. The characters were also really compelling and interesting to read about.
The way that Sydney was written was raw and realistic. I think that the way that grief and mental health was so great and realistic. This was definitely a strength of the book although and was a major draw for each one.
I was obviously interested in the mystery and I don't think that I guessed what happened but I did read it a while ago. Also, I must mention the queer elements which I did enjoy and added to the book.
The Verdict:
The Truth About Keeping Secrets is a thrilling read that deals with mental health with excellence.