Reviews with content warning for Emotional abuse - Sadie

I started this book not knowing if I would like the format, which switches from Sadie’s POV to West’s POV to snippets of a podcast about Sadie and her sister’s lives. I don’t know how it would have differed to read the book in print, but the audio format helped the different POVs come together well. I really enjoyed this book, though there were some things that kept me from giving it a higher score. It is a bit difficult to get through parts of this book, due to the topics. The ending was a tiny bit disappointing, but I understand why the author made the choice to end it that way. I’m glad I chose to listen to the audiobook version of the book. The narration in this book was absolutely amazing.

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nyantastic's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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aprilyvonne's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

5.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“Sadie” by Courtney Summers broke me. My eyes are still puffy and I’ve used more tissues in the last couple of hours than I normally do while reading. It’s always hard to review a book that tears your heart outside of its body, while recognizing that you also appreciated the story. I can’t even decide on which word to describe this reading experience. Either way, “Sadie” was well written, vivid, but also heart wrenching and horrid.

I didn’t know anything going into the novel, so the true crime podcast style was a welcomed touch. Yet, once more details about the crimes came to light, the more painful it was to read.

Sadie’s character will live on in my memory for a long time due to her tenacity, grit, and heart, which were enthralling and admirable qualities. Considering all what she had gone though, it was hard not to feel for her. The whole messy situation and family dynamics shed light on so many unspoken issues in the world. Unfortunately, some of those reminders hit too close to home at times.

West McCray, the journalist that goes on this journey with readers in search of what happened and the search for Sadie, was genuine and sincere. I listened to the audiobook while following along with my hardcopy (as I often do). The narrators were authentic and clearly made the the “podcast” feel real - too real. Overall, I’m glad I read this, but I’ll need some time to recuperate.

I would like to warn readers to check the triggers prior to reading just in case.

Please be kind and gentle with others, as you never know what someone’s going through.

QOTD: What was your last 5 ⭐️ read? Any great audiobook recommendations?

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