A review by the_pepperwood_chronicles
Close Your Eyes, Hold Hands by Chris Bohjalian

Emily Shepard was never the best daughter, the best student, or the best friend—she was too busy keeping her parents’ drinking and fighting a secret. Losing herself in minor rebellions and the poetry of Emily Dickinson, Emily was able to stay afloat. Then a nuclear power plant in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont—where both her parents work—has a meltdown. In the immediate aftermath of the meltdown rumors begin to circulate that her father was responsible for the accident; that he was drunk when it happened. Orphaned, fearing retribution from the thousands of people dislocated from their homes, and sick with guilt and grief she makes her way to Burlington. There she survives on the mercy of a petty drug dealer and falls ever deeper into the world of drugs, petty crime, and prostitution. When she meets Cameron, a runaway foster child more vulnerable than she, Emily tries to make a life for them both. Eventually Emily must face her past, her grief, and her guilt. But “’Hope’ is the thing with feathers…” Bohjalian is at his best with emotionally complex characters struggling with nature, society, and themselves. The diary format often has Emily revealing plot points only to retreat, but this combined with the unreliable nature of the narrative keep the story flowing and suspenseful.

Digital ARC provided by Doubleday through Edelweiss.