Review: 34 Pieces of You by Carmen Rodrigues
Author: Carmen Rodrigues
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Pages: 336
Rating: 4.5 Owls
Goodreads Summary:
A dark and moving novel—reminiscent of Thirteen Reasons Why—about the mystery surrounding a teenage girl’s fatal overdose.
There was something about Ellie... Something dangerous. Charismatic. Broken. Jake looked out for her. Sarah followed her lead. And Jess kept her distance, and kept watch.
Now Ellie’s dead, and Jake, Sarah, and Jess are left to pick up the pieces. All they have are 34 clues she left behind. 34 strips of paper hidden in a box beneath her bed. 34 secrets of a brief and painful life.
Jake, Sarah, and Jess all feel responsible for what happened to Ellie, and all three have secrets of their own. As they begin to confront the darkest truths about themselves, they will also find out what Ellie herself had been hiding all along....
Review
I'm surprised it took me so long to read this novel, because it was definitely deserving of a shorter read. It was gripping and fascinating.
34 Pieces of You is, in a nutshell, Pretty Little Liars mixed with 13 Reasons Why mixed with Ellen Hopkins. It truly is unique combination of ideas and thoughts.
And I loved every second of it.
34 Pieces of You was primarily about a girl named Ellie. The novel focused around her. (And, oh yeah, she's dead.) The book was told from three perspectives, which at times was a bit confusing, not because I couldn't keep the storylines separate, but because the timeline shifted so often. For example, one chapter might start "Jessie: Before. November." And then the next chapter would be "Jessie: After. April." This wouldn't have been so bad if it was only one storyline, but the book had three of them in it, and watching them all move in different places hurt my brain. I still managed to keep a fairly certain grasp on the plot, but it got a bit confusing at times.
The thing I loved most about the novel is how the characters were so well-developed. You could see them bleeding on the pages, and I loved it. Rodrigues illustrated so boldly with her words; I could smell and taste everything that was being said.
34 Pieces of You was a quick, heart-stopping read that made me feel so much. Rodrigues is now on my list of authors to watch.
4.5 Owls
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