• Lola and the Boy Next Door Review

    When I picked this book I was in the mood for a feel good romantic story. Stephanie Perkins knows how to write a fun heart-warming contemporary novel. This is the companion book for Anna and the French Kiss. [...]

  • Reason to Breathe Review

    In this book we are introduced to Emma (Emily) Thomas, her life seems perfectly normal from the outside, she is a straight A student at Weslyn High, editor for the school newspaper, soccer and basketball player but what happens when she arrives home is something she is not willing to admit, not even to herself.[...]

  • Fracture Review

    Author Megan Miranda launches her debut novel with the absorbing story of Delaney Maxwell, it should be just another day in her life but instead turns out to be the day she died, for eleven minutes she was under freezing water, for 11 minutes she was considered death. That should have been the end of her story, but life gave her a second chance and now her world will never be normal again.[...]

  • The Secret of Ella and Micha Review

    When Ella ran away from home she left everything and everyone behind, including her best friend Micha. For 8 months nobody knew where she was or if she was ever coming back, she decides to return home for the summer and is confronted with her past.[...]

Pieces of Us Review

Thursday, March 08, 2012

Title: Pieces of Us
Author: Margie Gelbwasser
Publication date: March 08, 2012
Publisher: Flux
Pages: 336
ISBN: 9780738721644


Every summer, hidden away in a lakeside community in upstate New York, four teens leave behind their old identities…and escape from their everyday lives.
Yet back in Philadelphia during the school year, Alex cannot suppress his anger at his father (who killed himself), his mother (whom he blames for it), and the girls who give it up too easily. His younger brother, Kyle, is angry too—at his abusive brother, and at their mother who doesn’t seem to care. Meanwhile, in suburban New Jersey, Katie plays the role of Miss Perfect while trying to forget the nightmare that changed her life. But Julie, her younger sister, sees Katie only as everything she’s not. And their mother will never let Julie forget it.
Up at the lake, they can be anything, anyone. Free. But then Katie’s secret gets out, forcing each of them to face reality—before it tears them to pieces.


Pieces of Us by Margie Gelbwasser is a novel that broke my heart, I'm not normally lost for words, but this book left me overwhelmed. I do not like how this book made me feel but that doesn't mean this book didn't accomplish it's goal. This book talks about how life is for many people and we, who don't have those kind of issues, sometimes don't understand.

This novel will make you feel uncomfortable and when you think you've reach a point where it's just too much, think again. There are situations in life that are disturbing and this book will present them as raw as possible, the story is told from four P.O.V Alex, Kyle, Katie and Julie all of them broken and abused in one way or another, somehow the only thing they desire is to spend the summer at the lake house, it's the only place they can be who they really want to be away from all the pressure.

Katie and Julie are sisters, both have a bad relationship with their mother for different reasons, one of them because her mother ignores her and the other because she can't live up to her expectations without loosing herself in the process. Alex and Kyle are brothers, trapped in a tragic event with a mother that does not give a good example for any of them, the four teenagers feel trapped and confused in a sea of problems.

The writing style had me a little confused and made it hard to switch between characters, the ending left me upset, I just want to state that love doesn't hurt, not emotionally or physically and if you read this book and feel like you identify with any character please tell someone what's going on.

Overall an emotional read. I think this book is not suitable for teens under 17 years old. If parents allow teenagers to read this book I would advice parental guidance. There is a lot of sex, abuse, drinking and cursing.

Review based on an Advanced Reader's Copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley.


5 comments:

  1. Awesome review!, your review just about breaks my heart but like you say sometimes life is difficult and disturbing. Maybe tomorrow I'll be brave enough to start reading this book. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. =)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow, this sounds very emotional and I definitely think it's the kind of book I would want to read. Great review :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. This looks like a very intense book. Thanks for the honest review.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Well written. The best novels push us in a direction where we do not necessarily want to go, and it sounds like this one does as well.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I really want to know the ending now and why you thought it promoted violent love! Great review x

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to comment. It makes my day and I read every one of them. ♥