Unspeakable tells the story of Megan, a young girl who has not spoken a word since her best friend’s tragic death. She’s living a trapped life, afraid that speaking will release all her demons and everyone will know who she really is. She is trapped, until she meets Jasmine, the new girl, who is bubbly, chatty and loud – everything Megan isn’t. It’s a story of how friendship can turn into love and self-acceptance.
I wasn’t sure whether I would like this book, the blurb didn’t really interest me, but I’m so glad I gave it a go! Megan is such a flawed and complicated character. From the first chapter I was invested in finding out what happened to her best friend and if she would ever speak again. Jasmine wasn’t as interesting a character and was slightly annoying but it didn’t get in the way of the general story.
At first the plot did seem a little clichéd, but the extra layer of confusion and tension between Megan and Jasmine really transforms it from an OK debut YA novel to a great one with fantastic character development. There are a lot of elements to Megan’s character that haven’t been discussed or explored much in YA. I’m sure there are plenty of teens having the same struggles or torments who would benefit from her representation.
Overall I would recommend this book to teenagers who really appreciate good characters. I didn’t expect to like this book but I was pleasantly surprised. I look forward to reading more from Abbie Rushton!
• Buy this book at the Guardian Bookshop
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