Review: All in Pieces by Suzanne Young

All in Pieces

Author: Suzanne Young

Release date: 8/11/2016

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Pages: 259

Synopsis (Goodreads)

“Anger-management issues.”

That’s how they classified Savannah Sutton after she stuck a pencil in her ex-boyfriend’s hand because he mocked her little brother, Evan, for being disabled. That’s why they sent her to Brooks Academy—an alternative high school that’s used as a temporary detention center.

The days at Brooks are miserable, but at home, life is far more bleak. Savvy’s struggling to take care of her brother since her mom left years ago, and her alcoholic dad can’t be bothered. Life with Evan is a constant challenge, but he’s also the most important person in the world to Savvy.

Then there’s Cameron, a new student at Brooks with issues of his own, a guy from a perfect family that Savvy thought only existed on TV. Cameron seems determined to break through every one of the walls Savvy’s built around herself—except if she lets herself trust him, it could make everything she’s worked so hard for fall apart in an instant.

And with her aunt seeking custody of her brother and her ex-boyfriend seeking revenge, Savvy’s fighting to hold all the pieces together. But she’s not sure how much tighter she can be pulled before she breaks completely. 

Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars

This book was all sorts of wonderful and drew me in from the very beginning.

Savannah ‘Savvy’ Sutton is the sort of character you just want to hug, she has an alcoholic father, a mother that left them years prior and she is taking care of her special needs brother. She was such a strong and sassy character that you can’t help but adore.

When Savvy sticks a pencil in her ex-boyfriends hand she is sent to Brooks Academy, a miserable place used as a detention centre. Her life is hard but she has a great little brother, some wonderful friends and has caught the attention of the new guy Cameron but it doesn’t make her home life and dealing with her father any easier especially when he is so willing and eager to hand over custody of her brother to her aunt.

Cameron was fabulous, I adored him and loved the way he broke down Savvy’s walls and introduced her to a really lovely family life, his life wasn’t without drama but his problems were very different to Savvy’s. I adored their interactions and the bond that they came to share.

Suzanne Young wrote about a lot of tough subjects in this book – alcoholism, illness, family breakdown and anger issues. It was believable and dealt with in a realistic way. Her writing is gripping.

All in Pieces does have a morose feel to it because of the heavy issues discussed but it was enjoyable none the less.

Thank you to Edelweiss and Simon Pulse for the review copy.

About the author: 

Suzanne Young is the New York Times bestselling author of The Program, The Treatment, and several other novels. She currently lives in Tempe, Arizona where she teaches high school English and obsesses about books. Learn more about Suzanne at www.suzanne-young.blogspot.com