I read this one a couple of years back, but decided to revisit it because it has some things in common with the book I'm currently working on. It's also a really good book.
It's epistolary in form - the whole book is told through a series of emails between the various characters. Which makes it a little "tell-y" in places, but the things the characters are telling each other about are so engrossing, it almost doesn't matter.
Ezra wakes up one morning to discover his older sister is gone. She leaves him a secret email address in a place she knows only he will find it, making him promise he won't tell anyone else about it or where she is.
Ezra and Bea have grown up with just their mother - their father left before Ezra was even born - and their mother's new husband who abuses them. Their mother turns a blind eye to her husband's cruelty, devoting herself to his needs while ignoring the needs of her children.
Finding himself alone with this cruelty and neglect, Ezra soon flees the house too, not running as far as Bea, but getting away from a place he feels is increasingly unsafe for him. Meanwhile, Bea is figuring out how to live on her own in a new city without any friends or family. As she becomes more comfortable navigating life on her own, she admits to Ezra the real reason she ran - not away, but to.
The things both Ezra and bea discover about their family and themselves rock their worlds to the very foundations, but maybe being torn apart like this is exactly what they both need to be able to find a way back to one another.
As you probably already know, I'm a sucker for a sibling story. Love sibs that fight, who love, who pull apart and come together. Most of my own books deal with some kind of sibling relationship, even if it's a subplot to the main story. So this book was right up my alley to start with. Add to that the fact it's written by Jennifer Niven and David Leviathan, and it's a double whammy. I've loved all Jennifer's books, and David is a YA legend.
This one had me on the edge of my seat too. I was so worried for Bea and what she was running toward. And so worried for poor Ezra, left behind with those awful people. And then nothing turns out the way you think it might, which was refreshing too.
I enjoyed the email format for telling the story. It felt very immediate and relatable and the various other voices that came in from time to time made for a nice change.
So I'd recommend this one. Especially if, like me, you love an angsty sibling relationship story.
But don't just listen to me. Here's the blurb:
From the New York Times bestselling authors of All the Bright Places and Every Day comes a story of hope, family, and finding your home in the people who matter the most.
Subject: You. Missing.
Ezra Ahern wakes up one day to find his older sister, Bea, gone. No note, no sign, nothing but an email address hidden somewhere only he would find it. Ezra never expected to be left behind with their abusive stepfather and their neglectful mother - how is he supposed to navigate life without Bea?
Bea Ahern already knew she needed to get as far away from home as possible. But a message in her inbox changes everything, and she finds herself alone in a new city - without Ez, without a real plan - chasing someone who might not even want to be found.
As things unravel at home for Ezra, Bea confronts secrets about their past that will forever change the way they think about their family. Together and apart, broken by abuse but connected by love, this brother and sister must learn to trust themselves before they can find a way back to each other.
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