20306810-1Title: Kiss of Broken Glass

Author: Madeleine Kuderick

Publisher: Harper

Publication Date: September 2014

Genre: Young Adult Fiction/ Contemporary

Series or Stand Alone: Stand Alone

 

 

Synopsis can be found here.
I received a copy of this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

 

 

Review:

Kenna is found cutting herself in the bathroom and is whisked away to a center where she will be monitored for 72 hours. There, she encounters some others unlike her and some like her, forcing her to come to terms with her problems and whether or not she wants to get better.

While the writing is solid and the flow gripping, I wasn’t emotionally invested in Kenna or any of the others in the place. The writer does a great job, describing the fractured thoughts and intensely varied feelings of the teenager. The plot moves forward easily, Kenna’s interactions and observations sometimes uncomfortable and sad to read. I read it in a couple of sittings. I was interested in knowing what happened, but I didn’t have an emotional attachment to Kenna or any of her friends, and I think I should have.

Kenna herself is hard to know and while the writing style lends itself well to the subject matter and the plot, it also kept me at arm’s length with Kenna. I was very detached from her and her experience, like I was reading about some strangers in a dream.

Overall, Kiss of Broken Glass is a well written book that takes you on a journey through an tough topic, but I was looking for something more.

Rating 5 Okay