A Review for The Sound by Sarah Alderson

Posted by Donna
Release Date: 1st August 2013
Finished Date: June 11th, 2013

Publishers: Simon & Schuster UK
Source: For Review 

Format: Paperback 
Pages: 320

Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo

When aspiring music journalist Ren Kingston takes a job nannying for a wealthy family on the exclusive island of Nantucket, playground for Boston's elite, she's hoping for a low-key summer reading books and blogging about bands.

Boys are firmly off the agenda.

What she doesn't count on is falling in with a bunch of party-loving private school kids who are hiding some dark secrets, falling (possibly) in love with the local bad boy, and falling out with a dangerous serial killer...

The gripping new stand-alone novel from the author of Hunting Lila. Out August 2013.

The Review: The Sound is fantastic! I'm in such awe by Sarah Alderson's work that I've come to this conclusion; anything she writes I'm going to love and The Sound just proves my point.

Following a 17-year-old British girl, Ren moves to Nantucket for the summer nannying for a wealthy family. While there, she tries to mend her broken heart and move on with her life, so when the rich and popular kids take interest in her, Ren's happy to have some friends in a country where she knows no-one. However, while renting a bike, she bumps into Jesse - the local town's bad boy, but is he really as bad as everyone says? Ren tries her best to keep out of trouble but in a town full of hidden secrets, a serial killer on the loose and trying to deny her growing attraction to Jesse, staying out of trouble is harder than it seems. 

If you've read any of Sarah's previous work, then you'll notice that The Sound is not paranormal story, it's a YA Contemporary. I love both genre's so I was super excited to see where Sarah would take her first contemporary story, and looking back on the books I've read this year, The Sound is easily my favourite contemporary story for 2013! 

As a British girl myself, I loved that Ren was British (there just isn't enough British protagonists in my opinion) and what I loved even more was how much Nantucket appealed to me as a reader. It is written beautifully, the sunsets and the views are to die for, and it made me really want to hop on a plane, and go a visit - minus the serial killer though. The story is jam-packed full of heat and swoon-worthy moments, it's exciting and so mysterious. Not only that but it's a fun story, but also one that deals with some serious issues too. There's nothing better when a story ticks all the right boxes, and The Sound did just that.

In all good stories you need good characters that are true to themselves, that have faults and stand up for what they believe in, and this is what you get with the characters from The Sound. Ren is a great girl, she's taken a huge step moving from England to Nantucket (even if it's only for the summer) she's taking on a job she knows nothing about, and anyone who has children knows how hard they can be at times, and most importantly, she's just trying to enjoy her summer. Her relationship with Braiden and Brodie is very cute at times and you can see how much she's taken to them. And making friends with the 'rich and popular' kids helps her to fit in but, she's determined to find out their hidden secrets and then, of course, we have Jesse. Jesse really does give Alex (from the Lila series) a run for his money and I'm honestly torn between the two. Sarah writes Jesse so freaking hot, it's impossible to not fall for him. All the way through the story, I was sticking my little page markers in, so I can re-visit my favourite Jesse moments/quotes (see my picture to the right). He's strong, broody and so misunderstood. He's full of good intentions and so very, very protective of Ren, that he just made me swoon pretty much all of the time. 

Here are some of my favourite Jesse quotes; 
"Did someone eat a thesaurus for breakfast? One adjective there would have sufficed. I like cocky. The way you say it has a nice ring to it." 

"You know", he says in the softest, lowest voice imaginable......"you have the most incredible eyes. They're beautiful. As blue as the Sound and just as deadly."

“I can’t think about anything but kissing you… about being with you…’ He shrugs. ‘There, I said it. Need me to say it one more time?’

See, you need to read this book, if not just for the awesome story but for the Jesse moments you get!

In all, The Sound is a story that oozes with teenage romance, deadly situations and hot and steamy moments. It's a fantastic summer read and another cracking novel by a fabulous writer!