Description
A secret. A holiday. A summer like never before. Shae knows her parents are keeping something from her and is determined to find out what. But nothing can prepare her for what they are hiding. 17-year-old Shae is learning that relationships, deception, secrets and love can sometimes blend together and change everything. Shae and her family have a holiday of a lifetime planned, until it is cancelled unexpectedly.
No warning. No explanation. Nothing. Instead, she is left to spend the summer holidays at her cousins. Shae knows her parents are keeping something from her and she's determined to find out what. As Shae tries to uncover the mystery, she must also navigate the deteriorating relationship with her favourite cousin, Lexi, who's been acting differently. To makes things more complicated, Shae meets Callen, the perplexing neighbour who manages to get under her skin every time she sees him. Then, Shae receives a mysterious letter. It includes a photograph of her father and another woman. An anonymous caller claims they sent it and have the answers Shae seeks. But does Shae really want the truth?
As Shae fights to keep her world the same, she soon realizes that some things are out of her control. It seems everybody she cares about is hiding something. Shae's world will never be the same again by summer's end.
Review
Shae has grown up as an only child, and her parents are very protective. Her cousins have always been important to her—they are like the siblings that she never had. Especially Lexi, who is the same age as Shae.
But as much as she loves spending summer with her cousins, this summer was supposed to be different. She was meant to be going on a family holiday with her Mum and Dad—until they cancelled at the last minute, without any explanation, and sent her off to her cousins for the summer.
Her once protective parents now won’t even talk to her, and Shae knows that something serious isgoing on. She doesn't understand why they won’t tell her what is happening.
Her summer is now turning out to be nothing like the one that she planned. Being back with her cousins is also not quite how it should be either. Lexi has changed, and Shae doesn't know why. There is something about Lexi’s new boyfriend that Shae doesn’t like, or trust, and she is doing things that she would never have done in the past.
Just to complicate this summer further, there is something going on with Callen, the grandson of Lexi’s neighbour, that Shae just can’t ignore. Can she really trust him, after what she knows, and what othersare saying about him?
When a photo arrives in the mail of her Dad and another woman, followed by a mysterious phone call, Shae starts to think she knows what is going on, but does she really? And what if the answer turns out to be nothing she could ever contemplate? What she does know is that after this summer her life will never be the same, and she realises that there are some things in life that she can't control...
This is a wonderful coming of age story about family, relationships, secrets, deception, trust and romance, and with young adult themes this will be enjoyed by those 15 and older.
Reviewed by Sam
