THE SECRET HISTORY OF US
by Jessi Kirby
Pages: 288
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: 1st August 2017
ISBN: 9780062299468
Received From: HarperTeen
Received From: HarperTeen
Summary
When Olivia awakes in a hospital bed following a car accident that almost took her life, she can’t remember the details about how she got there. She figures the fog is just a symptom of being in a week-long coma, but as time goes on, she realizes she’s lost more than just the last several days of her life—she’s lost her memory of the last four years. Gone is any recollection of starting or graduating high school; the prom; or her steady boyfriend Matt. Trying to figure out who she is feels impossible when everyone keeps telling her who she was.
As Liv tries to block out what her family and friends say about who she used to be, the one person she hasn’t heard enough from is Walker, the guy who saved her the night her car was knocked off that bridge into the bay below. Walker is the hardened boy who’s been keeping his distance—and the only person Olivia inexplicably feels herself with. With her feelings growing for Walker, tensions rising with Matt, and secrets she can’t help but feel are being kept from her, Olivia must find her place in a life she doesn’t remember living
Review
Holy moly on toast this was a good book! So this book was WAY WAY down on my TBR pile because it's not out for several months (well when I read it anyways) BUT I was struggling to get into anything after Ariadnis gave me all the feels! Which is what lead me to reading this book a bit earlier than planned and I do not regret a thing because I think this is just what I needed to get me out of my book hangover.
The Secret History of Us is a beautifully written story that is emotionally charged to the max. It follows Olivia (also known as Liv) after a near fatal car crash as she wakes up in the hospital having no memory of the last 4/5 years of her life! However, with the crash being so brutal her family and friends are uncertain how much Liv can cope with while she recovers and they choose to try and keep her in the dark about certain things. The book is about Liv finding a way to rediscover who she is and how the new (or in fact old) version of herself fits into her present.
This book gives me so many feels! However, instead of gushing I'll put my serious hat on and try and do this right. I'll start with the ONLY thing that I could find fault with when it came to The Secret History of Us and that was its predictability. There wasn't all that much under the surface and it did follow YA writing 101 in the sense it was very much how you would expect a YA to be written, following all the right twists and turns and leaving us all mushy by the end. HOWEVER I kinda liked that! Which I know isn't like me and I'm always saying 'it was too predictable' but after a couple of books that didn't give me my happily ever afters it was nice to read something that left me with a smile on my face and not tears.
Don't get me wrong this isn't a sugar coated story in the slightest and my heart broke for Liv at times but there was something familiar about the writing that made me super happy! The Secret History of Us was like a big hug that made me feel all warm inside as it's familiarity reminded me WHY I love YA so much. The characters felt real, the story was inane at times and yet believable and above anything else I could imagine every sense perfectly as the author painted the most beautiful of pictures with her words. Which leads me to the writing itself which was effortless! I read it a matter of hours because each word flowed into the next like butter.
Overall... well, I'm still swooning a little so just read the book when it comes out August 1st and join me in my little love affair with The Secret Story of Us.
**I received this book as an ARC from HarperTeen to read & review. This is a 100% honest review.**
