Stephanie
Written on Mar 20, 2017
Although, I have heard that Savage's other title, "After the Woods" is far better. Willing to give it another shot.
After two teenage sisters, Mira and Francesca, drown themselves in a neighborhood quarry, their next-door neighbor Ben receives post-mortem letters from Mira. This letter challenges Ben to track down the hidden, cryptic notes hidden in seven places alluding to where the two secretly touched. As Ben uncovers each note, he starts to unravel the hidden lies and secrets that these girls kept, and just how complicated their bonds with the outside world were.
- ISBN10 0374300593
- ISBN13 9780374300593
- Publish Date 21 February 2017
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 25 January 2021
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Farrar, Straus & Giroux Inc
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 336
- Language English
Reviews
Although, I have heard that Savage's other title, "After the Woods" is far better. Willing to give it another shot.
chymerra
Written on Feb 16, 2017
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I went into reading this book not knowing how deep or how mystical this book was going to be. I certainly wasn’t ready to read, from Mira’s perspective, the events that lead up to her and Francesca’s suicide. I also wasn’t ready to read about what happened to Ben when he was 9. Talk about being blindsided by that (want to know what, read the book). I also wasn’t ready for the reason behind Connie’s death. That was definitely something that took me by surprise.
Honestly, I felt awful for Ben. What a shock it must have been to get a letter from Mira after she died and then to go on that quest to the 7 places where they touched (palm, hair, chest, cheek, lips, throat, and heart) would have done a number on me too. And the way those notes were written!!! If the author hadn’t of included Mira’s side of the story, I would have jumped to the same conclusion as Ben did.
I did feel bad for Mira. She did seem like all she wanted to be was a normal girl but she had Francesca to take care of. Francesca who spoke in tongues, who had fits and who developed an unhealthy crush on their church’s youth advisor. Mira was the one who took care of her and I could see it draining her. Which kinda explains why she committed suicide. The real reason was heartbreaking once it was revealed (again, read the book if you want to find out). I will say that I did think it was kinda mean to send Ben on that quest to find the notes. But at the same time, she wanted someone to know the truth. I think she chose Ben because a) she was in love with him (or in love with him as she allowed her to be) and b) she knew that he would go the distance to get the notes.
The end of the book was very surreal and left me with more questions than answers. I wish that there was an epilogue or something to show what happened to Ben after he got the notes and did what he did. But at the same time, I am glad that there isn’t one and I get to use my imagination about what happened to him.
How many stars will I give Beautiful Broken Girls: 4
Why: This book was heart wrenching to read. It outlines the events leading up to a double suicide while also telling about Ben’s quest to find Mira’s notes and to find out the reason the girls committed suicide. This is definitely a book to read with a tissue and an open mind.
Will I reread: Yes
Will I recommend to family and friends: Yes
Age range: Older teen
Why: Mild Violence, language and the suicide theme
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255
**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**
Sam@WLABB
Written on Jan 20, 2017
Rating: 3.5 Stars
The quarry had absorbed the girls, delivering them to a place where they would remain untouched by hands, and unbroken by hearts.
This book began with the discovery of the Cillo sisters' bodies tangled together at the bottom of the quarry lake, and Ben in a state of denial about their death. Before the sisters excommunicated themselves from society, Ben had had a relationship with Mira Cillo, and now she was reaching out to him from beyond the grave with a series of letters. There were seven letters hidden in locations associated with the seven places Ben touched Mira - Palm, Hair, Chest, Cheek, Lips, Throat, Heart. With the discovery of each letter, Ben came closer to uncovering what drove the sisters to their fate, but he also began to unravel as he worked through his grief of losing Mira (twice) and came to terms with his own painful past.
Was death a germ you could catch
This is my first Kim Savage book, and I found her writing quite beautiful. She perfectly captured the somber tone. This town was plagued by pain and loss. It was clearly conveyed with the backstory provided, as well as through each character's own story. It seemed like everyone in this town was in need of healing. And, YES! I will admit, when I started reading it, Virgin Suicides slipped right into my head. It had a similar aura with the strange, mysterious, tragic, beautiful sisters and their secret lives. It wasn't a bad thing. It was a different tempo for me, but I thought Savage pulled it off quite well. I was invested in this story, which I found more character driven than plot driven. I found myself reading on and on, because I wanted to know what led this girls to end their lives and I wanted to know if Ben was able to find any closure.
Here's what we learned: when you touch things, they can break.
The story alternates between Ben's present as he is collecting the letters and trying to make sense of this tragedy, and the Cillo sisters' past, as we learn about the events that lead up to their deaths. I thought this construct was quite suited to the story. I enjoyed flipping back and forth with the story slowly unfolding. Savage led me on several different paths, but at one point, I was able to deduce what really happened before it was unveiled. I will admit, I like to work the puzzle pieces in the story, and was not disappointed in figuring it out prematurely. (In fact, I patted myself on the back)
Mira loved him for the damage inflicted on him, the kind of damage that her touch might heal
If you pressed me for one word to describe this story, I would say heartbreaking. As I previously mentioned, everyone seemed so broken, and the calamities just appeared to be piling up as we moved through this book. Then there was the entire concept of touch explored by Savage. There were physical touches (good and bad), there were mental touches, and then there was this spiritual touch. I found it compelling that the idea kept popping up, and enjoyed her examination of the concept.
"You broke us!" it shrieked. "Every single one of you broke us!"
Overall: A heartbreaking and emotional journey in discovering the truth about oneself and those they cared for.
**I would like to thank NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for the advanced copy of this book
shannonmiz
Written on Jan 10, 2017
I adored the author's debut, After the Woods, and was expecting to love this one just as much. But alas. The premise was promising, and I was very excited to jump in. But it was rocky from the start for me, as I was kind of bored at the beginning. Ben just didn't... speak to me, as a narrator. I had trouble connecting to him, his personality was a bit lackluster for my taste. But, I was curious enough about what happened to the sisters to keep reading.
The problem was, I kind of started to not even care what happened? As awful as that sounds, they just did not seem like nice people. And while I didn't wish them harm... I wasn't super invested in what became of them either. Part of it is that Ben (along with everyone else in the town, basically) has put the girls on pedestals, but I couldn't figure out any reason why, other than the elusiveness of them. And while that may have been good enough for the local boys, it wasn't really good enough for me.
He's also not doing great himself. He not only lost Mira, but had been sexually assaulted years earlier, which is frustratingly underexplored. There is also a bit in the story where antidepressants are shamed by Ben and his "friends", and that did not sit well with me. I know there is a general stigma surrounding medication for mental health issues, and introducing this dialogue can be helpful... only Ben never heard or saw anything but justification for ignoring his doctor's directions to take his medications. So there was no message that came out of it.... just "Zoloft Bad".
Things took a... weird turn, too. I want to say so much more, but I wouldn't want to give away too much. But the bottom line is, Ben is determined to figure out what happened, and he is doing so through these notes Mira left him- only they're more about her sister than her, which frustrates Ben. He makes a lot of really bad choices in hopes of finding the truth. In fact, everyone in this town seemed to be making bad choices and were messes in general. I can believe that everyone has some issues, but this was... extreme, to the point of disbelief.
I will say, I enjoyed that the book kind of veered in a few directions before ultimately landing on the final one. I was pretty interested by some of the middle bits, before I realized where it was headed. I pretty much knew how it was going to end about halfway through. So that didn't help. I was, at that point, just kind of reading to see if I was right, and hoping that Ben would take his damn meds. One out of two isn't bad?
Bottom Line: Though I enjoyed the author's writing, I had too much trouble with the characters and plot in general to really care for the book.
**Copy provided by publisher for review