This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales

This Song Will Save Your Life

by Leila Sales

All her life, Elise Dembowski has been an outsider. Starting a new school, she dreams of fitting in at last - but when her best attempts at popularity fail, she almost gives up. In a cry for help, she self-harms, and when news of that gets around school, things get even worse for Elise.

But then she stumbles upon a secret warehouse party. There, at night, Elise can be a different person, making real friends, falling in love for the first time, and finding her true passion - DJing.

But when her real and secret lives collide, she has to make a decision once and for all: just who is the real Elise?


An irresistible novel about hope, heartbreak and the power of music to bring people together.

Reviewed by Joséphine on

5 of 5 stars

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December 5, 2015

Full book review is up on Word Revel.


May 23, 2015

Initial thoughts: Oh how I loved this book! It's when a book speaks to you on so many levels that you remember why you care so much about fictional people living in fictional worlds. Because fiction is rooted in reality and shows us just how much we crave to be accepted, to be someone, to be seen, to be all that we are meant to be. Fiction reminds us that we are not alone; there are others who go through similar experiences — others understand. Most of the time I read to escape but sometimes I find mirrors that show me a glimpse of myself that I didn't see before.

Beyond that, This Song Will Save Your Life was well-written, well-narrated, well thought-out. The narrator is a wry realist who said things as she saw them. No sugar-coating involved. She also embodies a level of madness that I think most of us possess, even if it never is enough to be diagnosed as a mental disorder. Also, music pulses through the book. Books revolving around aesthetics have a special place in my heart. This Song Will Save Your Life is no exception.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 21 May, 2015: Finished reading
  • 21 May, 2015: Reviewed