Item: You Must Not Miss
Rating: 4.00
Author: wordrevel

by Katrina Leno

Magpie Lewis started writing in her yellow notebook the day she walked in on her father having sex with her aunt on her parents' bed. That was the night her mom started down a spiral of self-destruction. That was the night Eryn, Magpie's sister, skipped town and left her to fend for herself. That was the night of Brandon Phipp's party.

Now, Magpie is called a slut whenever she walks down the hallways of her high school, her former best friend won't speak to her, and she spends her lunch period with a group of misfits who've all been socially exiled like she has. And so, feeling trapped and forgotten, Magpie retreats to her notebook, dreaming up a place called Near.

Near is perfect--somewhere where her father never cheated, her mother never drank, and Magpie's own life never derailed so suddenly. She writes Near so completely, so fully, that she dreams it into existence, right in her own backyard. It's a place where she can have anything she wants...even revenge.

Acclaimed author Katrina Leno spins a twisted and suspenseful tale of friendship, revenge, and the monsters that live inside us all.

Initial thoughts: Have you ever imagined yourself in another location and felt like it was real? Thought about doing something, did not proceed to do it, but still remembered things as though you had?

You Must Not Miss turns these moments into reality as Magpie's imagination gives rise to a tangible place, Near. It is a place of solace but also a place where Magpie can commit her darkest dreams; dreams that turn into nightmares for anyone she lures into Near.

This is not a happy book. It's a book which explores furtive sides of humanity. With themes ranging from alcoholism, abandonment, adultery, betrayal, sexual abuse, exclusion, to loneliness, it is a heavy book. This makes the magical realism aspect all the more believable as it grapples with questions that otherwise would remain as, "What if?"

I wish that there had been greater consistency (or an explanation for the dissonance) in terms of how Near operated. That aspect made me feel like You Must Not Miss was missing aspects that had yet to be incorporated in to the story.

In any case, You Must Not Miss is unlike any other book I've ever read. If it's originality you crave, this book serves a healthy dose.

You Must Not Miss

by Katrina Leno

Reviewed by Joséphine on May 11, 2019

Reading updates