e-Audio, 09:50:14
Narrated by: Ana OsorioRelease Date: June 11, 2019Published by: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
Read from: June 26-July 1, 2019Stand-aloneSource: Library (Overdrive/ Libby)TW: PTSD, Depression, Homophobia, Suicide ideationFor fans of: Science Fiction,Romance, YA, POC MC
This stunning YA debut is a timely and heartfelt speculative narrative about healing, faith, and freedom.
Seventeen-year-old Marisol has always dreamed of being American, learning what Americans and the US are like from television and Mrs. Rosen, an elderly expat who had employed Marisol’s mother as a maid. When she pictured an American life for herself, she dreamed of a life like Aimee and Amber’s, the title characters of her favorite American TV show. She never pictured fleeing her home in El Salvador under threat of death and stealing across the US border as “an illegal”, but after her brother is murdered and her younger sister, Gabi’s, life is also placed in equal jeopardy, she has no choice, especially because she knows everything is her fault. If she had never fallen for the charms of a beautiful girl named Liliana, Pablo might still be alive, her mother wouldn’t be in hiding and she and Gabi wouldn’t have been caught crossing the border.
But they have been caught and their asylum request will most certainly be denied. With truly no options remaining, Marisol jumps at an unusual opportunity to stay in the United States. She’s asked to become a grief keeper, taking the grief of another into her own body to save a life. It’s a risky, experimental study, but if it means Marisol can keep her sister safe, she will risk anything. She just never imagined one of the risks would be falling in love, a love that may even be powerful enough to finally help her face her own crushing grief.
The Grief Keeper is a tender tale that explores the heartbreak and consequences of when both love and human beings are branded illegal.
*MY THOUGHTS*
Ever since I heard about this book I couldn’t wait to read it. I’m talking like before there was even a synopsis. I knew since then it was going to be difficult to get through, but man it was still so, so, good.
The best thing about this was the characters. I loved them so much and I hated that they went through this. And knowing that there are real children going through this, just know I cried alot during this. And they were so innocent and wanted only to have something better. I can’t believe this was is supposed to be a fiction novel but its showing something that’s actually happening. But even still through everything, Marisol is determined to take care of herself and her sister. With all the things that they went through, Marisol had to grow up very quickly.
As for the science fiction part, that was the only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars. No it wasn’t that it told too much science, but there was a point when they were explaining it where it was sort of just dumped on us. It just seemed like it was all at once. And because it didn’t go too much into detail it was kind a of a weird way of doing it because it was just a bunch of repeated terms and what they were doing over and over.
As for the plot, it was slow moving, but still intense. And the twist at the end was something I wasn’t expecting. I mean I knew it wasn’t going to be all Skittles and Rainbows good, but I also didn’t expect these people to do this to kids. Butttt then again, looking at what’s happening now….. Ugh its sickening. But the overall writing style of Villasante is amazing. Definitely kept me interested in this book to where I was volunteering to shelve during the day just so I could go ahead and listen to it for an hour when I was supposed to be working. And the emotion that came through in this story was mind-blowing. The grief and sadness that was portrayed when she was taking it from them was too realistic. Definitely a very real representation of the type of depression I’ve experienced myself.
This is an unfortunate mirror of what’s happening in the world today. Be ready, this debut will make you cry and make you uncomfortable, but hopefully uncomfortable enough to do something about it.
As for the science fiction part, that was the only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars. No it wasn’t that it told too much science, but there was a point when they were explaining it where it was sort of just dumped on us. It just seemed like it was all at once. And because it didn’t go too much into detail it was kind a of a weird way of doing it because it was just a bunch of repeated terms and what they were doing over and over.
As for the plot, it was slow moving, but still intense. And the twist at the end was something I wasn’t expecting. I mean I knew it wasn’t going to be all Skittles and Rainbows good, but I also didn’t expect these people to do this to kids. Butttt then again, looking at what’s happening now….. Ugh its sickening. But the overall writing style of Villasante is amazing. Definitely kept me interested in this book to where I was volunteering to shelve during the day just so I could go ahead and listen to it for an hour when I was supposed to be working. And the emotion that came through in this story was mind-blowing. The grief and sadness that was portrayed when she was taking it from them was too realistic. Definitely a very real representation of the type of depression I’ve experienced myself.
This is an unfortunate mirror of what’s happening in the world today. Be ready, this debut will make you cry and make you uncomfortable, but hopefully uncomfortable enough to do something about it.
Overall, I give this
