I really enjoyed this tale comprised of two intertwined narratives- that of a spoiled, murderous, teenage ballerina and that of an incarcerated teenager. You may figure out the twist early on as I did, but this will not make this any less enjoyable or interesting. There are not often novels published depicting the emotional lives of young women incarcerated and this was a refreshing, if at times heartbreaking, aspect of this title. The story also ends with an incredibly satisfying, if somewhat unexpected and fantastical, bit of justice/revenge at the end that left me teary eyed and smiling. Recommended.

Interesting story-writing technique. Took me a bit to figure out what was going on -- you do need to read the chapter names! -- but I liked it. I thought the characters were mostly well-written (even Ori who wasn't a narrator), and the story was iridescent. I've never read anything by this author before, but I am very curious to read something else.

I really enjoyed this book even though it isn't my usual genre. It Kelly me in suspense wanting to know more.

I actually spent a lot of the book really confused about what was happening. I know Ori got the justice she deserved or whatever, but I honestly am really unclear about how that happened. I feel like I need to read it at least once or twice more just to figure out what on earth happened. There was the whole escaping prison, and all of the dead girls who were at the prison and it's definitely a mess of a confusing story. I found I couldn't connect with anyone, and I really wanted to know more about Ori, who is still shrouded in mystery...to me, at least. I kind of felt like things made less sense at it went on, especially since things weren't explained...either that, or it was super-subtle and I wasn't paying enough attention to what was going on.

It is an interesting way to tell a story, and I think it's the sort of story that needs at least 2 or 3 reads for everything to sink and make sense. I will say that it was hard to put down, and it is page-turner because you want to know what happens.

I don't know if I'm necessarily the right reader for this book, because I do like having answers to my questions, and I do like things to make sense, but with the right reader, I can see how this would be an awesome book.

Rating: 2 stars. It's definitely hard to put down, and there is a really creepy aspect that I love, but I think I need to read at least once more for everything to sink in.

*I received The Walls Around Us from netgalley.com in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Some girls make enemies out of other girls, and you don’t even know why.

We’ve had Mean Girls. Gone Girl. Courtney Summer’s books. By now, the idea that girls are full of “sugar and spice and everything nice” has been thoroughly shot and buried, but perhaps nothing quite gets to the complexity of teenage girls like The Walls Around Us does. Girls can be vicious. Girls can be cruel. Girls can also be kind. This is, at heart, a book about girls. So-called “good girls” and “bad girls” and the lines that blur them.

The Walls Around Us is about:

-Two mysteries
-Girls
-Ballet
-The blurred lines of justice
-Relationships–and I don’t mean romantic ones. I mean the friendships, the substitute relationships, and what people hold on to.
-Guilt
-What drives people to do terrible things
-The things that haunt us

It would be impossible to fully unpack this novel, so here’s what you need to know: The Walls Around Us is told in split POV between Amber and Violet. Amber is a girl in the juvenile correctional facility. She has been in the facility for years and everything the reader sees in the facility is through her eyes. Violet is a ballerina set to take center stage, but something from her past is haunting her–her once best friend, Ori, who was sent to the correctional facility.

We were alive. I remember it that way. We were still alive, and we couldn’t make heads or tails of the darkness, so we couldn’t see how close we were to the end.

This is the type of book you read with a highlighter in hand, if you’re the type to mark your books. The writing is as magical as the supernatural events taking place within the book. It always feels light and flowing, even when the subject matter is dark and dreadful. The writing is as gorgeous when describing the day-to-day life at the correctional facility as it is when making a ballet come to life, and the contrast between the two is stunning. Who would have thought these two places, these two characters, would contrast so well?

The Walls Around Us is the kind of book that immediately sets its tone and then unravels the story to the raw core. From the very beginning, the narrator makes it clear that something terrible happened to the 42 girls in the detention facility. It’s also clear from Violet’s narration that something terrible happened in her past, and that’s why Ori was in the facility in the first place. These two mysteries run side by side–what happened to girls? and what happened to Violet and Ori? are the more plot-driven questions of the novel. The real question that drives the story forward, however, is the question of guilt and innocent and who you can trust.

Much like the characters in this novel are haunted, I know The Walls Around Us will haunt my memory for a long time in all it’s nuance and complexity. This is a book that you wolf down in one sitting, but then dwell on for days, going back to the story in your head over and over again. The Walls Around Us is not a book easily forgotten.

2017 re-read: I re-read via audiobook and I enjoyed it just as much as the first time.

*I received an e-copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

The Walls Around Us is a haunting, dark and atmospheric thriller, the kind of tale that sticks in your memory long after you finish.

The story is told by Amber, who is locked away in a juvenile detention centre, and Violet, a dancer, whose best friend is convicted for an equally terrible crime. Their lives intertwine through past and present in an expertly woven mystery. The suspense, told in hypnotic, fluent writing, kept me turning the pages without pause for breath.

I hesitate to share too much about the plot in case of spoilers, but it's intricate and gripping with a supernatural twist, and the ending is shocking, memorable, and brilliantly apt. This is the second book by Nova Ren Suma I've read, and I'll definitely be back for more.

2.5

This was a great, slightly scary read! Very October-ish without becoming something I would legitimately call horror.