Book: Split
Author: Swati Avasthi
Release: March, 2010
Pages: 288
Source: Publisher/The Teen {Book} Scene
My Summary:
When Jace Witherspoon gets kicked out of his house once he finally fights back against his abusive father, he heads off to find the person his mother tells him to find: Christian, his older brother who escaped their household years ago.
Except when he gets to Christian's, he finds that his older brother has moved on in life, and never even bothered to tell his girlfriend that he had a brother, let alone what kind of life he had before leaving home. Christian's life is completely different now, and Jace is trying to find his place in it.
As Jace and Christian struggle to live together, Jace must come to terms with who he is before he can truly move on. He'll have to face off with what he's done, the secrets he's keeping, and realize that while some people cannot ever change, other people can.
Review: Split is emotional, raw, and narrated by one of the more realistic voices I've come across lately.
Split is stunning. Each character, from our narrator Jace to his brother Christian, are all unique and realistic. Jace's voice is especially spot-on, and so real. He's charming, athletic, guilt-ridden and complicated. In comparison to Jace, the other characters don't shine quite as much.
The abuse aspect of this story is very heartbreaking, because it's just so complex. It's bitter, honest, and frightening. There's one scene in particular that had me cringing at the mere thought of it happening. It's difficult to read, to imagine. But it's Jace's secrets that were some of the hardest to learn.
It's difficult to say much about this story, except to say that you should read Split if you haven't already. Split will move you and give you something important to think about.
Highlights: Avasthi dives into a difficult story with ease. Her writing flows effortlessly, her narrator is realistic, and the story is impossible to pull away from. The first chapter, even the first line, hooked me. The bonds of family were interesting too, at just how much pain people can let others cause them because they love them. It's sad that the saying "you hurt the one's you love" is so very true.
Lowlights: I would have loved to see more of the side characters, like Mirriam and Dakota. Or at least a bit more depth to them.
Rating: 
Looks like something I'll have to read--I love complex characters. Thanks for the review!
ReplyDeleteGreat review. My only complaint is that I wanted more. Maybe an epilogue. I still wonder if Jace is ok.
ReplyDeleteSounds very engaging. Thanks for the honest review!
ReplyDeleteI love it when a first chapter is soo good that it captivates you! Great review, it sounds like a great book, also very realistic.
ReplyDeleteSounds good. What a lovely perfect review you've written :)
ReplyDeletewow, this really does sound amazing - like juju said, lovely review!
ReplyDeleteawesome review, Lea! This book sounds so incredible, and I've heard the most amazing things about it :)
ReplyDeleteI'm going to have to add this to my reading list. Didn't think that it would sound like such a powerful read.
ReplyDeleteAwesome review! This sounds so powerful and intense... I'll be reading it next!
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