The Truth About Keeping Secrets

By Savannah Brown

4/5 Case Files

Death. That is all Sydney Whitaker can think about since her dad died in a car accident. The whole town of Pleasant Hills is grieving the loss of its only therapist... well almost the whole town. It seems that one or two people aren't too sad that the only man who knew their deepest darkest secrets is now deceased.

Sydney begins to see weird things the day of the funeral. She doesn't know if she's simply grieving, or if what she sees is real. She does know one thing is true: June Copeland is at her father's funeral. Why is the most popular girl at her father's funeral? Could this perfect specimen have been seeing the only therapist in town?

Sydney suddenly becomes obsessed with more than death; she becomes obsessed with June. June makes her feel alive. June shows her emotions she never knew existed. June becomes Sydney's lifeline. But is there more to story? Was Sydney's father's death really just a car accident?

The Truth About Keeping Secrets was written in an almost juvenile manner, but I think it made the dialog much more real. That's one thing about YA novels I usually hate: the dialog is too perfect to be relatable. That wasn't the case with Brown's writing, and it's so well-fit, it's obvious that she did it intentionally. Aside from the dialog, the Brown's writing is beautifully dark. If you've ever faced depression or grief, I think the emotion in the words could be a trigger. The writing is so strong, I felt like I was seeing life through Sydney's eyes, and it hurt. Sydney's pain became my pain and her joy became my joy.

I also loved, loved, loved that Sydney is a lesbian but that it's not the main focus of the book! Brown wrote Sydney as a "normal" teenage girl with a deceased parent, rather than writing her as a lesbian girl who happens to have a deceased parent. I think Sydney's sexuality was so delicately interwoven in the story, and it naturally flowed - as it should! I'm loving how more texts represent LGBTQ characters without the premise being a "coming out story."

The only reason I did not give this book 5 stars is because at times, it was too much. To me, the mystery was obvious and it felt like Brown was trying to address too many issues at the end. If you've ever seen The Secret Life of An American Teenager, you'd notice that same style. With only fifty pages left, there's suddenly issues of domestic violence, sexual assault, and the homophobia is addressed much more in depth. I don't think fifty pages is enough to properly discuss these issues, and since homophobia was addressed early on, I think that should have taken more of a spotlight.

Overall, I would recommend this book. I'm very excited about my new The Book Drop subscription because this first book was a success!

Suggested Pairing: If I Stay - Gayle Forman

Suggested Pairing: Losing Elizabeth - Tanya J. Peterson