Jess and Anna may be identical twins, but they couldn't be more different. Anna is outgoing and well liked while Jess is quiet and only truly comfortable around Anna. In fact, Anna is Jess's best friend - they tell each other everything. But then Anna is found dead in what the police believe was an accident while she attempted to sneak out one evening, leaving Jess confused and heartbroken. Not only has she lost her sister, but it seems Anna was keeping secrets from Jess. Determined to find out, at the very least, why Anna was sneaking out, Jess begins digging into Anna's life. And soon it becomes clear, Anna wasn't the only one keeping secrets. Amelia Brunskill's debut is a amazing! And I do mean that. Plot is always key for me - I've said before that I'm not hugely into character driven novels but that I do like plot driven tales with strong characters. That's what The Window is. It's plot driven - what happened to Anna? - with an amazingly strong character and fabulous voice.
Jess is an odd duck. She makes no bones about this, readily copping to the fact that she avoids contact with people as much as possible. But the possibility of uncovering the truth about her twin's death forces her to socialize. She joins track, she starts talking to Anna's friends... things she would never have done before have become possible because she's motivated by discovering a truth no one else seems interested in.
It's not that Anna's death is questionable. It's clear she was sneaking out. But Anna was wearing a dress and smelled of lavender, something she admitted to Jess she dreamed about doing for a first date. So the idea that boyfriendless Anna was simply sneaking out to see her cross-country friend, and slipped and fell, is too simplistic for Jess. There has to be more.
Jess's voice is so strong and clear that she immediately pulls the reader in. We can't be sure, truly, if there is more to Anna's death or not. But Jess believes there is and trekking alongside her in her quest, the reader quickly becomes ensnared in this attempt to find the truth. Part of that, too, is experiencing Jess finally opening up to the possibilities around her.
The Window is a bit of a quiet book, but one that is definitely not to be missed. And Brunskill is someone I will be watching and anxiously waiting for more from!
The Window officially hits shelves on April 3.
4 comments:
Adding this to my goodreads TBR right now!
I'm quite interested in reading this one. And it's out next week. Wonder if my library has already ordered it?
I'm looking forward to this one, the premise and the cover jumped out at me and I've seen a few positive early reviews so I'm pretty excited for it!
This is a very well written book, that is so hard to just put down. The author done such a great job of making you feel like you were right there I was waiting to hear the school bell.
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