Sadie by Courtney Summers

Norma’s Review

Powerful, compelling, & heartbreaking!

I have enjoyed YA stories in the past but in my opinion, I think this book is geared to a much wider audience than just teens.

SADIE by COURTNEY SUMMERS is a memorable, important, and a fantastic YA mystery novel that immediately grabbed my attention and had me glued to those pages right to the very end.

Sadie’s story was not an easy read as it delves deep into Sadie’s pain and some tough subject matter. But, I thought that the author handled it with such care though and was very sensitive with the delivery.

I didn’t necessarily find the storyline all that gripping but, the way that the author weaves her sentences and delivers this story was absolutely enthralling. When I wasn’t reading this one, I was thinking about it. Sadie really got under my skin and has left a lasting impression.

I loved COURTNEY SUMMERS’ unique writing style here and thought the podcasts was a very effective way for us to get to know all the characters. It gave us a different perspective into Sadie’s character and I really enjoyed how the story unfolded. Sadie’s narrative with a stutter and all was absolutely heartbreaking to read and really impacted me as a reader.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Courtney Summers for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a review.

Brenda’s Review

Shortly after this one was chosen as a group read I went out and bought the book and started reading it. Once I started reading the podcast parts to this story I decided to listen to it as well.  The audiobook is so well done with multiple narrators that really enhance the whole experience with this story. I highly recommend listening to this one.

Sadie is a dark, gritty, moving yet at times bleak story that explores abuse and power and one girl’s driven need to seek revenge.  We follow along as our main character; angry, brave, reckless yet very sensitive Sadie as she searches for the man she believes is responsible for her sister’s murder. We also meet West and through crime podcasts he tracks Sadie’s journey and we hear from people who have met Sadie along the way.  The podcasts are so well done and really adds to the suspense of the story.

From that haunting line from May Beth “My heart can’t take another dead girl” my heartstrings were pulled and I was desperate to find out more about Sadie. Courtney Summers does such a great job drawing us into Sadie’s world.  I instantly fell in love with Sadie. I wanted to protect her, love her and allow her to grieve with me.  I could feel Sadie’s heartbreaking vulnerability, her love and support she had for her sister Maddie. Her grief becomes dangerous and I wanted to keep her safe.

The ending here made for quite a bit to discuss. We had a few different reactions to the ending and it was really interesting to see the different thoughts to the ending, so for that reason alone we highly recommend this one for group reads.

Lindsay’s Review

4 stars!    A heart-wrenching and haunting coming-of-age story.

This novel revolves around nineteen-year-old Sadie who has run away from home in the hope of seeking revenge for the murder of her younger sister Mattie.  Sadie has always been Mattie’s protector, taking on a mothering role to Mattie from the time she was born.  Sadie hides many deep and disturbing childhood secrets that she is planning on addressing and exposing in hopes of getting justice for Mattie’s suffering.

This book will break your heart.   It deals with some extremely sensitive and highly disturbing subject matter but is presented in a respectful way that conveys the message without getting into unnecessary detail.  Be prepared for something that will pull at your heartstrings and have you rooting for these characters to find justice.

I enjoyed the presentation and flow of this novel.   It is told in alternating chapters through Sadie’s perspective and then an eight-episode podcast hosted by popular radio host, West McCray.   The podcasts were a fantastic piece of this compelling and suspenseful journey.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Courtney Summers for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

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Norma’s Stats:
Cover: Stunning, breathtaking, and a perfect and highly affecting representation to storyline.
Title: Simply brilliant and such a meaningful representation to storyline.
Writing/Prose: Edgy, witty, emotive & brilliantly written.
Plot: Engaging, impressive, unforgettable, perfectly-paced, and held my attention.
Ending: An ambiguous ending that I think worked really well for this YA story but didn’t necessarily satisfy my need of knowing a little bit more though.
Overall: Sadie definitely left an impression on me as well as this author’s writing style! Would recommend!

Have you read this one?  Added it to your to be read list?  Drop us a comment! We would love to hear from you!