Heather Helper
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Blink
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads
It's been a year since fifteen-year-old Mia Hopkins was in the car crash that killed her older sister and left her terribly scarred. The doctors tell her she was lucky to survive. Her therapist says it will take time to heal. The police reports claim there were trace amounts of alcohol in her bloodstream. But no matter how much she tries to reconstruct the events of that fateful night, Mia's memory is spotty at best. She's left with accusations, rumors, and guilt so powerful it could consume her.REVIEW
As the rest of Mia's family struggles with their own grief, Mia is sent to New York City to spend the summer with a grandmother she's never met. All Mia wants to do is hide from the world, but instead she's stuck with a summer job in the bustling kitchens of the cafe down the street. There she meets Fig--blue-haired, friendly, and vivacious--who takes Mia under her wing. As Mia gets to know Fig and her friends--including Cooper, the artistic boy who is always on Mia's mind--she realizes that she's not the only one with a painful past.
Over the summer, Mia begins to learn that redemption isn't as impossible as she once thought, but her scars inside run deep and aren't nearly so simple to heal ... especially when Mia finally pieces together her memories of the night Rachel died.
It had been almost a year since an accident claimed Mia's sister's life, and fractured her family. Her mother left physically, while her father left emotionally. Initially, Mia was resistant to spending the summer with her estranged grandmother, but it turned out to be one of the best things to happen to her since the accident.
I have a penchant for grief books, and this one was dripping with it. Mia's family had been dealing with the loss of her older sister by ignoring it and disconnecting. I was happy Mia was sent to be with her grandmother, because it put her in a new environment, with new people, who pushed her to share her feelings, and whoa! Mia had a lot of feelings. The biggest one being guilt. Though it took most of the book for Mia to remember everything that happened that night, I did know that she blamed herself. Through sharing her pain, she learned to deal with her feelings and forgive herself. I was really pleased with the progress both she and her father made regarding her sister's death, and liked that Helper gave them the opportunity to heal together.
This book was filled with great characters, who brought this story to life. Among my favorites were the Brunelli family. My mother is the oldest of nine children, and when I was younger, living in Brooklyn, I was surrounded by a HUGE extended family, who share quite a few similarities with the Brunellis. That clan was loud and chaotic, but they immediately saw that Mia needed somewhere to belong, and they took her into their fold as one of their own. I loved all the familial interactions, and I also really enjoyed spending time at their diner. Aside from all the hijinks, there was a lot of quality food prepared, and I had fun being a part of it.
The Brunellis weren't the only ones to adopt Mia, she was also pulled into the tight-knit Art Attack group via Fig (of the Brunelli family). This was one interesting group of kids. They all seemed to share a love of art, but there was also a musician and a competitive eater in the mix. And, yes, I did get to attend an eating event. Each of these characters had a lot more going on behind the scenes, and helped Mia see that there were other people out there also dealing with pain, loss, and abandonment.
There are a lot of parts in this book that broke my heart, but there were way more that touched me and filled me with joy.
Overall: A beautiful and touching story of loss, healing, and forgiveness with an ending that left me smiling and shedding lots of happy tears.
* ARC received in exchange for an honest review.
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Heather Hepler is the author of several books for teens and tweens, including Frosted Kisses (Scholastic, 2015), Love? Maybe (Dial, 2012) and The Cupcake Queen(Dutton, 2009).
She loves tomato soup, fat cats, and hiking. (Not necessarily in that order.) She's lived in East Texas, Alaska, and Death Valley. Currently she, her son, their two spoiled cats, and their ridiculously smart dog live in Downeast Maine.
I can't imagine living with the aftermath of an accident that killed my sister. The thought is horrific. And Mia's mother leaving after that? Wow. It sounds like Mia was basically abandoned to deal with it on her own. Thank goodness she went away and found a better support system.
ReplyDeleteMia's mother's storyline gets even crazier, when you find out the full story. The guilt she was harboring just wrecked me, and her father's withdrawal amplified the heartbreak. Helper did a good job helping this family heal, and it was a very hopeful ending for them.
DeleteThis sounds beautiful. I'll have to keep some tissues handy when I read it because I'm sure I'll bawl at some point, lol.
ReplyDeleteIt was heartbreaking and touching, but there are lots of fun parts too.
DeleteThis sounds like an amazing story - I don't mind sad stories when there are touches of happiness and healing.
ReplyDeleteI am all about balance. I cannot read an overly sad story, but this was about healing, and all the new people, who entered Mia's life, brought a lot of joy with them.
DeleteThis sounds both devastating and uplifting, and definitely like something I'd be interested in reading!
ReplyDeleteDevastating in parts, but emotionally balanced. There were the highs and lows I need in order to not drown in my sorrow.
DeleteI don't mind when books break my heart, but I like for them to make me smile too. There's plenty of darkness in the world, and I like when the author shines a light on them in a realistic way. It's also nice when they're not all doom and gloom from the start. Books like that can really get me down, so having happiness and healing makes the tough parts more bearable. I'm really looking forward to this one, so I'm happy you enjoyed it!
ReplyDeleteLindsi @ Do You Dog-ear? 💬
I always need the book to balance the sad with happy, and I need it to be ultimately hopeful, which this book was.
DeleteThis sounds like a really good book. I've been staying away from grief themes for the past few months, but I always like a happy cry.I'll have to check it out.
ReplyDeleteWhat I love about a good grief book is watching the characters heal. Seeing people go through something tough and come out ok on the other side is very encouraging to me. That's why I love grief and loss books.
DeleteI don't know if I am ready for grief after my sister but this sounds like I should try it. I do like that the characters heal which is something we are still trying to do a year later. This is a touchy thing in my house right now. Great review!
ReplyDeleteMary
I can understand that.
DeleteLike you, grief books are ones that I have a soft spot in my life for, and contemporaries with grief at the center always get to me. I have just seen a review for this on another blog and they also praised it just as much as you. I think this is one I am going to need to read! I also love that all the characters are so well written ^.^
ReplyDeleteThis one surprised me. I liked it a lot more than I expected to
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