From
Amazon:
Cori McCarthy delivers an emotionally taut page-turner from
multiple points of view – combined with stunning illustrations.
Jaycee is about to accomplish what her older brother Jake
couldn't: live past graduation.
Jaycee is dealing with her brother's death the only way she
can – by re-creating Jake's daredevil stunts. The ones that got him killed.
She's not crazy, okay? She just doesn't have a whole lot of respect for staying
alive.
Jaycee doesn't expect to have help on her insane quest to
remember Jake. But she's joined by a group of unlikely friends – all with their
own reasons for completing the dares and their own brand of dysfunction: the
uptight, ex-best friend, the heartbroken poet, the slacker with Peter Pan
syndrome, and... Mik. He doesn't talk, but somehow still challenges Jayce to do
the unthinkable-reveal the parts of herself that she buried with her brother.
Cori McCarthy's gripping narrative defies expectation, moving
seamlessly from prose to graphic novel panels and word art poetry, perfect for
fans of E. Lockhart, Jennier Niven, and Jandy Nelson. From the petrifying ruins
of an insane asylum to the skeletal remains of the world's largest amusement
park, You Were Here takes you on an unforgettable journey of friendship,
heartbreak and inevitable change.
"You Were Here is wrenchingly beautiful in its honest
and achingly accurate portrayal of grief and how it breaks us-and the way
unconditional friendship puts us back together."-Jo Knowles, award-winning
author of See You At Harry's and Read Between the Lines
"The urban explorers of You Were Here dive deep into the
forgotten man-made spaces all around them―and their own feelings of loss, love,
and fear. McCarthy deftly intertwines the characters' stories, filling them
with authentic pain and heartache as well as soaring moments of grace and
humor. I dare you to read it!" ―Maggie Lehrman, author of The Cost of All
Things
Rating: 5 Stars
I received an Arc of
this book in exchange for an honest opinion. To be honest I didn’t know much
about the novel going in. I received an email from NetGalley recommending this
book to me and decided to give it a try. I am so happy I did because this instantly
became a favorite contemporary.
I was completely blown
away by how much I adored this book. The story is told in multiple POVs.
McCarthy gave each character a unique and distinct voice, switching between
first person to third person, to graffiti art and graphic novel form of
expressions, allowed the reader to deeply and intimately get to know each of
the characters. The book deals with a very heavy subject matter: grief
following the death of Jake, Jaycee’s brother, a daredevil starved for an
adrenaline rush, who on the day of his high school graduation tragically dies
while performing a daredevilish dare. The story shows how grief affects everyone
differently and how each individual copes with it in their own way. While the
subject matter is heavy, as we follow our characters on their journey of
healing, the overall feeling throughout is uplifting and sweet.
The story starts on the
fifth anniversary of Jake’s death with Jaycee revisiting one of Jake’s favorite
places, an abandoned mental institution where she knows she will meet with Mik,
Jake’s childhood friend, whom she meets every year on the anniversary of Jake’s
death.
Even though it’s been
five years since Jake’s passing, Jaycee hasn’t been able to overcome his death and
is now wearing his clothes, sleeping in his bed, recreating some of his stunts,
and visiting his old stomping grounds all in an effort to still feel him as a part of her life. On his death’s anniversary
when she is on her way to the abandoned mental institution she ends up being
joined, despite her loud objections, by her ex-best friend Natalie, Natalie’s
boyfriend Zach, and Zach’s best friend Bishop.
The story is built
around different relationships the characters share, such as Jaycee and her
ex-best friend Natalie. Natalie abandoned Jaycee after Jake’s death and since
then their friendship has been completely ruined. I don’t want to spoil the
story, but there are so many different facets to this novel. We have Jaycee and
Jake, Natalie and Zach, Zach and Bishop, Mik and Natalie, Jaycee and Natalie,
Bishop and Natalie, and so much more. The intricate relationships built in the
story were absolutely astounding. I was rooting so much for my favorite ships,
for broken friendships to be fixed and just for overall healing.
Cori McCarthy is an
amazing writer with an astonishing ability to create beautifully developed
characters with relatable flaws and issues that will forever stay with me. I
will most definitely re-read this book over and over again and will recommend
it to pretty much everyone I know. You Were Here is a captivating beautifully
written story, full of depth, and an overall fantastic read.
