Caroline B. Cooney

3.5 stars! This was so creepy and totally felt like a YA version of something Grady Hendrix or Stephen King would write.

I found this genuinely unsettling, reading it as an adult. It’s got a very effective claustrophobic feeling running through it. And the writing is pretty good! Cooney really makes the suburban setting feel so sinister, which was one of my favorite parts. It does get a little repetitive at times with the main character’s circular ruminations, but the juicy horror of the show more story made it well worth the repetition for me.

I wanted the ending to crank up the horror and really go there, but this has a very YA friendly ending, which makes sense, considering the intended audience. show less

The Voice on the Radio shifts the series into new territory as Janie’s story is made public. In this installment, Janie’s boyfriend Reeve begins talking about her kidnapping on his college radio show, turning her private pain into entertainment. The betrayal forces Janie to confront not only her complicated identity but also questions of trust, loyalty, and exploitation. Caroline B. Cooney captures the tension between personal trauma and public exposure, highlighting how Janie struggles show more to regain control over her own story. The novel combines teen drama, emotional conflict, and suspense, making it a compelling continuation for readers invested in Janie’s journey. show less

I'm not, typically, a fan of the kind of disaster narrative that introduces you one by one to all the characters to make you like them first or whatever: I tend to prefer my fiction to focus on one or two folk with a strong arc of some kind.

But once the disaster gets going it's really clear that the arc is about the disaster, and everyone pulling together to deal with it, and that's a kind of story that gets me all in the feels, and it's told here so very very realistically and well. Many show more feels were had.

(The author even manages to end the book after the first wave of dealing with things without me feeling all anxious about how even worse in so many respects is the long trudge of recovery afterwards. I do however desperately want Darienne exposed as publically as she stole the limelight, so that wherever she goes afterwards she's instantly recognised and scorned. Very petty of me.) show less

I absolutely loved the dynamics between the characters. I just wanted to slap the shit out of Jodie and Stephen and tell them to fucking get over it, but it was very realistic in the portrayal of teenagers who've lived through something traumatic.