Monday 10 August 2020

Eight Pieces of Silva


Silva is meant to be looking after Becks while their parents honeymoon in Japan. But when Becks gets in from school, Silva isn't there. She doesn't appear the next day either, or the next. Becks ventures into Silva's room in search of clues, and discovers she might not know her step-sister as well as she thought. 

With diary-like entries from Silva interspersed throughout, this story kept me on the edge of my seat as it builds to its satisfying conclusion. Tension runs high throughout and I struggled to put this novel down as I was desperate to know what was going on. Lawrence lets the mystery unravel slowly, making the outcome hard to predict.

Eight Pieces of Silva is filled with brilliant, realistic, complicated characters readers will love. Beck's voice comes alive on the page, feeling fresh and real in a way that sucks you straight into the novel. The vivid cultural representation, especially the K-pop and Marvel references, will make this very popular with teenage readers. 

Lawrence shows the complexity of toxic relationships and first love through Silva's despair, and Silva's desperate passages show how a bad breakup can feel like grieving. But Lawrence also shows positive, loving relationships through Becks and China, who was supportive and caring towards Becks and was exactly who she needed by her side while trying to get to the bottom of Silva's disappearance. 

This story also explores the complexity of family, especially what it means to be a dad, how to become a family, and dealing with grief when your family is torn apart.

I feel incredibly lucky to have been given the chance to review this phenomenal novel and can't wait to read whatever Lawrence writes next.

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