Book Review: Sadie by Courtney Summers

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BOOK INFO
Title: Sadie
Author: Courtney Summers
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Publish Date: September 4, 2018

BOOK BLURB
from Amazon:
Sadie hasn’t had an easy life. Growing up on her own, she’s been raising her sister Mattie in an isolated small town, trying her best to provide a normal life and keep their heads above water.

But when Mattie is found dead, Sadie’s entire world crumbles. After a somewhat botched police investigation, Sadie is determined to bring her sister’s killer to justice and hits the road following a few meager clues to find him.

When West McCray—a radio personality working on a segment about small, forgotten towns in America—overhears Sadie’s story at a local gas station, he becomes obsessed with finding the missing girl. He starts his own podcast as he tracks Sadie’s journey, trying to figure out what happened, hoping to find her before it’s too late.

MY REVIEW
Sadie’s younger sister Mattie is found dead. Sadie loves her sister more than anyone else in her life, and she’s determined to find and kill the man responsible for Mattie’s death. Sadie goes in search of the man, but she doesn’t tell anyone what she is doing. When Sadie is not heard from, she is reported missing. West is a man with a podcast, and when he hears about Sadie and Mattie, he starts looking into Sadie’s disappearance. As he looks for Sadie, he interviews the different people that Sadie has encountered after leaving home.

This book uses Sadie’s point of view and West’s podcasts to tell the story. Sadie’s POV tells about her experience with the people she encounters on her journey. The podcast includes West’s interviews with people from Sadie’s hometown and the people she meets after leaving home. Using the information he gathers about Sadie, West tries to find her. His podcast follows Sadie’s story several months after she is reported missing. I’ve read a few books that use a podcast to tell the story, and have found it an intriguing way to tell a story.

Sadie and Mattie have a difficult childhood. Their mother is a drug addict and leaves when they are still young, but Sadie takes it upon herself to provide for her and her sister. The only adult in their lives is their neighbor, who has known the girls their entire lives and does what she can to help them out.

Sadie is stubborn, independent, and loving. I was rooting for Sadie the entire time. Sadie’s life is an unhappy one, and that makes for a very emotional read.

Sadie is considered a young adult novel, but it read almost as an adult novel. Some difficult topics are covered, including pedophilia, sexual abuse, child abuse, and poverty. Heartbreaking, dark, and tragic.

I borrowed this book from my local library.