Quirk Review: Hanging by a Thread by Sophie Littlefield

From Goodreads:

Summer is the best part of the year in Winston, California, and the Fourth of July is the highlight of the season. But the perfect town Clare remembers has changed, and everyone is praying that this summer will be different from the last two—that this year's Fourth of July festival won't see one of their own vanish without a trace, leaving no leads and no suspects. The media are in a frenzy predicting a third disappearance, but the town depends on tourist dollars, so the residents of Winston are trying desperately to pretend nothing's wrong. And they're not the only ones hiding something.

Clare, a seamstress who redesigns vintage clothing, has been blessed—or perhaps cursed—with a gift: she can see people's pasts when she touches their clothes. When she stumbles across a denim jacket that once belonged to Amanda Stavros, last year's Fourth of July victim, Clare sees her perfect town begin to come apart at the seams.

Release Date: September 11, 2012

A very big thank you to

 NetGalley

for the opportunity to read this book!

PREFACE:

I had literally seen one mention of this book somewhere and decided to look it up. The premise of a YA mystery mixed with something slightly paranormal interested me as I love all these elements in a story. Then I found Hanging by a Thread on NetGalley, requested it, got approved, and dove in. So how well was this mystery woven?

Pretty well, but not without some unraveling.

WRITING:

My first thought upon reading this book was that the voice of the protagonist, Clare, was distinct and clear and I really liked that. But in those same beginning pages, Clare moves through a lot of information about several different topics. It made the writing feel rushed and like too much was being introduced all at once. This was resolved as the story progressed and the flow of information adjusted, allowing me to settle in comfortably to the story.

Overall, I liked the writing. It had just enough of everything to make the characters and setting feel realistic. Even the part where Clare dips into the memories she gets from the clothing seemed plausible. And the story was definitely written more from the typical YA approach than a genre mystery, which I was glad for.

SETTING:

I really enjoyed the setting for this story. Littlefield does a good job of making the small town of Winston almost a character in the story. I could imagine the different areas of the town, how it was divided, the local events and the people, with ease. It vaguely reminded me of Cabot Cove in the Murder, She Wrote television show, what with the mystery and the small town and residents keeping secrets, but with a younger cast (loved that show, by the way).

CHARACTERS:

As I mentioned above, I really enjoyed Clare's character. She was a girl with a strange secret who tried to live life despite that secret while also attempting to heal from some family issues. It was great to learn about Clare's conflicted feelings concerning her mother and grandmother and then to see her grow and watch her relationships with them change. I also liked that Clare was passionate about her dream and that she channeled that passion into something real and tangible.

I thought Clare's gift (or curse, whichever) was cool too. I remember seeing a lot of stories when I was growing up that had this element in them (not necessarily always with clothing or fabric) but I had noticed that it was something that didn't seem to be all that present these days. The only thing I've read in recent years that contains this same aspect is the Charlie Bone books (the character that could do this was Gabriel and he was one of my favorites ^_^).

When it came to the love interest, I really, really liked Jack. He fit the mold perfectly for the boy who is dark, brooding, dangerous, and hot. Though I thought things could have moved a little slower between Jack and Clare, I loved their chemistry. I could almost feel the zing of energy myself when I was reading their scenes.

As for the other characters, I was impressed with how well they were depicted. Each one, even the more minor characters, had depth. While some of them may have seemed a little flat in the beginning, appearing to be stereotypical at first, the more you got into the story, the more you learn about them and the more they flesh out. The characters and their range of secrets, emotions, and histories were a high point of the novel.

DOWNSIDE:

The two major downsides I have with this story are two sides of the same coin, and that coin is the mystery. The first downside is that it takes a little while to really get to the mystery part of it. The element that starts the mystery going appears at a decent point, but Clare wavers for a while over whether she should do anything about it. To be fair, her wavering is explained within the narrative, but for me, I enjoy mysteries that shoot off into action and a race to the answer. This story didn't do that and the mystery didn't become a pressing issue until much later, and then at that point, the other downside occurred.

That second downside, if I go too much into it, could be spoilery, so I'm going to try and keep it short and simple. For me, the mystery was lackluster in the last third of the book. At that point, the reader has learned several things and you can guess where it is headed (though the answer isn't quite what you expect). But the major component of the premise that made the mystery feel dangerous and sinister is lost. That really dampened my enjoyment of the story. I don't know if I just prefer really twisted characters and stories, but while there were definitely secrets still to uncover, the mystery didn't feel as big and bold and engrossing as it did when it began.

COOL STUFF:

There were a couple things I really liked about the story that I haven't mentioned yet. One was actually part of the problem with the mystery, and it was how the novel was set up. Clare is focused mostly on life in general then begins uncovering a secret here and there. I liked that it worked this way because it kept you wondering what you would find out next. It was very much like a puzzle, I just wish the overall answer it revealed at the end had been more to my taste.

The other thing I really enjoyed was how the story felt like a vivid tapestry woven with the threads of the town and the lives, relationships, and secrets of its people. I've highlighted some of these elements in other sections, but together they worked well and created a vibrant portrait that drew me in and had me wanting to discover more.

VERDICT:

While in the end I enjoyed Hanging by a Thread, it wasn't really what I was expecting. The novel had plenty of secrets and drama, a touch of the supernatural, and just enough romance, but it didn't quite follow through as a mystery. I would recommend this novel to any YA reader who wants to get lost in something a bit different with great characters and lots of life.