Publication: 7th January 2025 – Quercus
Two twins. An unbroken bond. A truth unspoken.
The only thing James and Johnny Golden have ever had is each other. For as long as she can remember, James’s deep connection with her twin brother, Johnny, has gone beyond intuition – she can feel what he feels. So, when Johnny is killed in a tragic accident, James knows before her phone even rings that her brother is gone and that she’s alone – truly alone – for the first time in her life.
When James arrives in the rural town of Hawthorne, California to settle her brother’s affairs, she’s forced to rehash the ominous past she and Johnny shared and finally face Micah, the only person who knows about it. He’s also the only man she’s ever loved.
But James soon discovers that the strange connection she had with Johnny isn’t quite gone, and the more she immerses herself into his world, the more questions she has about the brother she thought she knew. Johnny was keeping secrets, and he’s not the only one.
What she uncovers will push her to unravel what happened in the days before Johnny’s death, but in the end, she’ll have to decide which truths should come to light, and which should stay buried forever.
I love Adrienne Young’s novels. I adore her immersive stories, her wonderful cast of complex and intriguing characters, and her beautiful writing that captivates you from the first to the very last page.
A Sea of Unspoken Things is her latest fascinating novel set in the small town of Hawthorne. The protagonist, James Golden, left the town when she was 18 years old and she hasn’t been back until now, following the mysterious death of her twin brother Johnny. She’s always had a special connection with her brother Johnny so that she knew the exact moment he died and now she is back to get his affairs in order, including finishing an environmental project he was involved in. But James has other reasons to return to Hawthorne. First of all, she is convinced that her brother’s death was no accident and may also be connected to the tragic event that made her leave town. And then there is Micah, her first love and the boy, now a man, whose heart she broke when she left. And he is probably the only person she can now trust.
While The Unmaking of June Farrow still remains my favourite novel by Adrienne Young, I really enjoyed A Sea of Unspoken Things. It is haunting, chilling, and atmospheric with evocative descriptions and interesting characters together with supernatural elements, an intriguing and intense mystery, and an exciting romance. I can’t wait to read more by this author!
A huge thank you to Quercus and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of this beautiful novel.
Adrienne Young is the Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author of Spells for Forgetting, the Sky in the Deep duology and the Fable series. When she’s not writing, you can find her on her yoga mat, on a walk in the woods, or planning her next travel adventure. She lives and writes in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.
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