All That’s Left to Say

Gr 9 Up–The summer before their junior year of high school, Hannah’s cousin Sophie dies from a drug overdose at a party. Utterly devastated, Hannah begins a relentless search into who gave Sophie the pills that caused her death. When she partners up with Sophie’s best friend from school, who is also hunting down this mysterious person, the two hatch a plan: Hannah will transfer into their fancy private school for senior year in order to secretly investigate their remaining suspects. But will their search for answers provide healing and closure, or will it tear all of their relationships apart? This is an engrossing and poignant exploration of grief. Told in alternating time lines of Hannah’s junior and senior years, the mystery of how Sophie got the pills that ended her life unfolds deliberately, but readers remain nonetheless engaged in unraveling clues alongside Hannah while also watching this obsession slowly ruin her. The major and minor characters all have depth, and the issues of substance addiction and abuse are explored in a nuanced and caring light. Empathetic teens will definitely be in tears by the end.