Courtney Summers is one of my favorite YA authors, so I couldn't wait to read Sadie. The thing about Sadie is the book is very heavy. Like extremely dark and depressing and very hard to stomach. There are all sorts of triggers and I just felt there was never a glimmer of any hopefulness anywhere in the book. The format also didn't work for me. The podcast chapters were strong and engaging and I almost wished it was told entirely in that way. Sadie's POV sections felt flat in comparison. Although I gave the book 3 stars, I would still recommend it. Just wasn't quite in the mood for a very depressing read.

Review posted on Goodreads and Amazon

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book and chose to review it. This in no way impacts my opinion.

"It'll h-heal f-fine."

"It'll heal ugly."

But most things do.

This was such a unique book, especially with its writing style. I love Courtney Summer's writing style and believe she is one of the most creative authors in the game. Having this set up as a podcast with different perspectives from Sadie was a stylistic choice that wouldn't have worked if it was anyone but Courtney Summers writing it.

I loved seeing how Sadie made connections and went along with her vengeance. I would have liked a bit more at the beginning or in the middle to show how she determined how she knew the answer to the problem because it did seem like she just knew without actually showing us. But I loved watching Sadie figure it out and have West follow in her footsteps. I think it was such a good choice to make.

And West was incredible too. I liked seeing how he didn't necessarily want to write or follow this story but he knew it was important. He also realized it became more important as he went along, which was how I also felt. It was just such a good way to bring the reader into the story and get them to buy into the story.

I really liked the writing style and narrative to this one. I like when books are written in transcripts! But I felt a little underwhelmed at times. I thought there could have been more to some of the interactions than what we got. But overall it is something unique and different! If you’ve liked Courtney Summers previous works, you’ll enjoy this as well.

So, I think this is an extremely creatively written story, going back and forth between Sadie's POV and the podcast. I loved the writing style. But, seeing as it a thriller, there was nothing exceptionally thrilling about the storyline. I mean, I was invested well enough in the story and characters, but nothing really happened that had me sitting at the edge of my seat for much of the time. At first, I was a little frustrated with the ending, but now I do think it works for the story. I really did like it overall, and I do keep thinking about it weeks after I finished. I just think that part of my problem is I just didn't get what I was expecting.

Sadie's sister Mattie was murdered and Sadie sets out to avenge her death. This is a harrowing and powerful story of a broken, grieving girl seeking vengeance for her sister. A reporter catches wind of the story while visiting a local gas station and becomes hesitantly compelled to find her. Wes McCray starts a podcast retracing Sadie's steps but is always a few steps behind. Will they find Sadie or will she be 'just another dead girl?' Riveting until the end. Haunting. I couldn't put it down. I appreciated listening to the podcast when getting to each episode in the book and was disappointed that they didn't carry it through the book's entirety.

This story was brilliantly written! It left you wondering....but amazing sad and heart felt!!! I have personally never lost anyone like that, but if i did I would go through all the great lengths and measures that sadie did!

This book was on my best of 2018 list. I very much liked how well the alternating timelines were handled, the voice was excellent, and it was incredibly gripping.
Reviewed in full in this video: http://www.thebookrat.com/2018/09/three-recent-book-loves-sadie-dance-of.html

This book is incredible. It is quite powerful and will make a great addition to classrooms. I will be adopting it for my college-level course of preservice teachers in the Fall.

Loved this novel, kept me on my toes and definitely pulled me in right from the start. I don’t know what I would do if my sister went missing. Probably anything that I could like this story follows.

So I really don't know who was who but this audio was like going to the theater! I've never listened to anything like this before and I've listened to several hundred audiobooks. It was amazingly creative! I loved how you could hear the background during the podcast interviews... hearing the cafe noises or hearing people inhale and exhale while smoking.

As far as the storyline, this was a great one. It was interesting and a bit vague but ultra interesting! I do wish I had some definite answers to the story but not knowing everything makes it seem real.

Sadie was a dark, sad, and inspiring book at once. The characters' motivations are divulged over the book through Sadie's story as well as the podcast. The reveals are careful and loaded, and it was a great read.

Generally I enjoy Courtney Summers books but this one left me bored. The podcast component annoyed me more than anything and I disliked it being part of the story. I understand that a lot of readers would enjoy this part but I'm not a huge podcast person myself, I actually only listen to them when my husband puts them on and usually feel pretty meh about them. Also, this was meant to be a thriller of sorts I suppose, but it felt very classic YA to me rather than having any actual edge/thrilling aspect to it. Ultimately I was bored and did not terribly care about the MC or the story.

....................................................................................................

"And it begins, as so many stories do, with a dead girl."

I must warn you that if you have a heart at all…then this book will absolutely slay you. Seriously, like no coming back from it, can’t sleep or eat until you have finished it, even after you have finished it-it is still with you slay you. REMEMBER…You have all been warned.

This book was horrifically heart shattering. The story is told in two different POV’s. Sadie is a nineteen year old whose little sister was murdered. She has a horrible stutter which she feels completely self conscious about. And she is looking for Mattie’s murderer and will literally stop at nothing to find him. The second POV is West McCray. He is a reporter for the podcast “The Girls” and was hired by Sadie’s caregiver to track down Sadie and try to piece together what had happened to Mattie.

I enjoyed the way Ms. Summers set up the book. We have Sadie giving us a background on their family while setting up to leave to find her sister’s killer. And West’s POV told kind of like we are listening to it on a tape being played back to us via an interview style.

"In our last episode, I introduced you to the two girls at the center of this podcast, Mattie Southern and Sadie Hunter. Mattie was murdered, her body left just outside her hometown of Cold Creek, Colorado. Sadie is missing, her car found, abandoned, thousands of miles away, with all her personal belongings still inside it. The girls’ surrogate grandmother, May Beth Foster, has enlisted my help in finding Sadie and bringing her home."

For those of you just tuning in, this is a serialized podcast, so if you haven’t listened to our first episode, you should do that now. We have more story than time to tell it – but I suppose that’s true for all of us.

Sadie’s life has been tough. Her Mom is an addict whom comes and goes. Sadie is left to raise her little sister whom she adores. The love that you can feel while reading for her sister is that of a mother and child. Sadie would walk through fire for Mattie and it is really a beautiful relationship. You would think that the book would be completely plot driven but it was absolutely character driven. These characters made the story and we meet a lot more along the way with Sadie’s Travels.

Imagine having to live every day knowing the person who killed your sister is breathing the air she can’t, filling his lungs with it, tasting its sweetness. Imagine him knowing the steady weight of the earth under his feet while her body is buried six feet below it.

The ending left me wanting so much more! I have never read a book like this and it really blew me away. I enjoyed it but it was also so exhausting. I had to get to the end. The writing was beautiful and I was able to capture the entire story. This one left me haunted and actually dreaming about it that night.

Thank you to the publisher for the review copy in exchange of an honest review.

WOW. This book is everything. I loved it and I hated it but it's THAT good. It's dark. You'll be heartbroken. Read it. Trust me, you won't regret it. Courtney is a new-to-me author and I can definitely say this book will not be my last by her.

An important book, one that will stay with me for a long time to come. Completely different than what I was expecting, I really enjoyed it.

This was an interesting and intriguing ride from beginning to end. The multi-media format really added to the story and had a lot to say about how we discuss missing women. Deeply enjoyed this.

Wow! This was a difficult book to read! Besides the subject matter, the way that the dialogue was written in the story made it very difficult to follow. As I read further and got to know more about the characters in the book, I enjoyed it and was able to follow it better. It has a very believable storyline, and shows us that the ones that love and care about us the most are not always blood relatives. This is a story about Mothers, daughters and love. And the difficult lives that some families go through.

I received an ARC copy from netgalley for my honest review, so thank you netgalley and publishers for offering me this book! ♡
The cover and title is what originally drew me to this book.
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.
Courtney Summers has written the breakout book of her career. Sadie is propulsive and harrowing and will keep you riveted until the last page.
This was my first book by this author. It was alltogether an easy read. ♡ I give this book a
5 star rating!

I requested this book kind of hesitant. YA mysteries can be really hit or miss. But I am so glad I got to read this book!! I cannot recommend Sadie enough. And now that it's out, I recommend listening to the audiobook which is AMAZINGLY performed.

This book follows Sadie, whose sister was murdered, and Sadie knows by whom. She sets off to find the killer and make him pay. Sadie is the star of this show, and I really loved her. Never does she waver in her mission, and I admire that in a character, no matter how grisly the mission is. In fact, I respect her more that she doesn't waver in this. Also, Sadie has a stutter, which is not something I see represented often in books. It was a unique characteristic that makes Sadie stand out, as if she wouldn't already. She's a strong girl who loves her family and demands recompense, and I really loved her.

We also follow a podcast run by West McCray, who at first thinks this story isn't anything special... until he gets into the meat of it and starts following Sadie on her journey. In the audiobook, the podcast is VERY well done, with sponsorship messages and background music and noise. When you're in a diner, it SOUNDS like you're actually there with the people in the background. This segment of the book is very well done and fun, because you already know everything West doesn't know, but it's still fun to follow him finding out the mystery along with you.

The one thing I did not like about this novel was the ending. It's very open-ended, and sometimes I don't mind that, but I do wish we got a bit of a clue or hint about what happens. Just something little that would help make the reader feel content with the ending.

Overall, this is a great book that deserves all the hype. I cannot recommend Sadie enough (especially the audiobook, if you can) and I hope that you all enjoy it as much as I do.

Sadie lives in a trailer park in a small town with her younger sister, Mattie. Sadie has practically raised Mattie by herself all her life, their mother being an addict who left them to fend for themselves.
Sadie's life is turned upside down when Mattie dies.
When the police investigation turns up no leads, Sadie decides to search for the killer herself.
Radio presenter West McCray hears Sadie's story while at a gas station. He starts a podcast, following Sadie's tracks and hoping to find out what happened to her.

Sadie is told partly in podcast form and partly from Sadie's point of view. I really liked this format. It was interesting to read as West McCray tried to track Sadie down, especially knowing what she had been doing in the places that he went to.
I liked Sadie as a character - she was determined and would do anything for Mattie. I felt really sorry for her - she'd had a tough childhood and then her sister, her whole world, died.
I don't think I've read a book where the main character had a stutter so that was different.
The plot was interesting and kept me guessing. There were some dark things that happened so if you are triggered by things like sexual abuse and paedophilia I would give this a miss.
The writing style was easy to follow and gripped me.
The book and its ending are definitely going to stay with me for a while.

Overall this was an enjoyable, emotional read.