This dark and desperate story about teenage Jack and his six-year-old brother, Matty, nearly broke my heart. It begins with the loss of their mother (TW: suicide) after which Jack is forced to care for Matty entirely on his own with no resources. He reaches out to his father, in prison for a crime that included stealing a great sum of money that was never found. If Jack can find the money, he and Matty will be set. But Jack's visit to his father sets off a chain of events that will become increasingly dangerous for Jack and Matty. They have one ally, Ava, the new girl at school that becomes entangled with Jack accidentally and then helps during an emergency. But Ava is the daughter of Jack's father's enemy, which will only serve to complicate the story and its conclusion even more.

This book was dark and heavy. I could feel Jack's desperation and weariness as he moved from one unwinnable situation to the next. But there was true, authentic beauty in the love and kindness expressed between Jack, Matty, and Ava - the kind that reminded me of the things in this life that are truly worth living and dying for. Those few moments took my breath away, and helped me read on through Jack & Matty's continued strife.

Really interesting and well written, but maybe I just don't like mysteries as much as I thought I did. I don't know, because this should have really hit with me but it didn't. Not to say the quality is bad, on the contrary, it's good, but maybe it's a me thing.

This book broke my heart over and over and it did it with beautiful writing and characters that I still can't let go of.
It's not an easy story to follow. Jack Morton truly has nothing left except a little brother, Matty, he's willing to do anything for, and poor Ava only ever had her psychotic father. Jack starts out barely at the periphery of everything and ends up at the center of a long-held grudge and fight for things he has no part in. It's a slow unraveling in mere days, but the many things that Jack, Ava, and even poor Matty go through are a cavalcade of hardship and hard decisions that left me wondering (and worried) if so much suffering could really befall one human being.
Again, it's not an easy story to read. I had to walk away a couple of times just because it was giving actual physical pain to read about these poor kids. But it's so well written that I couldn't walk away. I had to see Jack and Ava's story to its conclusion.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Roaring Brook Press for the read and slightly dented heart.

I kind of don’t even know where to start with this one. When I first started reading WHAT BEAUTY THERE IS, I *felt* the cold - seriously, you cannot escape the cold in this one - and it seemed so bleak. I thought, gee, she kind of writes like Hemingway - short, stark sentences, sometimes even just phrases instead of full sentences. But where I quite vehemently dislike Hemingway’s writing, I found myself propelled forward by the poetic nature of Ms. Anderson’s writing (that’s the best way I can think of to describe it - lyrical. beautiful. poetic.). Of course, I was also propelled forward by the plot, and there was an actual heaviness to my heart, a sense of dread and anxiety in my gut, the entire time I was reading. I just wanted to gather Jack and Matty and Ava in my arms and hug them, warm them up, comfort them - perhaps because I’m a mother - and my heart broke for their circumstances and what they’ve endured in their short lives. Also, I’ll be honest, when I finished the book I mentally gave it a rating of 4 stars. However, in the week between finishing it and writing this review, I’ve bumped that up to 5 stars because I just cannot. stop. thinking about it. All three of these kids are brave and unforgettable, but Ava in particular...Ava has snuck her way into my head and my heart and won’t let go. Ava finally grasping some semblance of agency in her life is one of the bravest things I’ve ever seen. WHAT BEAUTY THERE IS is the kind of book that will rip your heart to shreds but also, somehow, gently put it back together. I highly recommend this atmospheric debut.

I feel I would be remiss if I didn’t point out some content warnings: there is discussion of domestic violence; parental drug use; loss of parents; suicide; violence. Just take care with yourself if these are things that trigger you.

Rating: 5 stars!

**Disclosure: I received an e-ARC of this book from the publisher for purposes of this blog tour. This review is voluntary on my part and reflects my honest rating and review of the book.

Let's start off by mentioning how truly BEAUTIFUL this hardback edition is. That blue color and the gold foiling would make this a must read with no idea what the book is about, but thankfully this one was one I was already excited to read and it was just the whole package!

This book.

Plan to read it in one sitting, because it will capture your attention & you won't want to let it go. Fast paced and full of unexpected surprises, this story is full of enriching, interesting characters that will keep you engaged with the dual POV and timelines. It will leave you in ALL the feels, just in time for the next thing to happen.

What Beauty There Is is absolutely marvelous, make it a must read on your TBR!

Thank you to Rockstar Book Tours + Roaring Book Press for having me on this book tour, I was so honored to be able to read and review it!

Jack Dahl comes home from school in the freezing Idaho winter to find his mother’s body hanging from the ceiling fan. It’s the first, horrifying scene of What Beauty There Is, Cory Anderson’s intense and gorgeous debut young adult novel, and unfortunately for Jack, things only get worse from there.

In the weeks that follow the death of their mother, Jack and his little brother Matty struggle to figure out who they can trust in a world that seems to be full of enemies. Their only hope is finding a briefcase full of money that their father hid before being sent to prison years earlier—but others are after it too, which means they’re after Jack and Matty. Their pursuers range from the well-meaning—the town sheriff, hoping to bring the boys under the care of social services—to the unconditionally villainous: Bardem, the man who will commit any crime necessary in order to get his hands on that briefcase of money. The only one who knows what Bardem is really capable of is his daughter Ava, who allies herself with Jack and Matty despite understanding what it might cost her.

What Beauty There Is is Jack’s story, but it’s also Ava’s. She narrates the story at a distance, commenting on the events of each chapter, even the ones she doesn’t experience firsthand. These passages from Ava’s point of view can seem confusing and a little repetitive on first read, but they pay off by the end of the story. They also allow us to see the growing relationship between Jack and Ava from a different angle: Two people sharing tentative but real affection at a time when it’s difficult to think about anything but survival. And most of Jack’s love and energy will always have to be devoted to Matty, who Jack is so desperate to protect from the world’s cruelty.

Most of the time, he’s fighting a losing battle. Anderson puts her characters, and her readers, through a lot. By the end of the book, we’ve come through excruciating violence, parental abuse of every kind, and cold-blooded murder. But true to its title, What Beauty There Is rewards persistent readers with a glimpse of something beautiful. Anderson’s prose is sharp and literary; a series of short sentences can land like a slew of punches, and every moment of pain for the characters is deeply felt. The novel is also carefully and lovingly constructed, and leads to a shockingly beautiful ending. What Beauty There Is is difficult to read, but it’s a wonderful debut: A tense, piercing novel about memory, sacrifice, and the stories we tell ourselves and others.

This story hooks you right away, with every single sentence relevant to the story. You're instantly drawn to Jack and his younger brother Matty as they persevere, Jack doing everything in his power to give his brother as normal a life as possible. You can't help but almost feel a sort of awe for Jack and his ability to be completely selfless, always putting his younger brother and his needs above his own, even when it means he has to put himself into dangerous situations. Their bond is the centerpiece of a story that is built upon tragedy and the repercussions of a parent's actions.
The writing is gritty and cuts straight to the bones of the story, nothing embellished or softened with frilly use of language. However, there's almost a poetry to it, while making the reader feel like they are in the moment with Jack. I felt invested in his outcome and feared for Matty right along with him, reading almost straight through to the finish because I so desperately had to know if they would be okay. A quick and emotionally-packed read, I give this one 4.5 stars. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy. This had no impact on my review.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy to read and review.

What Beauty There Is is a book filled with desperation, darkness, bravery and hope. To be honest at times I didnt feel like I was reading a young adult novel because of how serious everything was that the protagonists had to deal with throughout this story. The authors writing was absolutely beautiful. The way she described the coldness of winter, the hunger, and the danger they felt every time they was on the move. I wasn't expecting multiple POVs in this to be honest. I didnt find it confusing to keep up with its just that there was a lot of them. I honestly don't even remember half of them now. Despite that it still flowed nicely when it was a character switch. I think my most favorite part of the book was how it counted up to 33 and started counting back down. I think Cory Anderson's debut novel was great and I really enjoyed this book and I can't wait to see what the next one is about since goodreads has a sequel listed.

In the young adult novel What Beauty There Is, Jack and his brother are painfully poor and living alone in rural Idaho. It's winter, it's cold, and it's tough to simply survive.

But if Jack can't find the drug money his father stole before heading to prison, things will get worse: his younger brother will be sent into foster care. There's no real choice to make--Jack would never allow his brother to go. So now he just needs to do some dangerous digging into matters that seem to generally end up sending others to jail...or resulting in death.

Meanwhile, nearby, Ava's been kept quiet and controlled by her father her whole life--and he's after the same money Jack so desperately needs. Ava must decide whether she'll stick by her cruel father or if she's willing to help the brothers save themselves.

No one can be trusted besides the younger brother sleeping at Jack's back, everyone else in his family has abandoned or betrayed him (or both), and the people who want to help him bring potentially deadly attention to his existence at the same time he desperately needs to remain unnoticed.

I had mixed feelings about the omniscient narrator's chapter openers. They offer useful information, but I tend to want a story to unfold without hints in certain directions (although I didn't predict the specifics of what occurred). This element made the book feel young adult to me more than anything else.

What Beauty There Is is a story about darkness, desperation, unlikely loyalty, and, ultimately, brave young characters in tough spots trying to cobble together something close to hope. The main protagonists are young, but their concerns are weighty. Anderson's beautifully spare writing about the brutal winter and the pressing crises of hunger, cold, and danger from nefarious forces kept me on the edge of my seat. The brothers' relationship was a heartbreaking joy to read. And I'm mesmerized by this gorgeous cover art.

This is Cory Anderson's debut. I love a brave-young-protagonist setup, and the brothers' love and determination were fantastic.

I can't wait to read what Anderson writes next.

I received a prepublication edition of this book (publication date is today, April 6) courtesy of Roaring Brook Press and NetGalley.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group for granting my wish for What Beauty There Is by Cory Anderson.

What initially drew me to this book was the beautiful cover. I admit that is not always the wisest choice in selecting a book, but it definitely did not let me down this time.

What Beauty There Is follows Jack and his little brother, Matty, as they try to survive after unthinkable tragedy in their lives…over and over again. This book reminded me a lot of We Begin At The End of Four Winds in that through the entirety of the novel, we are rooting for main character who cannot seem to catch a break. And through each heartbreak and struggle, I was anxiously rooting for our boys as I read on.

Something I didn’t even notice until almost the end was the chapter structure of this book. I honestly thought it was a galley error, but as Ava tells us again and again as the narrator, this is a loop. The chapters count up and back down again, and then there is the final chapter. Not to ruin anything, but have tissues handy.

I am eager to read anything else that Cory Anderson publishes!

I didn’t realize this was going to be the start of a series when I requested it or started reading it, so the ending left me wanting. I only know it’s the start because it’s labeled that way on GR. I didn’t find myself drawn into the story until the second half, and that’s where it picks up. I know people that have reviewed this so far have really loved the book. I’m more lukewarm to it. It’s clear I’m in the minority on that, so I would definitely encourage interested readers to give this book a shot. Thank you, Macmillian Children’s Publishing Group, for sending this along.

"Where is the end and the start and the thing that causes the end that leads to the start? How do you tell where you were or tell the difference of where you are? Did everything lead to this moment? To this single grain of salt?"

Thank you to NetGalley and Roaring Brook Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Content warnings (from what I remember, there are probably more): blood, physical assault, guns/knives, drug use/abuse/sales, threatened animal abuse, animal deaths, parental/emotional abuse, suicide, death

I first discovered an excerpt of this book on BookishFirst, and was drawn in immediately by the cover. The excerpt itself was graphic, and not at all like something I would generally choose to read. I found myself wondering what happened to the main characters for the rest of the week, though, and knew I needed to request an ARC.

This story follows Jack, Matty, and Ava, the children of two men who were caught up in a drug deal gone wrong. Despite their best intentions, the three of them seem to run into one tragic event after another, most of which seem to be due to the choices of their parents and not their own.

Although I love the detailed writing style, almost fragmented sentences, and short chapters, I found the varying perspectives to be confusing. By the end of the story, there are portions from the perspective of Jack, Matty, Ava, the boys' mom, Ava's dad, the boys' dad, the local sheriff, and possibly more I've forgotten. There were no cues to perspective switches other than a new paragraph at times. Because of this, I had to read the same section multiple times trying to figure out who was thinking.

My favorite part of this book was how even minor details that appeared to warrant no special attention ended up tying into the storyline. The chapter headings were gorgeous, and I found it unique how they counted up to 33 and then started counting back down again!

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes thrillers with open endings or gruesome coming-of-age novels with references to literature like Invictus, White Fang, and Henry David Thoreau. If Goodreads is correct about this being a series, I will continue it!

"Night is near and dark is coming. But I will spark and burn and blaze."

Content warning: suicide, drug abuse, abusive familial relationships (manipulative and physical)

From the very first chapter, this book will make you emotional. The content warnings are immediately necessary so keep that in mind. The book just jumps right into the story, which I think really worked well and kept me hooked. From the beginning, there are two stories happening, but it was written well so it was not confusing, in my opinion. The prose is phenomenal, the characters are morally gray but complex and multidimensional, and overall, this is a book that draws you in and keeps you interested.

While this was not exactly the adventure story I was expecting (don’t worry, the adventurous hunt for the lost treasure is there) it was so much more beautiful and stuck with me in all the best ways. Jack has pretty much always seen the bad side of luck and the book doesn’t start any differently when he comes home from school to find his mother has hung herself in her bedroom. How father is in prison for a robbery where the stolen money was never recovered. Jack’s next choices are completely focused on his little brother Matty and how best to protect him. In an attempt to keep from losing his brother to foster care he decides he has to find the money as they have left than 20 dollars and they’re losing the house. This noble decision sets Jack off on a terrifying journey as he’s not the only one still thinking about that briefcase of money. Jack trusts no one but when Ava shows up he’ll find himself learning to grudgingly accept help. This book was so well written it read with a poetry that painted the picture with every word. I loved the relationship between Jack and Matty and honestly just their characters. They were delightful, brave, and caring. I’m not going to lie, this book did lead me to tears but it was because the characters were so well written that as they hit bumps and struggles I felt for them. I very much hope that Cory Anderson continues to write as this was exquisite!

I couldn't get through this book and ultimately decided it wasn't worth it. There should be some loud and clear trigger warnings on this book especially since it throws you right in. While others seemed to like the story diving right into the heavy content, I found myself confused whether this was YA or not.

It was really hard for me to get into the story. I didn't enjoy the choppy sentences, confusing opening to every chapter, and the slow seemingly aimless storyline. It may be worth it in the end, but I wasn't emotionally up for it.

I was not prepared for this book. This book from the first chapter had me in tears and I feel like my heart stayed broken the entire time. It’s so hard to describe this story without spoiling it but just know the writing is fantastic, Jack, Matty and Ava will capture your hearts but the story is dark and it stays dark for most of the book. There are a lot of triggers that I’m sure someone else who reviewed this story will tell you, take their word because the story does not warm you up. It’s a go at the beginning and while it is emotionally hard to read it, man it is a good story. The ending left me going “huh” but it seems to leave it open for a sequel which I will be reading with tissues ready.

Releases April 6, 2021

Book 1 of What Beauty There Is series (sequel to be released later 2021)

Content warning: suicide, drug abuse, abusive familial relationships (manipulative and physical)

I received an ARC of What Beauty There Is by Cory Anderson thanks to the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Blurb thanks to Goodreads:
"Winter. The sky is dark. It is cold enough to crack bones.

Jack Morton has nothing left. Except his younger brother, Matty, who he'd do anything for. Even die for. Now with their mother gone, and their funds quickly dwindling, Jack needs to make a choice: lose his brother to foster care, or find the drug money that sent his father to prison. He chooses the money.

Ava Bardem lives in isolation, a life of silence. For seventeen years her father has controlled her fate. He has taught her to love no one. Trust no one. Now Victor Bardem is stalking the same money as Jack. When he picks up Jack's trail, Ava must make her own wrenching choice: remain silent or help the brothers survive.

Choices. They come at a price."

Review:

Wow. Just wow. I want to take a second to breathe before really diving into this review. Okay. Here we go.

What Beauty There Is starts off by ripping your heart out. Like.... ouch. That was a tough first chapter to read so be very mindful of the content warnings I included above before you dive in because there is no hesitation in getting to them. With that warning out of the way, I absolutely loved that it dived right in. It felt like jumping into the story partway through and when it was most dire. But I never, NEVER, felt lost because of it. There was no 'faff' or 'filler' to get you hooked and invested in the characters. I was wrapped up in the characters instantly (yes, even the 'voice in my head' at the chapter start).

I love the moral grayness of some of the characters and how others are clearly good/bad. It kept me interested in all the points-of-view. The Doyle/Midge POV was less engaging, but these chapters gave a unique perspective that is still appreciated. Every other POV I loved. It might just be that I love the characters though.

The story felt on the shorter side, and I would have appreciated more relationship development between the two main characters. It felt like they were put together for conflict rather than as a natural development. This is very much due to where the story starts and how, because it doesn't allow for a very authentic friendship development, but I think this is just me being picky.

Overall, I enjoyed the story. I wished for more here and there but I like the voice, story, and characters. This gives me a Sadie feeling and will definitely be enjoyed by those who enjoy treasure hunting with life-or-death consequences.

I wanted to like this book based on the premice and other glowing reviews, but there was nothing about it that really grabbed me. The 1st person start to every chapter that leads into 3rd person was jarring and off-putting. The need to say "let's start at the beginning" which is just so cliche and sets the whole tone of the book (just start at the beginning) and the lack of real character development were the downfalls of the book for me.

Would I have liked this if all the unnecessary 1st person bits were taken out and the book simply started with the suicide? Maybe but I guess we will never know now.

Synopsis: to save his brother from foster care, Jack needs money. Specifically, the drug money that sent his father to prison. Unfortunately for the brothers, another man is also in search of the money stash. Someone willing to kill for it.
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DNF at 48%
I might be breaking up with YA thrillers after this one. They are just not my thing, and they never hold my interest and I could honestly couldn't care less. Most of the other reviews I am seeing praise this book for how suspenseful and plot-twisty it is.... but IDC. A vast majority of you may enjoy this book, and more power to you! *Trigger warnings galore - read responsibly*

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a free arc in exchange for an honest review. Release Date: April 6th.

What Beauty There Is is a phenomenal new book that is like nothing I have read recently. I absolutely could not put the book down and even the next day find my thoughts with Jack, Matty, and Ava. It is simply stunning. The characters are incredibly well-written. You honestly care what happens to them. The atmosphere was fantastic, the cold and snow are relentless and make for an unforgiving backdrop for the story. The plot is so good, thrilling, sad, hopeful... pretty much every emotion is represented at some point. The heavyweight character is Jack who is so strong and solemn, so loving of his brother, and just can't seem to catch a break. I really can't say enough good things about this book, it is one I will go back to and read again to dig deeper.. Also, I must add that the cover art is beautiful. This book really has it all and I expect it will be a huge hit.