This book totally took me by surprise. I loved it. A book about living with a disease is so rare, too often books are just about dying. This is what great YA looks like.

SUCH a great book! A young adult book that adults will love as well! I love reading books that have a tie-in to a medical condition and this was such a fascinating look into a newly diagnosed patient. I will definitely be reading more books from this duo!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a DRC of this title for review. All opinions are my own.

If you work in a library, you are familiar with the requests for books that will make you cry. It sounds strange (I get it), but this is actually a pretty common request. Readers will want something that will make them FEEL all the emotions. Books that used to be my go to's for this included Everything Everything, Orbiting Jupiter, All the Bright Places , etc. Fade into the Bright now also has a place on that list.

Abby and her sister Brooke haven't seen their father since he walked out on them 10 years ago. So when he sends them a letter telling them he has Huntington's Disease (HD) and that it is genetic, everything changes. Because Brooke is convinced they should get tested so they can make a plan. And Abby goes along with this idea, which is fine until they get their results. Brooke was negative.

Abby was positive.

So now, instead of having a lifetime ahead of her, she has a life and a certain death. And when you realize how your life ends, it makes it hard to worry about right now, because right now is kind of an illusion. And nothing changes the end outcome. As Abby tries to deal with this, she runs off to stay with her aunt on Catalina island. There she meets some friends and thinks she's moving on. But as the summer progresses, she knows she isn't really moving on. She's hiding. And she can't do that forever.

Highly recommend. It is probably best for grades 8 and up as there is some sex (one scene, not graphic) and the characters are in between senior year and college.

Here is the big question - if there is a test that tells you whether you will have a terminal disease 20-25 years down the road, would you want to know??? And if you found out, would you tell anyone?

That is the plot of Fade into the Bright. A high school senior, Abby, discovers that she has the gene for Huntington’s Disease, a fatal disease. Abby spends the summer on Catalina Island with her aunt to clear her head and get away and while there, she falls in love and struggles with whether to tell her new love. Oh, this book. This book broke me. Oh, the tears. Oh, the emotions. Oh, the questions I kept asking myself. This book was not just a tearjerker - it had so much depth and layers with honest, flawed and well-developed characters. The emotions were so raw and real and I felt the agony that Abby endured each step of the way. This book was all about love, family, friendship, forgiveness, understanding, compassion and the need to cherish every minute because it can all be taken away. Such a beautiful story that gave me all the feels.

Abby needs an escape from her life, that has turned upside down after a letter of her father who she has lost touch with. Her father told her in this letter that he has Huntington Disease, a genetic disorder that gets worse and is fatal. After a genetic test, Abby finds out she is tested positive for Huntington, while her sister tested negative. What does her future hold for her now? How will the illness progress?
That summer she flees to Cataline Island where her aunt (her dad's sister) Cynthia lives. She has a summer of making new friends, and meets Ben. She has a hard time though telling him the truth about her health, because there is a cute romance starting. But most of all her summer is trying to find out what she really wants in life, in the time she might have.



As I am also having a genetic illness, I reallty liked that this book dealth with another illness. The style of writing of this book truly reminded me of the books by Sarah Dessen, in a good way! I really liked the storyline, and how Abby's summer was pictured, it also pictured in a realistic way the anxiety and stress that comes with a chronic illness diagnosis. So as I said earlier, the storyline is really good. Altought it is a more serious topic, it never was too heavy and the story stayed enjoyable. I also really liked all the characters, so I truly recommend reading this nice but also serious new book!

Oh, friends. This one makes you think...

If you are given a choice to know when/how you were going to die, would you want to know? That’s what this book is about, and so much more! I read this in one day because I simply had to know how it would end.

It is YA but it certainly doesn’t feel like YA. I laughed and I cried. I definitely cried. It is an emotional, inspirational, amazing story. I can’t recommend it enough.

I really enjoyed the look into the counseling sessions that you have to go through before you can get tested for Huntington's disease. All the characters were fresh and authentic. The father/daughter relationship was really interesting and I'm really glad we got such a compelling resolution to that storyline. I do think Abby and Ben's relationship went from zero to sixty real fast, making it feel a little unbelievable.

Confession - I love a good cry. If I'm scrolling through the channels and Tears of Endearment is on, I am 100% going to put myself through the emotional ringer. (If you have no clue what I mean by that, stop reading this review and go stream Terms of Endearment immediately.) Some of my favorite books require tissues at the ready - The Fault in Our Stars, Wonder, Me Before You, PS I Love You, Five Feet Apart, The Lovely Bones, A Little Life... I'm tearing up just writing this list. And now I've got a new one to add to it - Fade Into the Bright.

Abby is a high school senior when she and her older sister, Brooke, receive a letter from the father they haven't seen in more than a decade explaining that he has Huntington's disease, a fatal degenerative disorder. The sisters agree to genetic testing and one of them tests positive, changing both of their lives forever. Abby runs away to a remote part of Catalina Island where no one knows her secret and meets a wannabe documentary filmmaker named Ben who prides himself on uncovering people's stories. How long will Abby be able to keep hers?

The authors do a wonderful job of telling this story from Abby's POV. She's dealing with so many emotions and reconsidering what her future holds but she never once comes across as whiny or over-the-top. Her relationship with Ben is a slow burn that's completely believable and the secondary characters are so well-rounded (her eccentric aunt's boyfriend, Chip, might be my favorite).

Fade Into the Bright will take you on an emotional roller coaster but it's one that feels honest and earned and while this book is YA, I found it very relatable. I read it in a day, tissues at my side, anxious to see what would happen while dreading it at the same time. Abby's story is one that will stick with me for a long time.

Thanks to NetGalley, Delacorte Press and Random House Children's for a copy to review.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House for the advance Kindle copy of this book. All opinions are my own.
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/5 for this heartbreaking novel. Abby escapes to her estranged aunt’s house on Catalina island the summer after her senior year of high school. She has just discovered that she has Huntington’s Disease, inherited from the father who left her family when she was five. On the island, she sorts out her uncertain future with a new group of friends and a new love interest. I loved it and recommend it for high school readers (teen drinking and sex). Fans of All The Bright Places, Five Feet Apart, and The Fault In Our Stars will devour it. It’s out this Tuesday!

Fade Into The Bright is the story of 18-year-old Abby, who receives a letter from her father, who left 13 years ago. In this letter, he let her and her sister, Brooke, know that he has Huntington disease and that they should get tested.

The story alternates between past and present, offering the reader a view on the process she went through to get tested and the aftermath.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I started reading this book. Let me tell you: the story was absolutely beautiful. You cannot help but feel strongly for Abby. This is an emotional and tough journey for anyone, but I felt particularly for someone so young. I did shed a few tears.

This story is humbling and reminds you that life can take a drastic turn without notice. I kept asking myself what I would do in her shoes. I probably would have done the same in the end, but it also gave me a new perspective on my life.

I loved all the characters in this book. Ben is perfect for Abby. Brooke is a very interesting character. Lucy and Nina are great friends, and Cynthia is the perfect addition.

The love and understanding. The struggle and anger. The family bond and the friendship. Everything was beautifully written.

Honestly, I felt particularly uneducated about this disease. So I feel grateful for the authors. They delivered both a beautiful story and a fantastic way to raise awareness of this disease.

Do I recommend this book? I will go as far as I can’t recommend it enough. This is a quick read, but most importantly, this book is a must-read.

Talk about an emotional read! This one had me sobbing! Really appreciated this story and think it's a must read for everyone. I loved the characters and really felt for Abby. Life is hard enough when you go through a big change, but then to add on the looming diagnosis and then confirmation, I just could not imagine. This is one of those stories that makes you remember to treat everyone with kindness because you never know what someone is going through. Such a great and powerful read!

A small white envelope held her fate. Abby wasn't sure she wanted to know, but now she did. She was gene-positive for Huntington's disease. Reeling from the diagnosis, she flees to her estranged aunt's home on Catalina. She hopes the distance will give her the room to process and determine what's next for her, as what was important before the envelope doesn't seem so important any more.

Huntington's disease was described as a combination of ALS, Parkinson's, and Alzheimer's. It's a devastating disease with no cure at this time. Could you imagine being 18 years old and finding out this was your fate? That was what Abby had to deal with in Fade Into the Bright.

It was no surprise the diagnosis threw her off balance. How could it not? It was heartbreaking to be in her head as she tried to come to terms with what this would mean for her future. She was second guessing her short range plans and questioning if she should even bother with any for the long term.

This book could have been all doom and gloom, but the authors chose to be realistic, while also having Abby look for the bright spots in the darkness. They showed people with the disease being in loving relationships, they highlighted research being done to manage symptoms, and also presented characters who chose not know their results. They helped me look for those pockets of hope, as I watched Abby struggle with the things she did and did not have control over.

This was a book with sad parts, but oddly, not sad overall. The sweet romance, strong friendships, and touching familial moments balanced out the darker parts. This story made my heart both ache and burst with joy, and also left me really thinking about life in general.

Overall: An emotional rollercoaster, which left me uplifted and hopeful.

My thoughts:

-I absolutely adored this book and gobbled it up in one sitting. This one felt like so much more than a young adult book for me and caused me to pause frequently and have a moment of reflection.

-This one cover a lot of heavy topics with grace and tact. I really appreciated this story being told from Abby's POV and I felt myself struggling alongside her. There were more than a few tears shed in this one!

-I adored the relationships in this book. They were honest, real and absolutely relatable. I am begging for a sequel on this. There is so much left to Abby's story ❤

This book is heartbreaking, beautiful, and inspiring. It will make you ask challenging questions of yourself, and make you realize that what might be right for you, might not be what’s best for someone else.

I was pulled in from the beginning on this one. For anyone who enjoyed “Five Feet Apart” or “All This Time” by Rachael Lippincott and Nikki Daughtry, you will love this one too – and yes, it’ll clamp onto your heart in much the same way.

A book about health, family, survival, and whether or not you’re a burden turns into one about love, acceptance, and living life to the fullest. I highly recommend this one!

🅱🆁🅸🅴🅵 🆂🆈🅽🅾🅿🆂🅸🆂
𝙁𝙖𝙙𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 follows Abby the summer after she gets her HD (Huntington’s Disease) test results. This after an unexpected letter from her absent father, her high school graduation, college decisions, and various other life-altering events.

Visiting her aunt for the summer on a small island is Abby’s way of both running away from her problems and escaping the weight of them. Attempting to push them aside proves to be difficult when Ben comes into the picture, the end of the summer draws closer, and choices about the future begin to rear their ugly head. Abby has to decide whether to keep her truths to herself or to trust those around her not to abandon her like her father once did – but even if they stick around, won’t that just mean pain for everyone involved in the end?

Huntington’s Disease (HD) is a hereditary neurodegenerative disorder that affects people between 30-50 years old. It impacts the motor function of the individual, plus the behavior and the cognition. As the disease progresses, independence would eventually be lost — no more walking, talking, swallowing, and even reasoning!!! Full time care is definitely needed. Think combination of ALS + Parkinsons + Alzheimer’s = HD. Unfortunately, there is no cure.😢 So when 18 y/o Abby and her older sister Brooke received a letter from their estranged father about having Huntington’s Disease, their world turned upside down. Both of them have 50/50 chance of inheriting the genetic disease. Fade into The Bright tells their story and explores the effect of this dreaded condition not only on the patient itself but also on their loved ones. The realistic portrayal of knowing you are a walking time bomb truly tore my heart! Do you go ahead with your plans in life? Or do you alter your goals? On the other hand, choosing to be in the dark by not taking the genetic testing is also a choice that’s hard to swallow. Can you live your life not knowing if you have the gene? So many questions and so many possibilities but all result to uncertainties. I really learned a lot reading this novel. Kudos to the authors for using this story to bring awareness to HD. I appreciate that the focus is not only on the symptoms of HD, but also on the emotional and mental impact it has among family members. They also suffer as much as the affected person! It’s a bittersweet story guaranteed to make readers cry😭 (my eyes were swollen after reading this!) and be soothed with the fact that despite lingering darkness, there’s always light at the end of the tunnel - if you choose to seek it.💖

Read this if you like:
Five Feet Apart
The Fault in Our Stars
Tuesdays with Morrie

Rating: 🔖🔖🔖🔖🔖/5

If you’re looking for a good cathartic cry, this gorgeous YA read is for you. While the topic is not an easy one, the book is hopeful overall and encourages readers to live their best lives without worrying about what the future may hold.

These characters are beautifully written. I don’t know how I would deal with what Abby goes through, but I enjoyed reading how she came to terms with the news. Her friend group was amazingly supportive, as well as Abby’s aunt and uncle.

Prior to reading this book, I had only heard about Huntington’s disease when Olivia Wilde’s character got it in the TV show House. I really enjoyed learning more about the disease. To me it felt well-researched and very informative.

4.5 / 5

I applaud these authors for taking on the very daunting and sobering topic of Huntington’s Disease. Within the story, they discuss the disease openly and honestly, but with respect and hope. It is a vicious and cruel disease with no cure. I have witnessed our pastor’s wife suffer and eventually pass from Huntington’s.

Abby is a young girl with a bright future ahead of her, college, career, and love. But when her long-lost father sends her and her sister a simple note stating he has Huntington’s Disease, her world comes to a screeching halt.

What made this book so deep was that it explored some moral and ethical dilemmas that no person should ever have to face. Abby and her sister had to decide if they wanted genetic testing to see if they had the HD gene. Once Abby knew she was positive, everything changed forever. How do you live knowing you are just waiting for symptoms to appear? When she heads off to Catalina Island to stay with her aunt, Abby meets Ben, a boy she starts falling for. But why give someone your heart when your future is already fading?

Abby is the star of her volleyball team with a wicked sense of humor. Her father left years ago but she is incredibly close with her older sister and hilarious mom. But then a letter comes, a letter which will literally change the rest of her life.

Abby’s father writes, explaining he has Huntington’s Disease. The kicker? It is a genetic disease and both his daughters have a 50% chance of getting it. Abby tests positive, her sister does not.

So begins the next chapter of Abby’s life. A chapter of uncertainty, fear, grief, all at the young age of 18 with her entire life in front of her. She escapes to her Aunt’s house on Catalina Island, and finds out that maybe her life hasn’t turned into a tragedy. Maybe it has taken a pivot to remind her what is truly important.

This book was gorgeous. The author’s ability to transform you to Catalina Island to the inner workings of a teenage girl’s mind is impressive. Abby takes on an enormous burden, and throughout Fade Into The Bright, she can be difficult, at other times overly protective of her heart, but she is always fiercely brave. A trait I loved and found intensely commendable.

I learned so much about Huntington’s Disease through Fade Into The Bright and was so impressed by the author’s thorough research and care with the topic. I definitely would recommend Fade Into The Bright to anyone, even though its a YA I found the themes so universal that I think it would appeal to any age.

How would you choose to live your life if you knew how you were going to die? Would you live life to its fullest and love with all your might? Or would you avoid connections so no one has to deal with you? What if you’re only 18 when you face these questions?

This is Abby’s new life. She goes to stay with her aunt on Catalina Island for the summer after she gets the news that she has the gene associated with Huntington’s Disease. This is a fate, degenerative disorder that combines Alzheimer’s, ALS and Parkinson’s Disease all into one. While on the island, she is supposed to be absorbing this new information, deciding about her future and working through the emotions of her news. That is, until she meets Ben.

The authors do a fantastic job capturing the angst Abby is going through. At the same time, the love with her family and friends is heartwarming and complex. This is a rollercoaster of joys and heartbreaks, but definitely a ride worth taking.

5 Stars!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Pub Date: 4/27/2021

Wow, this book was heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. I thought this YA book was so well done - it talked about Huntington's disease and takes the reader on the journey with Abby and her sister as they find out they may have it to deciding if they want to get tested and know their outcomes and beyond. I felt like it was a realistic journey for Abby - there are ups and downs and lots of processing, I can only imagine. I loved Abby's time on Catalina Island and could really feel myself on the island with her! I would recommend this for adult readers but I think it's perfect for YA - I highly recommend.