This was a well written story which follows the journey of a musically gifted 12 year old girl named Lavender. I enjoyed the storyline, quality of the writing, and character development. The story was well written, emotional, and compelling. I enjoyed the themes of the storyline. Lavender’s journey was easy to read and interesting to follow.

Thank you NetGalley, The Writing Tree LLC and Monica McCollough for allowing me to read the ARC of "Songs of Lost Things: Sonata for the Sun" in exchange for an honest review.

The book follows the story of a girl named Lavender from a very young age into her adulthood, showing her battling with loss, parental issues and abandonment, addiction, abuse, family disconnection and reconnection while she clings to the only red string she has in life - the music, something she shared with her father.

This book is incredibly raw, emotional, unfiltered --- and incredibly real. Many times I had to suck in a breath, even lay down the book (e.g Kenneth and Lavender) because I needed a moment. Books usually drag us into a fictional world away from every day issues, but this boo displays you very real, very serious issues.

It was perfectly executed, showing everyone who is willing what many people till this day go through day by day, while it also was a perfectly delightful read.

My favourite part was it to read the songs the author wrote at the beginning of every chapter on repeat while reading said chapter, those songs were laying down the perfect atmosphere, which sometimes made the read absolut emotional and haunting.

As a writer, this book read as most books should: good sentence structure; creative without trying too hard.; words and phrases carefully chosen; concise. Bravo! As a reader, the story details the all too common course of events that occur when families are torn apart by the misery of addiction. Lavender, the main POV, had a life that was ruined from the start, thrust into self-care and subsequent self-medication due to her mother's issues. Her father, although well-meaning, was overly optimistic above her recovery, in my opinion. All Lavender had to hold onto was the musical talent he passed on and she used that as solace to get through her torment. This continued throughout her life.
I can't say that I loved the story but rather I loved the writing. The style put me in the mind of Danzy Senna's Caucasia. I would welcome another novel from Ms. McCollough; one that has a less depressing storyline but without losing the skillful observations that came across so well in this one.

This book was so emotional that I felt drained by the end of it (I mean this in the best possible way). The author does an excellent job in character developing and plot, which is not an easy feat for a debut author. Can't wait to read more from this talented, new writer.

I admittedly requested this book because I liked the cover, but the story wasn’t what I was expecting. It was a beautiful book and found the writing to be well done. I love stories that revolve around music and the arts as a whole, but this book was very sad. I also didn’t realize this was a debut, which I found impressive. As I mentioned because I do this the writing was great but at times drawn out. It caused the story to be a bit slow and dense, but I was able to get through it.Though challenging and heartbreaking, I will definitely look out for more from this author in the future.

It's not a review because I didn't finish.

I liked the blurb, the cover and the title.
The writing is very neat. The book has short chapters, which can make the read easier, however it was too slow for my liking; telling the mundane, everyday details, so it felt as though the story was going nowhere.

I am an impatient reader, so it didn't work for me. If slow reads work for you, you might like it.

4.5 ⭐

It's hard to believe that this is a debut novel. Lavender is the daughter of a musician and drug addicted mother in New Jersey. When her father dies and she is sent at age 12 with her sibling to live with their grandmother in Montgomery, her life takes on a new and heartbreaking trajectory. Guitar and music are what carry her through and its sustaining theme, along with family, love, addiction, and heartbreak, are woven beautifully in this book. Everyone should read it.

Lavender is a 12 year old kid that lives in NJ with her mom & dad and her little brother Chase. She is enjoying running the block with her best friend & making plans with school crush when her life gets hit with a drastic change. Her father Joshua teaches her how to navigate through life but also passed down his love for music & their love of playing the guitar. In spite of her world turning upside down & feeling like her mom dropped the ball she tries her best to keep pushing forward for herself and her little brother. Lavenders’ grandmother Mary also enters the scene & tries to bring some normalcy back into the kids lives but it all seems like too much for Lavender at times. This story follows a young Lavender as a child into her adulthood in her 30s where the past still looms over her head. A younger man enters the picture & begins to show Lavender what loving yourself and life really is all about but her trauma from the past may keep her from enjoying it. This debut novel from Monica McCollough was so beautifully written I literally enjoyed every page. A true coming of age story that I could see the plot playing out in my head with all of Lavenders ups and downs. It truly felt like as a reader I was embarking on the journey along with Lavender & rooting for her to win. Truly a great read where the characters stick with you. I received a complimentary copy of this book & thank the NG & publisher, all opinions are my own.

In her debut novel, Songs of Lost Things, Monica McCollough succeeded in crafting an emotional and powerful set of characters You'll find yourself rooting for each character to get where they need to go. The reality of their lives and feelings jumps off the page.

Lavender's coming of age and subsequent adulthood story is poignant and feels all too real in this day and age. Her story is further bolstered by the playlist that McCollough created to match the chapters. The author also created paintings to go with certain scenes, and this multimedia aspect really worked for me.

I found the narrative portions of this book challenging. At times, it felt like the author chose certain words and phrases because they felt bigger and fancier, But those choices served to weigh down the story rather than lend it gravitas. I would've liked to see less words, rather than more.

While this narrative choice was particularly distracting in the beginning, the later chapters felt smoother, and ultimately the story did succeed in drawing me all the way through to the end. I was proud of Lavender for finding her way!

This is a beautiful and heart wrenching book. At times it was painful to read, but the love of the main character pushed me on even when she was not making the best choices. I would love a movie so I could get the music with it.

Thanks to NetGalley and The Writing Tree LLC. This book was quite traumatic, deep and hard to read at times. I enjoyed the depth of the book and had to take several breaks reading it which made it take very long for me to read it but it was worth it. I requested it after its release date and I am glad I did.

This is not my typical read and it was an emotional journey. Generational trauma, heartbreak, loss, fear, pain, and finding self love are all beautifully woven into this novel. There are no white picket fences, good luck, or happily ever afters for Lavender and the raw emotions surrounding her life experiences are what make this story impeccable.

Her father, the talented musician, is tragically killed.
Her mother, the addict, can’t care for her and her brother without their father.
Her grandmother hauls them down to Alabama for the summer to give her mom time to get on her feet in Newark.
That summer turns into the rest of her life, because her mother falls deeper into addiction.
That summer of finding her way through life without her father, her rock, turns into a lifetime of fighting to discover herself.
That summer of being abandoned begins her spiral of abandoning everyone who offers her love and hope.
That summer of feeling unwanted sets the precedence for her to question how anyone could ever want her.
Lavenders survival story is an emotional, raw, and real depiction of the ways trauma affects people in every phase of their lives.