I would like to start by saying that this book has one of the most gorgeous covers I have ever seen. Truly stunning. Also, it is an awesome read. I was HOOKED from the first page. I loved the setting! Young does a fabulous job of creating an atmosphere that adds to the tension of the story.

And the characters! I wanted to know so much more about all of them! I was eat/sleep/breathing them by the end of this book. My heart was racing throughout and I thought the romance between James and Micah was an added bonus. It wasn’t necessary for the plot but was the icing on the cake, especially for readers who don’t usually read mystery/thrillers.

I highly recommend this to anyone who loves a well-told mystery with a compelling plot and a compelling cast of characters.

Thank you so much @prhaudio for the early listening copy and @netgalley and @delacortepress for the early copy!

Whenever I see a new Adrienne Young book coming out I am always so excited! She is the Queen of atmospheric mysteries that take you on quite a journey.

I love her small towns, her angsty characters, and the suspense to know what the heck happened! I love stories with deep character development and Young AWLAYS delivers on that!

I really enjoyed doing an immersive read of this one. Christine Lakin’s narration really transported me to Six Rivers and I found myself connecting more with James through audio

I really, really think that once you finish this one, you need to do a deep dive into Young’s backlist. Spells for Forgetting is an all time favorite and I highly recommend it!

4 stars

For the few chapters it took me a while to slip into James’s story and life. James coming back into her hometown and settling in to wrap up her recently deceased brother’s death took a bit to get into.

However, it promptly took off when James started to dig deeper into her brother Johnny’s death.

Now this is where I am going to say that I felt like I connected more with Johnny, the deceased brother, than I did James, the main character. James was kinda lifeless and uninteresting. The mystery around the town, its people, and the truth to what happened was more interesting to me.

While I enjoyed the thriller aspect of this book, I felt like I needed more from the FMC, then I would have really got sucked in.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Oof this one was SLOW. I thought about DNFing probably 30 times. I figured “oh this book is under 300 pages, I should finish this in 2-3 days” WRONG, took nearly 3 weeks.

This is my first book from this author despite owning two others from her. Based on reviews, this one seems to be a letdown compared to her other books, so I will go into those with an open mind.

I couldn’t form a liking to any of the characters — I actually found most of them annoying. The mystery didn’t have any wow-factor. I’m giving this book 2 stars instead of 1 because the author does have an artistic way of describing scenes that I appreciate.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I have loved everything I’ve ever read by Adrienne and this was missing a bit of that magic I’d become used to with her stories.

The aspect of the book was overall good, but lacked a depth to its characters and relationships.

I struggled to get into this one but was intrigued to keep going, but this did not hit the spot as much as June Farrow or Spells.

Writing this review is difficult. I’m a little disappointed because I love Adrienne Young’s writing and The unmaking of June Farrows was one of my favorite books last year, if not the one.

Throughout this book I was curious to see what had happened, and the story was interesting. Though I never felt really close to the characters.

I did struggle with motivation about halfway. As soon as I really managed to get into it again I was more invested. It wasn’t a bad book, but it wasn’t what I expected and hoped for. I also probably went in with too high expectations.

3,5⭐️

i thoroughly enjoyed this! although very slow to get into once i got 30% in it was really hard to out this down! adrienne young knows exactly how to transport you directly into the book with all the imagery. i expected magical realism and it did somewhat deliver but the mystery aspect was most def my favorite part (even though i was able to figure out before the end). my first young book and definitely not my last!

thank you to netgalley and publisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review

3.5 ⭐️ -- I wish I could rate this one on different aspects! The writing style was 5 stars for me, but the story was so slow to build up and everything unraveled/came together in the last 25-30 percent of the book. I wished it was more excited and that it leaned more heavily into the ghost aspect. Characters were also kind of mid, and I'm never a fan of "last minute revelations" that tie the story together. More foreshadowing!! More suspense!!! Higher stakes!!! But truly, the writing was beautiful.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a DRC in exchange for my honest review!

This was a wonderful story filled with mystery and a thriller. I was totally kept engaged throughout the story trying to figure out who was responsible for the disappearance and deaths. Adrienne as always does a wonderful job with her incredible descriptions making you feel totally immersed into the story. I highly recommend this book if you want a fast paced and engaging read. Thank you NetGalley and Random House publishing group for the opportunity to read this ARC.

#ASeaofUnspokenThings #NetGalley

3.5 stars
I like that Adrienne Young’s books all have some kind of fantastical/spiritual thread to them. Does James truly sense her twin? Does that help her determine what happened after his death? The pacing of the novel was slow but still compelling enough to keep me invested. The ending made it all worthwhile!
Christine Lakin’s narration was wonderful, as always.

Title: A Sea of Unspoken Things
Author: Adrienne Young
Pub Date: January 7, 2025
Rating: 3.5/5

Adrienne Young can do no wrong when it comes to beautifully descriptive writing and A Sea of Unspoken Things is no exception! Following the tragic death of her twin brother Johnny, James Golden is forced to return to her childhood home of Six Rivers after nearly two decades to pick up the pieces. While home, James realizes that the mysterious connection with her twin hasn't fully broken and senses there may be more to Johnny's death than meets the eye. James is left with no other choice than to confront the past, unearth secrets, and uncover 'A Sea of Unspoken Things' in search of the truth.

Having loved The Unmaking of June Farrow, I desprately wanted my first read of 2025 to be a solid 5 stars. However, I feel that I went in with the wrong expectations which ultimately made this book fall a bit flat for me. I was expecting magical realism, while this is more of a slow burn mystery/thriller. With that being said, this won't be my last Adrienne Young read and I still highly recommend giving it shot!

This eARC was provided by the publisher (Random House Publishing Group) via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Gosh, I love Adrienne Young so much! I think the best catagory for the works I have read of hers is magical realism because every book just feels so gosh darn realistic even with the insane elements throughout. This book is just as amazing as her previous works in that it integrates these complicated relationships into a fun and magical storyline that not only keeps you entertained but also makes you think a bit deeper about how one interacts with the people in our lives. The ending was lovely and i loved the integration of all the classic mystery/detective elements. I usually struggle with mystery/thriller books due to my struggle to tolerate storylines with cops/detectives but the way this was a mystery with all the fun investigation elements without intense cop storyline was lovely!! I really enjoyed the romance elements of this too, honestly overall i was a great medley of different genres that just worked super well in my opinion.

I just don't know how to explain Young's writing - it's just so atmospheric and captivating. She puts you right in the story while you're reading it and A Sea of Unspoken Things is no different than her others in that regard.

I love stories about twins - I'm a twin so it's always interesting to me how others interpret those relationships. I was intrigued by James and Johnny's relationship - it was complicated and messy and challenging but despite all those things, the story never shows that there was anything but love that they felt for each other. I was on the edge of my seat with the twists and turns that Young wove me through in this story and was surprised at the outcome when the full story came out.

This was my first book by this author, but it will not be my last. I loved every bit of this book. I could not put it down!

A touch of heartache and a side of soul touching melancholy. Paired with hope and a little romance. These can be used with most of her writing and books. June Farrow was my favorite read of 2023 and continues to be a Top 5 favorite. Parts of this book were full of tension and haunting, I loved every second. You could definitely consider this a small town mystery that weaves her gorgeous breathtaking writing from the very start!

3.75 stars! I really enjoyed this book, but I think I've loved this author's other books a little more. I was really excited for the magical/whimsical aspect that I found in The Unmaking of June Farrow, but this book unfortunately lacked that. I really think I would have loved it so much more if it had more of that aspect to it. It was there, just not in the way I was hoping for. As always, I love this author's writing. It's somehow so engaging yet eerie. It keeps me turning the pages. This one definitely felt like more of a mystery/thriller. I was entertained, but never fully invested in the characters the way I was with June Farrow. I did guess one of the plot twists but the other one did get me. I liked how it was sort of a mystery within a mystery. The last 80-100 pages really hooked me and I finished this book in almost one sitting. I couldn't put it down because the writing style is just so immersive. Not my favorite but still a great read! Would recommend.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Random House Publishing, and Adrienne Young for allowing me to review this stunning novel. I adore all of Adrienne Young’s books and highly recommend this one as well. She is the best at creating such atmosphere that you feel as though you are right there in the scene. It’s incredible. And her writing style is so beautiful. I recommend not reading too much about this book and just jumping in for the ride of your life! It kept me guessing throughout and I enjoyed every minute of it. I can’t wait to read more from this author. Thank you again for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this breathtaking novel.

A Sea of Unspoken Things was my first read in 2025 and it started off with five stars! Adrienne Young has created another atmospheric setting and a story that kept me guessing until the very end. This really was the perfect rainy day read. It's hard to talk about books like this, because I don't want to give too much away. I feel the less you know about the plot, the better! I'll still tell you a bit about this story.

James and her twin brother Johnny were all the other had and that leads to her feeling everything he does. So when he's killed, James know he's gone before she even gets a phone call. This leads to James going back to the small town she called home twenty years ago. Small towns are all filled with their own ways and secrets, and this is the same for where James grew up. A Sea of Unspoken Things is filled with secrets, family, betrayal, love, second chances, and a touch of paranormal.

I really enjoyed that we got a mix of past and present to really try and understand James and to figure out what really happened to Johnny. This book is also about self discovery. James may have left this small town, but is she still doing what she really wants. Her investigation into her brother's death leads to a lot more. Also, her past with Micah adds a touch of romance to this story. I really appreciated that it didn't take it over.

All in all, I highly recommend this dark, atmospheric, and magical read. I can't wait to see what Adrienne Young writes next!

My review will also be posted on https://thebookdutchesses.com on January 18th.

Just finished reading an advanced copy of a book that was just released on January 7th called, A Sea of Unspoken Things. This is a story about a set of twins, James and her brother, Johnny. For as long as they can remember they've had a deep connection, and they're all the family each other has. So one day when James feels a pain in her chest, she instantly knows her brother is gone. Now she must go back to her hometown to take care of her brother's belongings, and while she's there she has to face mistakes from her past that she ran from 20 years ago when she left her hometown. The longer she stays in town, the more things about her brother's death don't add up, and she can't shake the feeling her brother's death was no accident. This was an enjoyable read, I was personally hoping for a little more suspense, but it was still a pleasant, easy read and everything ended well at the end! 💙📚

Thank you to the author and to the publisher for this ARC of A Sea of Unspoken Things, in exchange for an honest review.

I can’t believe I didn’t read this sooner - I’ve loved two other books by Adrienne Young, and this one didn’t disappoint! Young has such a great, atmospheric writing style. Her characters feel so dynamic and multifaceted. We follow James in this book, experiencing her emotional return to the small hometown she left as a teenager. She’s dealing with the loss of her twin brother, who she might not have known as well as she thought.

A lot of the first half of the book was spent introducing characters and their motivations, as well as explaining some of the history between them. In the second half of the book, several different mysteries pick up. I loved the way there were so many things going on, but the explanations didn’t seem overly complicated. The character development really pays off in an emotional ending.

I really loved this one, and highly recommend you read it!