WOW. A Sea of Unspoken Things by Adrienne Young is a beautifully written gripping mystery thriller that will having you hanging on her every word as you try to figure out the truth behind Johnny Golden’s murder.

Johnny’s twin sister James left their home town of Six Rivers nearly 20 years ago, she had to escape and start a new life for herself. She left behind many things… dark memories, her first love, and her twin brother. James has a deep connection to her mysterious twin brother Johnny, and although they haven’t had a deep conversation in years she can feel it in her bones that his death is more than just an accident.

I was deeply captivated by this story - the story is short and the pacing is perfect — you could easily finish this book in one sitting if you had the time, it was so challenging for me to put it down and attend to my responsibilities when I had so many theories swirling in my mind and needed to get to the bottom of this. The characters are multi-dimensional and have been through so much over the past 20 years. This book will absolutely consume you in the best way possible.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. I love Adrienne Young’s writing so much & highly recommend this book.

I liked this story as a whole, but I didn’t love the experience of reading it. It felt very slow and like nothing was really happening for a huge chunk of the book. I didn’t feel like I had enough context to care about the characters or the mystery. I felt like the connection between James and Johnny either needed to be more pronounced or eliminated altogether. I also had a hard time getting past a dog that was supposed to be well over 20 years old but was just as spry as ever. It would have made so much more sense to just shorten the timeline (the characters didn’t read as being in their late 30s anyway, so I think that would have helped smooth out a lot of things!).

I hate being such a downer because I do really enjoy Adrienne Young. This story just wasn’t quite it for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Huge thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the chance to read this (very highly anticipated) advanced reader copy!

A Sea of Unspoken Things follows James Golden, an artist based in San Francisco who returns to her small hometown to investigate her somewhat estranged twin brother's so-called accidental, tragic death. With the help of Micah, her brother's best friend and love of her life, and her brother's spirit, she tries to unravel years of secrets to figure out the truth of what actually happened to her twin.

True to Adrienne Young's style, this book is full of poetic, atmospheric prose that was a genuine pleasure to read. I expected the magical realism element to be more prominent, but it seemed to take more of a backseat to the mystery/thriller focus. While I was hoping for more fantasty, the plot was still extremely engaging throughout. I only managed to guess half of the ending, which pleasantly surprised me, too.

I adored the relationship between James and Micah. The tension, the yearning, the hurt, the forgiveness - I couldn't get enough. Young also handles grief in a raw, honest way throughout the novel. I don't always love flashbacks in books as it can sometimes feel like a lazy way of moving the plot forward, but I really enjoyed how it was executed in this story

I believe I noticed a typo 66% through the e-ARC that I wanted to point out: In Chapter 17, under "Cut it out, Griffin," it says, "Micah was notiveably annoyed..." which I assume should probably be "noticeably,"

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and can't wait to read what Adrienne Young has up her sleeves next!

I am such a huge Adrienne Young fan and I was so excited to get a copy of this book! If she writes it I’ll read it. She is the absolute queen of writing slow burn, atmospheric mysteries with a hint of magic thrown in. A Sea of Unspoken Things was no different and I really enjoyed this one. I will say for those familiar with her previous work this is the *least* magical of the bunch. Its pacing also felt a bit slower to me. I still really enjoyed this one and if you like her other works I think you’ll enjoy this one too!

“You can't go back home to your family, back home to your childhood, back home to romantic love, back home to a young man's dreams of glory and of fame,..." Thomas Wolfe
Adrienne Young has one of the most unique, creative, and imaginative minds of any author I have ever read and she most certainly did not disappoint with 'A Sea of Unspoken Things'.

'A Sea of Unspoken Things' is one of those books that ruins you, at least for a little while, for any other book. You know, a book that engulfs your being so much you can't think of anything else for a little while. I devoured this story in one sitting and just couldn't put it down. As with other books Young has written, I know that this book is one I will still be thinking about and referring to other readers for years to come.

Due to tragic events, James Golden left her small rural town of Six Rivers twenty years ago for the big city of San Francisco and had never planned to look back. Unfortunately, her twin brother was killed under mysterious circumstances. Local authorities are calling Johnny Golden's death an accident but James intrinsically knows something nefarious happened. James has always had this indescribable connection with her brother, she believes it stems from being twins so what is she to think when the other half of her soul dies and she starts to learn that she really didn't know him at all. The deeper she searches through Johnny's life the more she discovers things she wish she had left buried.

To compound matters, James has to overcome the events from her past, those same events that sent her running from Six Rivers. When they were teenagers, James, Johnny, and their closest friend Micah were a part of something very tragic. That tragedy cause the three to keep a very big secret from everyone for the past twenty years. A secret that drove a deep wedge between the three. Now that she has returned to her home town, she must overcome her past and the biases of the locals in order to discover what really happened to her brother.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you NetGalley for the the Arc

James has a deep connection with her twin brother, Johnny. When he is killed in what looks like an accident, James knows something is up and comes back home to unravel the mystery. In coming home, James must also face a past she left behind.

It pains me to rate this book so low considering I have loved every other book I have read from Adrienne Young. Starting with the positives! The authors writing style is amazing: beautiful prose, descriptive settings, and complex characters were all present in this book. My issue came with the plot. The book was slow and repetitive up until the 60% mark. And by the time things did start to pick up, I was zoned out. There were some unexpected twists and I enjoyed the ending but it wasn’t enough to make up for the first part of the book.

Ultimately, this was a pretty good book, but I didn't enjoy the reading experience. I mostly read fantasy, but I loved Spells for Forgetting, so I hoped that this mystical small-town mystery would work for me. Adrienne Young is undeniably a beautiful writer, and I love her lush, atmospheric prose. Much of this story though, and James' investigation into her brother's death, centers on a topic that I don't enjoy reading about. The conclusion plays out in a pretty satisfying way—more satisfying than I find most mysteries—but I just didn't particularly enjoy the journey.

The book starts on the slower side, and definitely speeds up in the last third. I felt a bit disconnected from the characters throughout the story, particularly Johnny, who never felt developed as a full human being, despite much of the story centering on James learning about his life and reflecting on her relationship with him. We learn about how James felt toward him growing up but I never really understood where those feelings came from.

I still love Adrienne Young's writing and, having made it to the end, I can recognize this as a decent mystery, but it just wasn't a good fit for me.

I have been so excited to read A Sea of Unspoken Things. I love Adrienne Young's previous books and will firmly stand in her camp. But this one just didn't land. It was every bit as atmospheric and intriguing as her previous books, but this one felt slower.

Unspoken Things leans more mystery/triller/suspense than her other books. Yes, they have threads of this in them, but the missing romance in the story made the entire book feel like it almost had less tension. I don't usually read mystery/thriller. So that could be why it missed a little for me. That said, I will be back. We aren't breaking up. This one just wasn't my book this year.

Thank you so much for this advanced copy! I had a great time reading this. the writing was PHENOMENAL. Young pushes you right into the story on the first page. I find it so hard to find a mystery with a good romance, and this is that book! I did find the first half to move a little slow for my pace-it felt like it was leading up to something but I couldn’t quite get there.

At about 50% this book started picking up the pace quickly. The ending had me HOOKED. The way things were slowly leading up was so natural and didn’t feel forced at all. The main character had so much depth, and I loved the magical element of James and Johnny’s connection. It was so interesting to have Johnny as a main character when I never actually met him, and I could never figure him out (even when I thought I did). I was almost done with the book and was just like, okay, that’s it then I guess. AND THEN the last chapter. I really did not see that coming. (don’t want to give spoilers in case others see this!)

I can’t wait for this release, I will definitely be recommending to my friends!

From the very first chapter, I was hooked. The story weaves a magical realism element into James' profound connection to her hometown and the deep, soulful bond she shares with her brother. It's the kind of connection that feels almost otherworldly, leaving you envious of such a rare and inexplicable "magic" between two people.

The journey of James returning home is beautifully depicted. Her hometown feels like a place frozen in time, untouched by the present, yet brimming with secrets waiting to be uncovered. As James navigates this return, we’re drawn into her unfolding discoveries about Johnny, her brother, and the complex truth behind their shared history.

One of the standout elements for me was the raw and poignant connection between James and Micah. Their reunion felt both tender and transformative, as the years between them fell away, leaving room for a deeper honesty. The story’s timeline—filled with moments of discovery, investigation, and reconnection with childhood characters—crafted a rhythm that kept me turning the pages. Each secret revealed, each mystery unraveled, only deepened my desire to know more.

There’s a captivating magic in how James rediscovers her sense of "home." The narrative explores the universal truth that coming back—whether to a place or a version of ourselves—requires sacrifice or vulnerability. As James revisits her past, she uncovers new layers of history and gains a deeper understanding of herself and her family. This poignant interplay of the past and present is masterfully done, offering both mystery and introspection.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the advanced digital copy; All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A new book by Adrienne Young?! Yes, please. She does mystery and magical realism so well and this book is no exception. After the suspicious death of her twin brother, James returns to her small town to figure out what happened to him and ends up confronting the past she thought she left behind decades ago. This story kept me guessing and surprised me. The supernatural threads were a fun addition to the storytelling as well. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

A quick read that I was really looking forward to - sadly I did not love it like The Unmaking of June Farrow. Set in the Pacific NW and San Francisco, James (a girl) goes back to her hometown to investigate the mysterious death of her twin brother, Johnny. Of course there is a complicated first love. I felt a lot of the book was repetitive, and did not heat up until the last quarter, which was satisfying. Good, but not great for me.

DNF @ 40%

This book is very slow to start. I feel like I gave this book more than enough time to capture me and it didn’t. I saw a lot of reviews stating that the book starts to pick up around 70% but that’s too long to invest in a book before anything happens.

I’m sad because I loved The Unmaking of June Farrow and Spells for Forgetting but this book isn’t holding my attention. I still plan to read more from Adrienne in the future, but this was a pass for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC.

This book was a great book to make you stop and think about what could've happened. It was a little slower moving at the beginning, but it picked up and had you trying to figure out what happened to Johnny. I also enjoyed the ups and downs we got with James and Micah. I've really enjoyed reading Adrienne Young's work.

What’s better than a small town/big forest setting where everyone has secrets, a woman coming to solve her twins mysterious death and a touch of magical realism? Honestly nothing.

James returns to the town she left 20 years ago to tie up loose ends after her twin brothers mysterious death. Once she starts digging into his life, she stirs up secrets her former friends and neighbors want to keep hidden.

I love the way that Adrienne Young blends mystery with a little touch of magical realism. She does it in a way that it genuinely feels real. I’ve always been fascinated by the whole twin connection phenomenon. The setting of the forest and small town brought the story together perfectly.

I thought I knew where the story was going about 10 different times and I ended up being wrong on all of them. Usually her touches of romance are done beautifully but I didn’t feel it with James and Micah in this one. It just didn’t feel real to me.

4.5 ✨ rounded up

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

Always a fan of Adrienne Young and this book did not fail! The storyline and the plot had me on the edge of my seat as the chapters progressed. Beautifully written and it truly maintained that narrative tension, it was truly an enjoyable read. Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read this in advance

“I’d tried to control it all for so long only to find that in a way, none of it mattered. And yet, all of it did.”

This was an intense deep dive into grief.

“I couldn’t even pretend to know how you could take a whole life, a whole person, and put it into words. Goodbye is a lost language. A silent one.”

Oof.

I thought it was a really insightful look into the different ways we handle grieving and past traumas. I will say that this book wasn’t at all what I expected. I thought for some reason it would be witchy. It was a suspenseful family drama.

There were two main twists in the book, I guessed one of them and the other one completely caught me off guard. But even though I guessed one, I don’t think it made the experience any less enjoyable.

This was my introduction to Adrienne Young. I’ve had The Unmaking of June Farrow on my TBR for soooo long but was given the opportunity to read this one first. I really enjoyed her writing style and I will be looking forward to comparing the stories.

Thank you to NetGalley, Adrienne Young, and the publisher for this ARC.

To be honest, I never normally gravitate toward the kind of plots that Adrienne Young writes about, but ever since I started reading her books, I need to read them all! That woman truly has a way with words; I would read the dictionary if she wrote it!

‘A Sea of Unspoken Things’ begins shortly after James finds out that her twin brother has died in a tragic incident. Before she even receives the call, however, she innately knows that he is gone. The two of them have had an indescribable bond ever since they were born.

As James heads to her twin’s house to go through his things, she still feels him everywhere — and she believes he’s telling her that his death was not, in fact, an accident.

In addition to the family drama, this story was giving me thriller vibes as James makes it her mission to uncover the truth. Though this book didn’t have as many of the magical elements I was expecting after reading ‘The Unmaking of June Farrow,’ there’s something about the way Adrienne Young crafts characters that is difficult to forget, giving them so much depth that they feel like someone you used to know.

She’s also incredible at describing settings, so much so that I feel like I’m standing beside these characters as they experience grief, heartbreak, and fear. I have no idea how she makes these fictional moments feel so real, but I can’t wait to read more of her work!

After the death of her twin brother Johnny, James returns to her hometown of Six Rivers with the feeling that something was not right about the way he supposedly died. Being gone for twenty years was a long time, but it didn't lessen her intuitive bond with her brother. This is a captivating mystery that reveals family secrets and revives old romance. Thanks to author Adrienne Young, Ballantine | Delacorte Press, and NetGalley. I received a complimentary copy of this ebook. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Adrienne Young has done it again! In A Sea of Unspoken Things we meet James Golden who has returned to her home town for closure after the death of her twin brother Johnny. Young takes us on a journey of discovery and understanding as she relives significant events from her past. Interwoven is a second chance love story which truly completes the story. Highly recommend this one.