I’m sure this book is great—the first bit was so atmospheric already! Unfortunately, too much on the spooky side for me to finish, but as always, loved Adrienne Young’s writing!

The pacing was all wrong on this. It was so slow until the final 10%. All atmosphere no plot. Then in the end it became a whirlwind of action. Just felt so strange. I didn’t care about the characters or the mystery but the vibe was fully established.

This was a captivating small town mystery that will have you guessing with each twist. There’s something about Adrienne Young’s writing that allows you to feel like you are right next to the character and transports you right into the book.

A Sea of Unspoken Things follows James, who is grieving her brothers death. She goes back to the small town of Six Rivers, where she hasn’t been back to in many years. During her time there she uncovers secrets and starts questioning what happened. James starts investigating to find out the truth. Within the story, you see James supernatural connection with her brother and how she navigates grief.

The beginning was a bit slow and picked up about halfway. Once it did, I was hooked and could not put it down. I did end up guessing one thing right but I was completely shocked at some other twists!!

Thank you Random House Publishing Group and Netgalley for the Arc!

“Always, the owls.”
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC! What an incredible and heartbreaking read. Our main character, James, goes back to her hometown after her twin brother, Johnny, is killed in a hunting accident… or was it an accident? I really enjoyed the mystical aspect of James and Johnny’s sibling hood. How she can see and feel him, even after he’s passed; even feeling him get shot and see what he saw as he gazed up at the trees. This story was filled with secrets, mystery, love, and the small-town atmosphere that can be unsettling. I absolutely loved it!

A big thank you to @netgalley and @randomhouse for a digital copy of this arc. Adrienne Young has done it again. Her writing is refreshingly atmospheric, a lyrical feast for the senses. I was able to smell the trees, see the owls, and feel the breeze she described in James’ hometown of Six Rivers. I especially love the way Adrienne writes within the container of “small town” and everyone is included in her puzzle. The paranormal element between James and her deceased twin brother Johnny added a delectable layer of suspense, and kept me invested in the outcome of the story. Young’s ability to grab the reader’s attention from page one will leave you under her spell and be surprised right to the very end. I am looking forward to buying this when it is released.

This mystery is not going to be a face paced thriller, but rather a slow burn with the beautiful prose of Adrienne Young. It will keep you guessing the whole time, some mystery some romance and a twin connection. Young delivers every bit of beauty we know and love.

Thanks for the ARC NetGalley!! This book is so so good. I just love the way she writes so much. The story follows a woman returning home after her twin mysteriously dies. James is forced to recount her teenage years while trying to figure out what happened to her twin and everybody is a suspect. The twists at the end just kept coming and I loved it!!!

James returns to her hometown in Northern California to look in to the death of her twin brother, Johnny. The official story is that Johnny died from an accidental gunshot from a hunter but James knows deep down there is more to the story. As she digs to find the truth, she starts to question if she really knew Johnny at all.

I loved The Unmaking of June Farrow but I loved this book even more! Nobody writes a more atmospheric novel than Adrienne Young … you will feel like you are amongst the redwoods of NoCal along with the characters.

Read if you like:
✨slow-burn mysteries
✨books about the familial ties that bind us
✨dark and moody reads set in small towns

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Will post the review on the publication date.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

If I could describe A Sea of Unspoken Things in one word, it would be “atmospheric”. I really enjoyed the small-town mystery feel of this, and I’m a sucker for a plot with supernatural elements!

With that being said, unfortunately, this fell a a bit flat for me. The first 50% of this book was quite slow, and I didn’t feel like too much really happened in the first half of the story. In my opinion, the author did not need to take the entire first half to build the plot and set the scene; while the scene she set was indeed beautiful, I do feel that the buildup took a bit longer than it should have.

Once I got to the halfway mark, though, I found it so hard to put the book down! Once the plot started to thicken and the twists and turns began, I really was intrigued to see where the story would end up. It was slightly predictable for me (curse my love of reading a ton of thrillers!) and I did predict a major plot point fairly early on. Despite that, I very much enjoyed the writing and can say that this will not be my last Adrienne Young novel!

Overall, I think I’m going to land on a 3.5 stars for this one, but rounding to 3 for review purposes.

I really enjoyed this book! Another win for Adrienne Young. She does such a great job building suspense while maintaining beautiful prose and imagery. I was hooked very early on and she kept my attention until the end. The way that the two mysteries (of before and now) are woven through leaves the reader wondering just how much of her past James was actually able to outrun, and asking just how much she's responsible for now. Also unpacks the complications of family relationships. I really enjoyed this read.

I received this ARC of A Sea of Unspoken Things. In this we follow James as she navigates the loss of her brother James. However when she gets to town things are not as they seem. Was her brothers death an accident or foul play? I really enjoyed this book and would read it again. I was hooked from the beginning. I liked the twists and turns of James’ journey. In chapter 18 I did notice the word thing was written twice.

I have no words for the way this story gripped me! With just enough magical realism, Six Rivers completely pulled me in and held me in suspense until the very last page. I have no criticism for this one, 10/10!

This book has it all! It’s a small town mystery, romance, paranormal suspense, and thriller all wrapped nicely in one. I loved the gritty atmospheric vibes in this small forest town. The ending was good and I absolutely loved the romance element of this story, however I wasn’t exactly shocked. And I crave that “wtf, no way!” when I reach the resolution of a mystery-type novel. The character interactions felt real and true, especially for a small town with histories that run deep. I just found myself not really connecting with James. But that’s probably just me.

Overall, I found this to be a great, well rounded novel with something in it for everyone!

James has been on the run from her past for a long time. She had to get away from the things that she did. What her brother did to protect her. She has it the way she’s always envisioned, how she always thought she wanted it- as a successful artist living in San Francisco. But when the news of her twin brothers’ death manifests in the form of a shooting pain near her collarbone that she knows in her heart is the feel of a bullet, she races back to her childhood home of Six Rivers. Her unique bond with her twin drives her to find out the truth.

James navigates her grief and her return home with the help of her first love Micah. He’s the only other one that knew her brother as well as she did. They’ll find out together what really happened while they attempt to navigate the sea of unspoken things between their friends, family, and each other.

3.5 rounded up. Pick this one up when it comes out January 2025!

A great thank you goes out to Adrienne Young, Random House Publishing Group, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Twists and turns with a sprinkling of the paranormal? Heck yes. Every moment of this book had me eager for the next page.

On top of a plot that kept me guessing were a cast of authentic, comlex characters. I love a good flawed character to add some depth, and this book did not disappoint.

Overall, a page-turner you don't want to miss.

Like some of Adrienne's other adult novels, this book starts out a bit slower, however, this took a little longer to hook me, about halfway through. The way Adrienne can elicit a feeling of twisty, dark, complicated characters and atmosphere without being overly wordy shows in this novel.

This small town family dram had plenty of twists and turns, but didn't leave me feeling unfulfilled until I had all the answers. This novel is light on the magical realism, which I found myself missing from her other novels. I enjoyed following James through her return to Six Rivers to find out more about her twin brother, Johnny's life and death.
"Goodbye is a lost language. A silent one".

Thank you for the ARC.

Yet again, another Adrienne Young book I devoured & loved.

This book follows James, our main female character, on her journey to discover what happened to her twin brother Johnny who was killed in their home town. James, now a city girl, travels back to her home town to tie up some loose ends in regard to her brothers death. In returning, James unearths old memories and love lost as well as secrets surrounding her brothers death.
James must determine what secrets should stay hidden and which she should unearth while also trying to determine what emotions she should keep hidden and what she should show.

This book is a small town murder mystery to its core with unexpected twists and turns that kept me entertained from the beginning.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for allowing me an advanced reader copy of A Sea of Unspoken Things. All opinions are my own.

James Golden returns home to Six Rivers (although the blurb says Hawthorne so maybe the name changed?) after her twin brother, Johnny, dies. She has a feeling it wasn’t an accident and decides to investigate. James has a connection to Johnny and his spirit, but I feel like the magical elements were really underutilized throughout the book. I wish this connection was used more during James’ investigation. Also, the pacing is rather slow and the author focuses more on the prose than the plot. After finishing the book, I feel like there are a few plot lines that were abandoned and/or went nowhere. Lastly, I was underwhelmed by the ending. Overall, I would say this is a very atmospheric book and you may enjoy it if you like character-driven novels, but I personally didn’t enjoy this one as much as Adrienne Young’s previous novels.

3/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Adrienne Young is fast becoming one of my favorite authors. A Sea of Unspoken Things explores the mysterious and almost supernatural bonds between twins, and I could feel the story coming alive from the very start.

Much less science fiction than her last, A Sea of Unspoken Things follows the story of James Golden as she returns home after over twenty years to understand how her twin brother came to die in the Trentham Gorge. Many miles away, her bond with her twin had her supernaturally feeling and seeing what he saw as he died, and what she knew with certainty was that her brother had been afraid when he was shot and that this couldn’t have been an accident. But as she starts to unravel the web weaved around her brother, she’s not sure she wants to know what happened because nothing is adding up.

This book is perfect to snuggle up with by the fire in the mountains somewhere cold. It’s an emotionally intense mystery that was very satisfying to untangle. I really enjoyed this one!!

I would like to thank Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I have read two of Adrienne Young’s books before A Sea of Unspoken Things. I have enjoyed her books and how she balances a thriller/mystery plot, a love story and supernatural elements that take you on a ride that make her books so bingeable.
I sometimes struggle with mysteries because I feel that they are predictable, or the reveals are out of nowhere to shock the reader and make little sense for the characters and plot.
However, A Sea of Unspoken Things, is neither of those things. I was on the edge of my seat reading this book and could not put it down. But I also could not predict how it would end.
Adrienne also has a way of writing that is so atmospheric and makes the reader feel like you are in this beautiful but haunting mountain town.

I think this story is my favorite of hers yet and I can’t wait to see what she comes out with next. I’ll read anything she writes at this point!

4.25 ⭐️

Adrienne is a pro at setting a descriptive scene. You immediately get the feel that James is being compelled to return to the small town in the forest after being gone for 20 years, like the forest is a sentient thing for the people that reside there. She returns after the passing of her brother, Johnny, who was killed in a shooting accident, or was it? James has this supernatural connection to her twin brother and she could feel when he shot, feel his fear. She can feel and see him around town, and knows there’s a story to unravel.

The pacing is what took this down a little for me as it did have its slow parts, but another part of me also thought it fit the haunting and darker vibe of this book. Adrienne always has a bit of magical realism and a lost love where you’re not sure how or if they’ll return to each other. The mystery in this though? I trusted *NO ONE* and when I thought I had the answer, no I didn’t. It picked up a lot more steam around the 70% mark, but I think it also took James some time to reconcile that maybe she didn’t know her brother like she thought, and it was time to put that fear aside and start digging deeper, even if it hurt.

Overall I really enjoyed my time reading this, and I’m excited that I already have this preordered to have a stunning copy in my hands. Adrienne Young will remain an autobuy author for me!


This was my very first ARC approved through NetGalley and couldn’t be more thrilled that it was Adrienne’s. This is my honest review and all thoughts are my own. Thank you NetGalley and Delacorte!