Tuesday 24 September 2013

Listening for Lucca by Suzanne LaFleur‏


Summary from Goodreads

'We're moving to your house - the one from your dream'.
Siena sees what isn't there; collects what's left behind.
'Lucca led me to his room, and then just stood in the middle, waiting for me to notice something'.
Her brother Lucca is three and hasn't spoken for over a year.
The doctors think he needs a fresh start, that's why her family left Brooklyn. But their new home feels hauntingly familiar - and when Siena finds an old pen, the story she writes is not her own . . .
Can Siena's discovery of past secrets help break her brother's silence in the present?


Hardcover, 229 pages
Published August 8th 2013 by Puffin (first published January 1st 2013)
 
My Review
 
Listening for Lucca is a beautifully written book that is both intriguing and haunting!

The opening line "I'm obsessed with abandoned things." struck a chord with me and managed to pull me in right away! Siena's journey was ever changing and I really enjoyed watching her make decisions and learn about herself and others along the way!

I adored the little paranormal element to this story, it was subtle and simmered away gently in the back-round, while still playing a key part in the story. There were also WWII scenes in here, I found then rather interesting and they added a lot more complexity to the story.

Main character Siena is very likeable, she is very mature for her years and the way she looks out for and cares for her little brother Lucca is very beautiful! I liked that she is a litttle different and that she found some social situations awkward, because a lot of people will easily relate to social awkwardness!

The storyline is carefully paced and very well thought out story of a little boy, Lucca, who doesn't speak! His big sister Siena will do anything to help him, but most people just say that he will talk when he's good and ready.

Siena adopts lost things and also has strange visions of the past. She has dreamt of a beautiful house by the sea for such a long time, but never dreamt that her mum could find that very house and move everyone there. But the house holds it's own secrets and it's eeriness begs to be discovered....

Can the mystery surrounding Siena's dream house and Lucca's silence possibly be related?

This has quite a twisty storyline that has mystery lurking round every corner! The ending is stunning and it actually made me feel at ease. I could very easily recommend Listening for lucca!

On a side note, I found that the way Suzanne LaFleur handled, Lucca's, silence was very moving and it gave me pause for thought. What if a child close to you just stopped speaking? Would you get frustrated, angry, sad or blame yourself? It made me stop and think and I think it will have other readers doing the same.

4 / 5 Stars!

*Special thanks to Puffin for the review copy*

1 comment:

Talk to me lovely people! :)