Review: Speechess by Hannah Harrington

Speechless 
by Hannah Harrington

Release Date: August 28, 2012
Publisher: HarlequinTeen
Pages: 336
Genre: YA Realistic Fiction
Source: ARC
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Everyone knows that Chelsea Knot can't keep a secret.
Until now.
Because the last secret she shared turned her into a social outcast-and nearly got someone killed.
Chelsea has taken a vow of silence-to learn to keep her mouth shut and to stop hurting anyone else. There's strength in silence, and in the new friends who are, shockingly, coming her way. Including a boy she might even fall for. If only her new friends can forgive her..if only she can forgive herself.

Chelsea Knot loves to gossip. It is exciting to have the latest news and have everyone gather around her and be so impressed with what she knows. If you find out a friend is messing around with another friend's boyfriend you should tell right? But Chelsea doesn't always think about how the other people will accept this information. One night while at a party she catches one of her male classmates messing around with another male and decides it is hot gossip, not knowing that her best friend's boyfriend will physically assault him.

By the book's description I was worried I would dislike Chelsea but she actually does the right thing right off the bat. She knows her best friend will be mad and that she will face consequences but she still comes forth and tells the truth of what she knows. I was really proud of her cause doing the right thing really is hard when there is such strong peer pressure. Being bullied every single day at school for doing the right thing is so unfair and horrible but that really does happen. The kids were all pure evil and attacked Chelsea for standing up and turning in the guy who did wrong. I did not understand how the heck these kids could seriously think it was wrong to turn in someone who put another student in the hospital?!!?!?

Now that Chelsea has seen the error of her ways she decides to take a vow of silence. Speaking before thinking gets her in trouble so she writes on a whiteboard. I was glad Chelsea was changing her ways but being completely silent isn't always the answer either. Sometimes you have to speak up and she slowly learns the balance between standing up for what is right and thinking before you speak. She also has some great new friends that see the real her and are so kind and understanding. Her so called best friend was never a good friend and having real friends allows Chelsea to grow. Also a cute and sweet boy named Sam. The romance wasn't a huge part of the book but they had a nice friendship that built into a great romance.

Sometimes I wonder how I survived high school. lol But really this book dealt with some very serious bullying issues and I thought it was handled really realistically and well which at times was very sad and disturbing. I felt so very depressed and angry and then scared all through the book along with Chelsea. Anyone that would have to go through something like this is a very strong person. I was a huge fan of Saving June and I loved this one as well. Can't wait to see what Hannah Harrington writes next!


His eyes flicker over my face. "I really want to kiss you right now," he blurts out. "If that's okay."
He leans toward me, slowly, inch by inch, leaving me plenty of time to pull away from him. I don't. Instead I close my eyes and hold my breath as I wait for his mouth to meet mine, the anticipation tingling all the way from my stomach to my throat. I can feel him coming closer, his breath warm against my cheek in contrast to the freezing air, make me shiver.

And when it happened I did nothing. It barely even registered; it was like white noise. Sometimes I even laughed along for show. At least it wasn't being said about me-and I know how embarrassed I would've been if it had, because that was how awful everyone I hung out with agreed being gay was. And I thought it was okay as long as I didn't actively participate, that it was enough for me to secretly believe in my heart of hearts that there was absolutely nothing wrong with being gay even if I never dared say it out loud.
I thought it was enough, and it is so far from enough. I can't change what I've done and what I haven't done, but I can change what I do now. I can actually do something. Stand for something.

Rating: 5/5