Review: Radio Silence by Alice Oseman

Radio Silence by Alice Oseman

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: HarperCollins Canada
Publication Date: March 28th, 2017
Publisher: HarperTeen
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Fast
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, LGBT, Contemporary, Friendship

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BLURB:

What if everything you set yourself up to be was wrong?

Frances has always been a study machine with one goal, elite university. Nothing will stand in her way; not friends, not a guilty secret – not even the person she is on the inside.

But when Frances meets Aled, the shy genius behind her favourite podcast, she discovers a new freedom. He unlocks the door to Real Frances and for the first time she experiences true friendship, unafraid to be herself. Then the podcast goes viral and the fragile trust between them is broken.

Caught between who she was and who she longs to be, Frances’ dreams come crashing down. Suffocating with guilt, she knows that she has to confront her past…
She has to confess why Carys disappeared…

Meanwhile at uni, Aled is alone, fighting even darker secrets.

It’s only by facing up to your fears that you can overcome them. And it’s only by being your true self that you can find happiness.

Frances is going to need every bit of courage she has.

The easiest five-star-rating I gave this year to a YA book. I was going to say to a book, forget the YA thing, but ‘‘Kings Rising’’ got a five stars from me the moment I finished reading the first sentence. Damen & Laurent forever and ever.

The friendship between Frances and Aled is definitely what I liked best. Or maybe not. It’s hard to pinpoint the most impressive thing about this book, honestly. The pacing is fabulous (such short chapters!), the atmosphere is great, the humour is uplifting, the characters are very much three-dimensional… Not so easy to choose the winning element.

I don’t know if I’m biased or not, though. Frances and I have so much in common that I do wonder if I would have liked this as much if we had been less similar. Probably. I can be an idealist in this context, can’t I?

Frances and I are both nerds who prefer studying to hanging out with friends at parties. We’re both independent chicks who know what they want and aim as high as possible. And we’re both bisexual, maybe? She has things a little bit more figured out than I do. Good for her.

Aled is adorable. I loved how his presence in the story added mystery. Obviously, this is not a mystery novel, but with Aled comes a lot of questions. He made me quite curious. Frances and I both. Ha-ha, maybe I should start saying ‘‘us’’. Keep dreaming. I do prefer to think that if she were a real person, we’d be the best of best friends.

But everyone wants the exact same thing when they find a character they adore, no?

In the beginning, ‘‘Radio Silence’’ is very light—almost as light as ‘‘Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda’’—but then everything gets more intense as we get to learn more about Aled, his mother and his sister.

If you go through my ‘‘favourites’’ shelf, you’re going to realize that there aren’t a hundred contemporary YA novels to which I’ve given 5 stars. But my inner self would start screaming at me like a possessed woman if I even think for a second of choosing the ‘‘really liked it’’ option instead of the ‘‘it was amazing’’ one.

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