Book Review: Whispering Through Water

Today’s my day of the book tour for Whispering Through Water a YA coming of age novel by Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler. This was such a quick read and I really enjoyed it!

The novel follows Gwyn, a teenage girl in Virginia in the 90s. After getting accepted into an art program to a college in Massachusetts, tensions rise between Gwyn and her Aunt Delia. Gwyn and her mother have lived with her Aunt Delia and Uncle Beckett for almost her whole life. Gwyn’s mother had her young and her older sister Delia is 13 years older so Aunt Delia was more of the authority figure in the house. Aunt Delia always told Gwyn she would pay for her college education, but when Gwyn decides not to stay in Virginia, but go out of state for college, all bets are off. Determined to go anyway, Gwyn saves money at her job at the florist shop and applies for financial aid.

But the unfairness of it all doesn’t sit well with Gwyn and she wants to know why her aunt is so serious and rigid all the time. When she accidentally opens a mysterious letter in the mail addressed to her aunt, she begins to dig only to find more mysteries to her aunt’s past.

I really liked Gwyn and her best friend Denise. It was a really heartwarming coming of age novel. I really liked that the issues Gwyn was facing didn’t make her lash out or become bitter or mean. Sure, she made some mistakes, but so do all teens and people in general. It made it realistic. It was interesting to see everything come full circle, her time with her friends, and the start of a new love (her and Isaac were so adorable and I wanted more of them!).

I thought the book was a great look at a young woman who is getting started with her life, questioning the adult figures in her life and the expectations they place on her, while also realizing that these adults in her life were once young too and had their own life experiences before she was born.

I really enjoyed the book and recommend if you’re looking for a YA coming of age novel that is family focused.