This was a captivating novel with complex characters, a moving plot, and an engaging podcast.

Sadie's little sister Mattie has just been found dead. Sadie had been raising Mattie after their drug-addict mom abandoned them, so when her sister's body is recovered, she feels the need to find the murderer and kill him.

When Sadie disappears to find the killer the story is covered by the news and a radio personality, West McCray, hears the story and wants to help find Sadie. He starts a podcast and interviews people in the hope it will help find her before is too late.

First, the media was excellent, the podcast sections in the book and the actual podcast that the publishers produced was a great and original idea, perfectly executed.

I like it when the authors step out of the book format and create additional content in other media that enhances the story.

Overall, I enjoyed it and recommend it to readers of mysteries, thrillers and contemporary fiction.

Received ARC from the publisher via Netgalley

PODCAST

This book has an accompanying (and amazing) podcast, you can start listening to it right now.

It won’t spoil the story and can be listened to while before, during, or after you finish the book. Highly recommend it!

Sadie was an excellent novel told in a unique way. At first I wasn't sure if the idea to convey part of the story like an investigative podcast would really pay off but I thoroughly enjoyed the mix of perspectives as we explored the story of Sadie through the eyes or a journalist as well as through Sadie's own eyes.

Sadie is a wonderfully woven mystery and thriller that fed deeply into my current love for true crime and unraveling unsolved mysteries.

A few months ago I wanted to read something different and so I came across Sadie, which looked like a young adult novel but with a mystery touch. I don’t usually read YA (although I enjoy some) and everyone was raving about it, so I thought it would be a great idea to give it a chance.

Sadie was a sad story and quite different from the other two books I read by Courtney Summers (like 10 years ago), but I can’t say I loved it the same way. It was a good novel, it didn’t take me long to read it, and I certainly loved the podcast format, but it wasn’t a memorable read for me.

This is the story of a young girl who flees her hometown in search for someone she believes killed her little sister. At the same time, there’s a podcast about them called “The Girls” which follows Sadie’s disappearance. I found this section of the book rather interesting, the format made it a quick read and the chapters where Sadie was the narrator were also compelling and intriguing.

In the end, the main reason why I think I didn’t love this book as much as I wanted is that it was pretty predictable in my opinion. The reason behind the disappearance and the secrets that Sadie was hiding weren’t shocking. We’ve read this same story many times before and this wasn’t a favorite of mine.

Would I recommend this? Yes. If you enjoy Courtney Summer’s writing -nothing to complain here, she writes beautifully-, and edgy YA stories, this could be a winner for you.

Let me start by saying that this book has trigger warnings for rape, sexual and physical abuse, pedophelia and murder. I did receive a copy of this for review from Netgalley and the publisher.

I was compelled to pick up this book from the synopsis and the reviews on bookstagram. As you can see from my rating, I was pleasantly surprised.

Told from dual perspective, we follow both the main character Sadie and West McCray, a radio/podcast host in alternating chapters. West is working to figure out what happened to both Sadie and her sister Mattie and has made a podcast chronicling his investigation. I enjoyed the podcast/interview format of his chapters. It provided an interesting perspective to the storyline.

Sadie's chapters were my favorite, however. Her story is truly heartbreaking. She had a less than spectacular childhood (to say the least). The product of a drug addicted mother and non- existent father, Sadie was forced to grow up mostly alone. She cared for her sister in a run down trailer with little to no help. She suffered multiple forms of abuse at the hands of her mother and the various men who were in and out of the house regularly. When her mother disappears and her sister is found murdered, Sadie loses it. She spends the rest of the novel trying to find and kill her sisters murderer.

As someone who is not an avid mystery/thriller reader, I liked this book. I actually read it in one sitting on a Friday night. (Not sure what that says about me, so take it for what you will!). I felt that the writing was descriptive and interesting and I didn't guess the ending until I was almost there. 4 stars.

This book kept me on the edge of my seat the whole way through. I love that there was a cool new perspective with the radio show host getting involved. I finished this book in one night. Very well written and good character building, The ending was a bit frustrating, but otherwise it was an enjoyable read.

I wanted this title because one of my favorite authors recommended it, and boy it didn't disappoint. It was weird, creepy and kept making you guess. I thoroughly enjoyed this one.

I read this book, and form the hype surrounding it, I really expected it to be amazing. Unfortunately, it just didn't grab me and immerse me into the story how I hoped it would. I think what really took away form the plot was the switching of narrative and how the structure of the story was set up. The podcast elements where hard to invision for me and I had a really hard time connecting to Sadie on a level that would have helped me to understand her motives more. I understand that losing her sister who had become like a child to her was difficult and that she had a rough childhood, but I really had a hard time believing her. I gave this story a solid three stars because there were elements that I liked, but it didn't do anything amazing for me as far as the reading experience went.

A great mystery book. The concept of the book was amazing and the Author made sure she didn’t stray from her point in the book or dragged the story. I don’t think I ever read a book so dark and twisted like Sadie.
Thank you to netgalley and St.Martin Press for a copy to give my honest review

cw: pedophilia, CSA, abuse, drug addiction
disclaimer: I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for review consideration. All of the opinions presented below are my own.

It seems like nearly everyone has been talking about Sadie lately. Intriguingly, pieces of it felt like they tied pretty closely to The Female of the Species, which I read directly beforehand. The formatting is what was most interesting about it. Half of the book is a podcast -- where I’d imagine the audiobook version would have come in very handy -- and the other half is from Sadie’s perspective directly. In this way, things that we could never necessarily know from one perspective are revealed to us through the other. While this method could be flawed in the wrong hands, Courtney Summers is able to carefully craft a chilling masterpiece, slowly (but not too slowly) revealing the full story to her readers.

In Sadie, we have West, a podcaster who hears a story about a local girl and is now on the hunt for Sadie and to find out what exactly happened to her and where is she now. Sadie has a very mysterious feel to her, people tend to think she went on the hunt for her sister’s killer but where and who she thinks this person is a mystery. Sadie sees herself responsible for Maddie’s death since she was the one looking after her after their mother left them. We see Sadie’s dark side but as we slowly see what kind of life she has led her pain and anger is understandable.

I loved everything about this read. I listened to the audio which I recommend because it's amazing! I loved the podcast idea and the interviews format which totally gave me Dateline vibes. I enjoyed how all these different styles gave it a definitely unique feel and made it so interesting not to mention it really added to that dark creepy kind of feel...in a good way!!

This was without a doubt one of my favorite reads of the year, I felt for Sadie and the things she had to endure in her life. I liked how she was strong despite her hardships in life, even if that meant doing things that weren’t right. All in all, Sadie is a winner, this has a lot of elements I look for in a great read. I like the different points of views we got which just made the read so much more enjoyable. If you get the chance to read this please do you won't be disappointed.

I'm struggling on how to start this review because I'm not sure how to articulate this feeling I have now that I've finished SADIE. I'm heartbroken, angry, awed, and ready to push this book into the hands of every reader I meet.

SADIE follows the investigation into missing teenager, Sadie Hunter who left town without a word after her sister, Mattie, was brutally murdered. Desperate for answers, Sadie's honorary Grandma, May Beth tasks a radio host, West McCray, to look into her disappearance.

The format was part radio show transcript and part narrative, as Sadie hunted down the man who killed her sister and McCray searched for Sadie months later.

Like Sadie herself, this book was brutal, unforgiving, and deeply emotional. Even though we never met Mattie, I felt I knew as much about her as Sadie. Her presence was so engrained in the book as West investigated their lives and Sadie worked to avenge her. My heart ached for Sadie and Mattie and all the broken girls that are like them.

I really think, despite it being a hard read, that this book should be required reading for it's hard truths and wonderful storytelling. Courtney Summers is a master storyteller, subtly laying out details that create a devastating account of characters that feel as real as the people on the news.

Thank you, Courtney Summers for sharing this story. Thank you for telling Sadie's story, the entirety of it, ugliness and all.

Sadie by Courtney Summers is an eye opener. This book is filled with so much sadness. When you come across the book, know this, Sadie is a very difficult book to read but you won’t want to put it down. I really like that Summers tackles some really difficult subjects.

A little about Sadie: Sadie has a younger sister named Mattie. Her mom is an addict that always has a new boyfriend. Sadie does not know who her father is. She is continually getting bullied at school for her stutter. Like I said, not an easy read. Then Sadie loses her favorite person in the world. Her sister.
This book deals with so much. If you want a book with hard subjects this is the one for you. Some of the subjects that are covered are neglect, abuse, sexual abuse, drugs, murder, revenge, heartache, the list goes on. From the very beginning of this book you know that Sadie is out for revenge. The author definitely gives you an easy way out.

I thought that the way the Summers wrote Sadie that it was super unique. The story is told through Sadie’s point of view and podcasts. This podcast is obsessed with Sadie and telling her story. I liked the dual narrative because we were able to see the outside of Sadie’s situation but at the same time we got to learn from Sadie herself.

This book is not an easy read at all. I thought it was very well written. Sometimes it can be tough reading or even writing about difficult subjects. I thought Courtney Summers did a wonderful job.

Sadie hasn't had an easy life. She has raised her little sister, practically by herself, with little to no gratitude. When Mattie is found dead, Sadie's world spirals into despair. After the police do not bring the killer to justice, Sadie decides she's going to take it into her own hands and seek revenge for her baby sister, who she loved more than anyone.

She goes missing, her car is found, but there's no lead on where she was going or who she was searching for. Then West McCray joins the fray. West is a journalist and radio personality, he starts an investigation of his own, looking for Sadie. What he uncovers is not what you would expect.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. It was everything I want out of a YA mystery/suspense book. The intrigue of Sadie's path, the people she encounters along the way, and the secrets she uncovers is one thing. But the way that Courtney Summers presented the story was so unique. It makes the story unfold in a way that only adds to the story. Sadie definitely has those stereotypical teenager moments, Summers doesn't make her teenage characters seem unrealistic. Sadie is following a trail to a person she is quite sure is guilty, she's asking questions that are relevant, and moving through the struggles with realistic responses. She doesn't have some supernatural trait that makes her know when someone is lying and she doesn't have the backing of a governmental agency who sees the next prodigy detective. She's a normal teen, who has had a hard life, who wants answers and justice for the person she loved most. I would highly recommend this book for anyone who loves mystery and suspense, but especially if you're looking for those qualities in a YA novel.

I was fascinated by this YA mystery! 'Sadie' is a gripping story of a girl (Sadie) who disappears a few months after her little sister, Mattie, was murdered. Devastated, Sadie sets out to find Mattie’s killer.

Throughout the story, we slowly learn the awful truth’s of Sadie’s lonely life with her mother, what she endured growing up, and how she tried to make a difference in Mattie’s life. How she wanted to protect Mattie.

West McCray, a producer and radio personality, receives a call from May Beth, the girls' surrogate grandmother, who asks West to help locate Sadie. He agrees. He also begins a serialized podcast chronicling his investigation with interviews and information he uncovers along the way.

The story is told from two points of view. One from Sadie’s and the other in the form of McCray’s podcast, “The Girls.” The cool thing is you can actually listen to the podcast on Apple or Stitcher.

Although the podcast is really well done, and I listened to most of the episodes before I started reading the book, I found it a little redundant as the podcast is pretty much word for word what is written in the book. I would have liked some added information, but again, the podcast is brilliant and well made.

Sadie meets some interesting people during her quest, and there are some twists and turns in the story, some I didn’t see coming! And as in life, there are some questions we never find an answer to.

'Sadie' is a raw, dark and engrossing novel. I wasn’t sure what Sadie’s plan was, or if she even knew. I didn't know if she would find the man she was looking for, or if she did, could she accomplish what she set out to do - which is to kill him.

Courtney Summers knocked it out of the park with Sadie. Sadie was a quick read; you'll have a hard time putting it down.

Told as a podcast, Summers is in tune with what is culturally relevant. The podcast perspective gives some relief from the dark and raw content of Sadie's POV.

Highly recommend (mature audience) - 5 stars.

I really thought I was going to love this book. I'd heard so much buzz about it before hand. I love podcasts, especially crime podcasts, and I love a good revenge/mystery. But I just... didn't care for it. I can't exactly put my finger on why. It's cohesive, with a straightforward plot, but something about it just felt "too much." I will attribute this to the writing style, I guess it's just not for me, and to the sensationalization of the podcast aspects. Maybe it wasn't the intention -- but it felt like mocking to me. The uncomfortableness of the narration is the *point* here, and normally I love that style, but I just felt bored with this one. I know I'm in the minority...

Here’s the truth about me… I do not read thrillers. Thrillers bore me. The element of surprise doesn’t really work on me so when that’s all that the book has going for it…it just flops. And here comes Sadie on her shiny white cover and I LOVED IT. The premise pulled me in and then the more I heard about it the more excited I was to read it, which…took me by surprise and my love for it took me by surprise, Because holy mother of twisted books, Sadie did not disappoint or bore me in the slightest.

This was my first time reading a Courtney Summers book (and you bet, I want to go through all of them now) and the writing style is absolutely amazing, it’s gripping, honest and most times harsh. The author doesn’t shy away from saying things as they are, which makes Sadie, with its subject matter quite heavy and hard to read at time (re: most of the time). Another thing that made this book such a unique and good experience is its format: It’s written from two vastly different perspectives. The first is Sadie’s as she’s road tripping through the country, trying to find her sister’s killer and avenge her death. And the other one is an other format entirely, it’s a podcast script where a guy retraces Sadie’s footsteps trying to find her months after she disappears.

I haven’t cared about a character as much as I cared about Sadie, reading her story, in a while. Maybe it’s because I saw parts of me in her, maybe because she didn’t deserve all the shit life threw at her, but for some reason I felt very protective of her. I’m not joking, you should see my texts to the friend who got me to read it, it was a bunch of yelling about wanting to wrap Sadie in a blanket, feed her and just let the girl get some sleep for God’s sake. Reading from her perspective was what made this book for me, she’s blunt, honest, incredibly strong and driven. Driven by revenge and grief. By all the ugliness in her life and the world.

Sadie‘s story is heartbreaking and made to make the reader uncomfortable, Sadie’s life is a shitshow and…that’s putting it nicely. There are so many things going wrong with her and the most heartwrenching out of all of it is that she accepts it with finality, she doesn’t really complain or try to get out. It is what is it. Growing up with a mother who’s an addict, having to raise her own sister, and even being molested and raped by her mom’s boyfriend. It just is what it is. And her POV consists of a lot of introspection on her part, thinking about her past, her sister, her mom, her life and just how deeply fucked up all of it is.

I hadn’t read the synopsis right before starting the book so I knew next to nothing about it when I picked it up (which I recommend) and at first, you don’t really know what’s happening or which way the story is headed but it’s quickly cleared up. Sadie is out to kill. And knowing how things probably ends makes for an intriguing and compelling story that’s moved by its characters and their motives instead of the element of surprise (which I dislike, like I said before). The story has so many layers to it that I was on the edge of my seat, waiting for the next layer to be unveiled, for Sadie’s next move and eventhough the book is anything but fast paced but it doesn’t get boring for even one second.

Another thing that was incredibly interesting about this book is that on one hand we get Sadie’s POV on the events that lead up to her disappearance and on the other, we get a collection of people’s perception of those events, how they remember them or even lie about them and we see this reporter, West McCray, trying to piece everything together despite being mislead or lead to a dead end more than once. Not just that but also how things really went down versus how Sadie thought they went. It was just fascinating to get multiple perspective on one event and and see an exploration of that on page.

The ending was equally amazing and frustrating and those conflicting feels are what made me not give it 5 stars. But otherwise, Sadie messed with my brain in all the best and worst ways. It’s heartbreaking, haunting and absolutely twisted but hopeful as well, when you dig. This book will stay with me for a while.

I really like the way Courtney Summers tells the story of Sadie, with two points of view. I really want to know what happened to her with the journalist West McCray. Sadie is a character who is always alone, all by herself. It is painfull to read, I feel so deeply with Sadie. Il like the way how the author cover this topic. A good discovery of the writing of Courtney Summers.

Unfortunately this book was just not for me. I was unable to finish. I tried to like it as it was getting good reviews but I could not connect with any of the characters or the storyline.

This title caught my eye while browsing NetGalley...

“Sadie hasn't had an easy life. Growing up on her own, she's been raising her sister Mattie in an isolated small town, trying her best to provide a normal life and keep their heads above water.
But when Mattie is found dead, Sadie's entire world crumbles. After a somewhat botched police investigation, Sadie is determined to bring her sister's killer to justice and hits the road following a few meager clues to find him.
When West McCray—a radio personality working on a segment about small, forgotten towns in America—overhears Sadie's story at a local gas station, he becomes obsessed with finding the missing girl. He starts his own podcast as he tracks Sadie's journey, trying to figure out what happened, hoping to find her before it's too late.
Courtney Summers has written the breakout book of her career. Sadie is propulsive and harrowing and will keep you riveted until the last page.”

Whew, what a book!
Immediately, I became engrossed in this story... following Sadie along her journey for justice and
West McCray's radio podcast, 'The Girls'.

Everything about Sadie felt gritty and real. Especially in these days when so much abuse & crimes
go unreported and people are never punished.

While I've had Courtney Summers on my radar for a long time, I've never read one of her books
until now. Believe I will be looking into her works further... her writing was very good.

Honestly, I can't put into words how this book made me feel.
I would highly recommend it, despite the tough subject matter.


I received this electronic book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for this opportunity!