I really enjoyed this book a lot. It was well written and touched on some tough subjects that I think would be great for young adults to read about. Samira and Henry were so precious and I just wanted to bundle them up and protect them from everything. I think they both were put in challenging situations with adults who needed to grow up. Henry's situation was sad. The way all of his parents put him in the middle and made him feel as if he had to choose was so wrong. Samira's grandfather was wrong for putting that kind of responsibility on her young shoulders. She shouldn't have had to keep Kameron sober. it wasn't her job. I almost stopped reading when I realized Samira was going to give up college money to put Kameron in rehab that you just knew he wasn't going to stick to. I'm so glad I continued though and I really liked reading Samira and Henry's story. Finding out the mystery around their father was worth pushing through any moments when the teenagers annoyed me. I do wish I knew why Henry's two moms had such animosity toward each other. It seemed to stem from childhood and definitely did not start with Henry. Overall, this was a quick, tearjerker read that showed personal growth for both characters and left me feeling optimistic about both of their futures.

The Search For Us tackles heavy topics for YA: biracial experience, an array of mental health issues, living with an autoimmune disability, adoption, issues of abandonment, and alcohol dependency and codependency. That seems like a lot, but Susan Azim Boyer’s writing is entirely captivating, that each topic feels realistic in the family-centric storyline. In fact, the mystery behind the missing father kept me saying, “One more chapter” as the clock ticked closer to midnight - way past my bedtime - giving way to a satisfying yet realistic ending.

What I loved:
🧬Great representation: the diverse cast includes Iranian Americans, Vietnamese girlfriend, bisexual best friend, Black best friend, biracial, and adopted characters
🧬Persian culture: woven beautifully with food and Farsi. I want to go to my favorite Middle Eastern restaurant ASAP! #PitaInn
🧬Teen Pressures: college, family, financial - I love that SAB explores how differently families approach these topics.
🧬Hockey storyline for Henry: as a hockey fan and hockey mom, SAB nails this storyline.

4.5 heartfelt stars!!!

The Search for Us is the second book by Susan Azim Boyer, and after enjoying her debut last year, I quickly added her next one to my list. I’m so very happy I did, because I think Boyer may have surpassed her sparkling debut. Refreshingly honest, timely, and so full of heart, I adored this young adult novel about two half-siblings finding each other and themselves as they search for their biological father.

Boyer tapped into her own history to write her debut, Jasmine Zumideh Needs a Win, and The Search for Us is inspired by her husband’s discovery of a sister when he did a DNA test. There’s something about knowing a book is inspired by real life that makes it even sweeter. It’s clear the author has a true connection with the material.

The story is told from our two half-siblings, Samira and Henry, both high school seniors, both struggling with problems at home that can be mostly attributed to their absent biological father. When they both set out to find him, they find each other, as well. I adored Samira and Henry. They were both kind, but flawed in different ways. It was rewarding to see them grow and learn through their joined experiences.

Along the way, they discover surprising things about their father and their families, and I appreciated how the author took characters that might seem unforgivable and made me sympathize with them, even understand them.

DNA matching is such a timely and fascinating subject. I would have thought discovering an unknown sibling is a rare event, until it happened in my own family. My mother discovered she had an older half-brother less than ten years ago through DNA matching. While discovering a new sibling can be shocking, for my mother it was a happy occasion. Both her parents had already passed and she’d only ever had one sister, so she was happy to expand her family. I think Boyer does a wonderful job of capturing this strange dichotomy.

The Search for Us is a special book, touching on a sensitive subject with grace and honesty, giving us two characters we desperately hope will find their way. It had me smiling, as well as misty-eyed, and deserves all the love and attention!

Meet Samira, a high schooler who is being raised by her grandmother, trying to help her brother with his alcoholism and working hard to go to college. But she also feels the absence of her father, who left them when she was a baby.

Meet Henry, a teenage hockey star being raised by his aunt and uncle with a mom who is sometimes around and and sometimes not. But he knows nothing about his father and nobody will speak about him.

When both Samira and Henry take a chance on a DNA test, they find that they are half siblings and connect to find out about the elusive father who nobody seems to talk about.

This YA novel was packed with powerful themes about family, belonging, dreams and ambitions, as well as substance abuse. I really appreciated that the characters were complex and dealing with messy emotional situations in a real relatable way. This is a great read about family, identity and belonging.

Thank you to @netgalley and @wednesdaybooks for an early review copy of this novel. It is available today, 10/24/23.

In The Search for Us, by Susan Azim Boyer, the protagonist, Samira is pulled in multiple directions. She is trying to hold her crumbling family together while attempting to keep her senior year and dreams of college from going down the drain. But her family needs money, and the last place left to look is to her father whom she hasn't seen since she was a baby. In an effort to track him down, she takes a DNA test, but it leads to a family member she never knew she had.

Henry is a high school senior who has been led toward a future as a college hockey player, whether he wants to be or not. His uncle, who has taken on the role of father figure, has pushed him toward this future and Henry isn't so sure about any of it. He is struggling to find himself, but maybe the dad he has never known can help him figure out who he is. So, he takes a DNA test...

This is a beautifully written, fast paced coming of age YA novel showcasing how all families look different, but have a common theme: love. Speaking of love, I loved this book! Five stars!

Oh, wow! What an incredible story. It frustrated, worried, and saddened me, but it also had its bright points - rays of hope that shone down and warmed my heart. It covers challenging issues, like alcoholism, and I thought it did an excellent job portraying it authentically, especially the costs to loved ones.

The characters are developed well, especially for the age group. I don’t know that I liked the main character, Samira, but I could empathize with her, which became much more critical for the story. I could also say the same thing for Henry, who shares the principal character designation. He isn’t particularly likable either, but his story did elicit my sympathy.

The story touched my heart and even brought a tear or two to my eyes. It’s especially relevant with the DNA testing angle, as many people today utilize these tests to learn more about their families. I liked that aspect of it and where it led. I found that part of the story incredibly compelling.

Another simply amazing book from this author! In this novel, 17-year old Samira sets out to find her father who has been missing from her life since she was a toddler. Henry who has been raised by his aunt and uncle from a young age just turned 18 and he is determined to find his biological dad and to discover his roots. This search (and DNA test) brings the two very different teens together, but they may just have more in common than they think.

I am just in love with this book! What a heartfelt story. Wow... The book is super readable and hard to put down! The story is incredibly fast-paced, heartbreaking and entertaining at the same time.

This read shines because of its amazingly real characters. I just admire how well they are written! Samira only trusts herself. She is used to take charge from a young age. She gives orders and rarely says please or thank you. Samira divides all people into Overfunctioning and Underfunctioning individuals. I never considered this simple concept, but it helped me look at some of the social interactions and relationships in my life in the new light. Henry can be short and moody with his adoptive Mom, but is kind and considerate around others. These two are typical teenagers, yet they carry so much burden on their shoulders.

All and all, this is a MUST-READ! The book touches on such important issues in our day and time such as searching for your identity, growing up in a multi-cultural home, experiencing religious prejudice, suffering from addiction and post-war PTSD. So many grown-up topics make this book an important one for both teens and adults.

I've always loved the idea of a DNA test, even though I've never take one. The Search for Us begins with a quest to find a missing father, but it quickly becomes a story about family, about our relation to our family, and the past. I quickly became attached to Samira and the way she is an over fixer, someone who is trying to fix everything to avoid looking within. I felt personally attacked by how spot on that was! But I think what kept me reading is the way Samira and Henry explore their family and their own relationship to family.

Henry and Samira both take DNA tests for very different reasons. Samira wants to find her father because she needs the money he would owe in child support. Henry just wants to know where he came from and more about his family. These two soon discover their connection as half siblings and this sends them on a quest and it turns into more than just finding their father. It turns into a new found family and friendship.

These children have been through so much because of bad decisions from everyone around them. Henry has been raised by very tough parents…his aunt and uncle. His real mom is in the picture but both his moms fight like cats and dogs. He just does not feel like he is loved or understood. Then there is Samira. Samira has been put in charge as the family fixer. Her bother stays in trouble because he is a drunk and cannot stay sober. When he nearly kills someone with his car, the judge orders him to an in-house recovery center. Samira must default on her college to pay for it.

I usually do not read teen or young adult books. Boy! Would I have missed a jewel! This book is emotional, unique and just powerful. This story had my emotions all over the place…mad, sad, scared and then mad all over again!

Need a deep and forceful novel…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

I received this novel for a honest review.

The Search for Us is an emotional, feel-good story about the importance of family and forgiveness. This is the first YA book I've read in a long time where romance wasn't a central part of the story, and it was so refreshing and made for a really sweet book. I had a love-hate relationship with basically all of the characters, but it's because they're all beautifully flawed, messy and real. I do think the book would've benefited by being written in first person instead of third in order to flesh out the characters fully, but nevertheless, I was enthralled by the story from the very beginning. I also appreciated the focus on Iranian/Persian culture and how mental health can impact relationships in a way that didn't feel stigmatizing.
This is a beautiful story about what it means to be a family and kids becoming adults through difficult circumstances and decisions. It's a quick read that will take you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions and leave you feeling warm and fuzzy inside.

A search for their place in the world and a search for lost family leads them on separate journeys of the heart to each other. I do not describe a romance, but two long lost siblings discovering a DNA match and a need to find their father. The story setup had me eager to try a new to me author and a rare delve into the YA genre.

The Search for Us is told in alternate points of view third person narrative. Samira and Henry are half-siblings with Iranian American heritage. They didn’t know about each other until both, for different reasons, decided to use DNA testing to find the father they never knew and found each other. I’ll say again, this isn’t a romance because I could see how the gorgeous cover might give folks that impression. It’s the story of family hope and struggles through the eyes of two young people on the brink of college.

I knew the search and finding lost siblings part was going to happen from the blurb, but I was surprised that their meeting and togetherness didn’t come about until well over half-way into the story. I wasn’t disappointed really because both Samira and Henry’s lives were interesting enough, but let’s just say I wasn’t as engaged with their stories until I could see them physically connecting in their quest. I wanted to explore how virtual strangers discover they have a connection of family and heritage.

Perhaps it was my mood, but I also felt the bittersweet qualities of the story and didn’t feel engaged as deeply with them and their situations, at first. Samira is one who put herself completely into her family and lost a bit of herself in the process. And, when I say put herself out there, I mean for a brother with substance abuse struggles for whom she sacrificed a lot. Henry has the difficulty of the tug o’ war between adopted parents who raised him and their expectations and his birth mom and her. I started to get more into it as Henry and Samira started to connect. I was glad for the immersion into the Iranian American cultural side since I wasn’t as familiar going in. The ending was good and brought closure and a realistic way.

All in all, I was well-satisfied with a coming of age YA that explored family and was rich in cultural heritage. I would definitely recommend it to those who like strong character-driven non-romance plots.

The Search for Us was a refreshing and powerful story. I really liked the plot and the complexity of the main characters. Azim Boyer did a fantastic job of putting the reader in Samira and Henry's shoes. She also handled the heavy topics (alcoholism, mental health, etc.) of this book perfectly. I think teens will relate to the pressures and struggles of Samira and Henry. I will be recommending this book to the teens at my library! Thank you to SLJ Day of Dialog and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Wednesday Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I did not expect to cry reading this book but it's just so beautifully written and you get so attached to the characters—it's hard not to get emotionally drawn into the story.

Let's start with the fact that this book at first glance may seem like a romance novel based on the cover but once you read that synopsis, you realize it's not and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that! This story follows Samira and Henry, half-siblings that find each other through a DNA test in the hopes of locating their biological father. There is a heavy focus on culture, identity, and family; and what I really enjoyed was reading almost this coming-of-age with a heavy focus on the familial relationships, bonds, and sacrifices. Both Samira and Henry are making individual sacrifices to their families and it was absolutely poetic seeing how they overcome them. I enjoyed reading a story packed with so much Iranian culture; the language, the food, the family dynamics—it was all threaded into the story really well.

Miss Susan Azim Boyer does the dual perspective so well!! Samira and Henry both have A LOT going on in their lives and they both have their own struggles making both of the perspectives so interesting to read.

This story expertly weaves together the individual siblings stories into one; all of them converging with the sheer fact that they want to fill the hole that their father left and with a premise like that...cmon I am obviously going to cry.

I received a copy from Netgalley for review.

So I read this whole book in a day. I really enjoyed it, but I had a lot of gripes with it. Firstly, every single adult in both Henry and Samira's lives failed them repeatedly. But I guess that's why we have the story isn't it? I think the hardest thing to get around was the abuse brought on by Henry's Dad/uncle. He repeatedly showed prejudice towards his own son's ancestry and then expects him to not rebel and try and re-connect with that missing piece of himself? Ridiculous.

I really enjoyed the story of Samira reconciling her views about her dad in connection to how his actions affect the present. I think even without Henry's story being present too it would have made a compelling story.

I really enjoyed this book. This book def has so many elements that worked for me half siblings dymanics. I also liked both characters. This book also had a super short time table. but this was a super quick read and this book handled so many harder topics like abuse in so many forms with the backdrop of PTSD!! I liked the harder topics!! would love to read more by this author in the future!

The Search for Us is one of those novels that sort of sits with you as you read it and after completion. Everything about the circumstances Samira and Henry find themselves in is messy and complicated and makes perfect sense in this sort of senseless world.

Samira is very much someone who needs to feel stability. The only way she can accomplish that is by being in control. But when she’s faced with things over which she can’t regulate, her body literally has an allergic reaction. Samira is smart, determined and has given it her all — but it’s not enough.

Henry feels like he’s never “enough.” Stuck in between the mother who gave him up and the aunt and uncle who raised him, he can never please everyone. Henry’s “adoptive” parents feel aloof, and he always feels like he’s doing thing for them and letting them down.

The common link between Samira and Henry is their father, an Iranian immigrant and U.S. Army veteran who got into trouble in Afghanistan. As the two search out their father, they realize how much having a half-sibling means to them. There’s a comradery that’s sort of built in, even though they’re practically strangers themselves.

In The Search for Us, author Susan Azim Boyer has crafted a compelling character study that is hard to put down. It feels deeply personal, and it’s easy to connect with her protagonists. The ending does feel a bit too “clean” for a lack of a better word. I wasn’t expecting this messy thing to feel quite so wrapped up, but that wouldn’t stop me from recommending it.

I could barely put this book down once I started it. The author did a masterful job of weaving together so many of the issues facing young people today into a powerful story. I plan to order the author's previous book which also sounds very good. Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the opportunity to read and review an advance copy.

This was a good book about what can happen when you send in DNA. You never know what can happen!

The book is told from two point-of-views and they come from Samira and Henry. They don’t know that when they put in their DNA to find out more about their father they will get more than they could have ever expected, a half-sibling. We see this type of story all over the news since Ancestry.com and other sites were created. I don’t think that I have come across a fictional about it and so I was intrigued by this one. The author does a good job with the topic and shows the hardships as well as the good memories that are being created between the two who now share a connection they never knew they had. It was also cool to learn that the author took this from her own experience as her husband found a half-sibling in the same way!

There is a lot that happens in the plot and it all doesn’t have to do with the DNA match. Topics that are covered range from child endangerment to addiction with alcohol. Since the book is not on the long side it felt like a lot to cover and some topics just didn’t get the same treatment as others.

Overall, this was a good read!

Very interesting YA novel. Samira Murphy and Henry Owen are seniors in high school in California and have ongoing issues in their families. Samira is bright but has too many adult responsibilities as she tries to help her alcoholic older brother and watch over her grandmother. Her mother is supportive but lives a state away. Henry's family relationships are complicated too. He was raised by a strict aunt and uncle but his bio mother is a part of his life too which causes tension at home.

Both Samira and Henry take DNA tests hoping to find their Iranian-American father who left them behind. Samira hopes he may have money (back child support) and can help with her brother's drinking issue, rehab and legal problems. Henry wants answers and a family or cultural connection. And both are surprised to learn they are each other's half siblings. (They live a few hours apart.)

This one surprisingly hits home for me. My spouse's parents legally adopted a grandchild and although raised in a loving home there are lasting issues dealing with feelings of abandonment and more. Also four of my first cousins are adopted and three in the last few years have found their biological families thanks to DNA testing. I found the story hit on a lot of emotional topics I have seen play out in my extended family.

The story is well written and I was so upset at the parentification Samira endured. And I was frustrated at her mothers seeming lack of concern about it. Also mom knows more than she shares when she is asked about her ex husband. None of the parents are bad guys but there are a lot of mistakes and miss-steps in their roles that causes a lot of the frustration and angst for Samira and Henry. The true good guys are Henry’s girlfriend and Samira’s best friend who are supportive and loving at all times.

The cover makes this look like a romance. It is NOT! This is a story about family and connections. And finding a family doesn’t solve all the problems. This has a realistic ending not a HEA. I would have liked it to have gone a bit further and seen Samira get counseling and help for herself. I read this in a few hours and could not put it down. I’d recommend it for older middle school and up. (4.5 Stars)

The Search For Us is a hopeful and emotional read that showcases the impact of mental health on young people. It also allows readers to see how the actions of others impact the young people around them. The major themes of the book are showcased in an amazing way, leaving the reader inspired.