The Law of Inertia

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Pub Date 09 Oct 2018 | Archive Date 09 Oct 2018

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Description

When James’s boyfriend killed himself, no one questioned what happened. A foster kid with a checkered past and a history of suicide attempts, Ash was just another number in a system that failed him.

But to James, Ash was never just a number, and James discovers that the facts around his death don’t stack up so neatly. Now James has plenty of questions, and the one person who might have held the answers—Ash’s older brother, Elliot—has left town. And if anyone knows where he is, they aren’t talking. As James searches for Elliot to answer lingering inconsistencies, he grows suspicious of what really happened on Ash’s last day. 

After all, innocent people don't run.

When James’s boyfriend killed himself, no one questioned what happened. A foster kid with a checkered past and a history of suicide attempts, Ash was just another number in a system that failed him.

...


Advance Praise

"Heartbreaking and hopeful, The Law of Inertia expertly combines the intrigue of a thriller with sensitive and insightful depictions of contemporary teen issues, particularly mental illness." 
—Sophie Cameron, author of Out of the Blue

"Heartbreaking and hopeful, The Law of Inertia expertly combines the intrigue of a thriller with sensitive and insightful depictions of contemporary teen issues, particularly mental illness." 
—Sophie...


Available Editions

EDITION Other Format
ISBN 9781944995874
PRICE $19.99 (USD)

Average rating from 30 members


Featured Reviews

WOW this book was SO GOOD!! First thanks to NG for the ARC!! This is the story of two brothers, Ash and Elliot, two brother in foster care because of a really awful family life. Elliot is the older of the two and spends a lot of his time drinking and partying. Ash is 16 and in HS, trying to get good grades and move on. Ash's best friends James is his rock. James is also gay. Ash has had girlfriends in the past but now finds himself attracted to James. They are SO adorable together and Ash really needs James because he has anxiety and cuts himself too, and James is the only one who knows about it. Ash is kind of falling into a hole and can't get out. Elliot wants to get guardianship of Ash and move out of the foster home but his drug problem is getting worse and he is jeopardizing the whole situation. Also Elliot finds out that Ash and James are together as boyfriends and leaves with no explanation. Ash sees no way out after Elliot disappears and he has a fight with James, and he kills himself leaving James to deal with the fallout and also completely alone, because Elliot disappeared. James spend his time during the year following Elliot's death, trying to locate Elliot to find out what really happened to Ash before he died--and Louise sees his online post and answers which is in the present day. This book is SO emotional. IT is written from the points of view of Ash and James both in the present and the past, and Elliot in present along with Louise, Elliot's current best friend. I loved Ash and James relationship. They obviously love each other so much and James is so supportive and caring. Ash is so confused and needs James so much. I don't want to ruin the ending but I LOVED it. I had my suspicions all along what was going on but I wasn't 100% sure until the very end. Definitely do not miss this book if you love a great story with amazing characters and a little mystery. WELL worth your time!! I will definitely look for more from this author!!!

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Can we all give a big cheer for good bisexual representation? And also for the fact that some people don’t feel the need to ‘come-out’, they just are what they are and don’t feel the need to make a big production out of it because it’s no one else’s business. (Not that there’s anything wrong with coming out either but seeing ‘not coming out’ but not hiding who you are portrayed as valid was very liberating.) In fact in terms of tackling big themes that YA should tackle, The Law of Inertia knocks it out of the park – DSH, Metal Illness, anxiety and depression, LGBT representation, troubled familial origins, suicidal ideation. It’s a mystery of sorts too with a very satisfying plot. The characters are likeable. The romance is believable and very sweet. Ordinarily YA contemporary is very hit and miss for me but this one was a big hit.

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This book was really good. Slow at first but it really picked up! It was full of suspense and the characters were easy to fal in love with. If your looking for your next read pick this one up!

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The feelings that come from this book are deep and can be uncomfortable. That being said, the storyline was well crafted. I did find the shifting POV's something I had to get used to- but it helped to deepen the mystery. The twists at the end were very uexpected- and it's hard to pull one over on me. It was perfectly editied, the dialogue was very appropriate and engaging for the age group. I felt the author portrayed depression and suicide both respectfully and with careful insight. I am normally not a YA reader but this book kept me engaged and interested all the way through. I thought the characters definitely speak to the reader in a way that makes them invest. I would definitely recommend the read.

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What happens when life jolts you off the tracks? What choices are you left with? Gonzales gives us Ash going through this very well, she is able to create his voice and that of the other people around him very well. Giving us the story from several perspectives, from several characters so that we see how life effects them the cause and effect.

Very very well done, definitely recommended.

Note: The setting is never really specified but after a lot of googling and piecing clues together I've come to the conclusion that the setting is Australia.

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This romance is suitable for young adults. It contains sensitive and moving perspectives of young gay and bi friendships, as well as issues of substance abuse, mental illness, and suicidal ideation..

In the multi-ethnic melting pot of modern Australia, two small town brothers struggle with the terrible parenting situation in which they landed after their mother's death. While wearing out their welcome at one foster placement after another, Ash must also come to terms with his unusual sexual attraction to his best friend forever.

The mystery of 'Who are Ash and Elliot Taylor?' is finally solved by learning self-acceptance and life balance.

Though there are sexual situations, they are never explicit. I have nothing but praise for this story.

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Ugh. This book.
This book made me feel so many emotions: anger, sadness, love and so much pain.
First of all, the writing was so beautiful! I'm really surprised that this is the author's first book.
It deals with some very heavy topics like depression, suicide, sexual identity and self-harm. I have to admit that if I'd known it would be about these topics, I wouldn't have read it because it left me really emotionally drained.
It starts after Ash's suicide, His boyfriend James suspects that something else happened that day and is trying to track Ash's missing brother to find out what it was.
My favorite character was James, he was the such an amazing boyfriend to Ash. He was really loving and caring. His chapters and his search for the truth following Ash's death were the most interesting for me to read.
I also really like Ash, but his parts were really hard for me to read. He was dealing with a lot of heavy stuff. To read about his struggle with depression and self-harm was so heartbreaking. I felt like I needed big dose of sunshine after reading about him.

"If I were to reflect on my life, I would say it’s like being engulfed in quicksand, and as much as I want to get out, I slowly sink deeper, towards an inevitable end. I want someone to pull me out, but I don’t know how they can. Their only reactions are to stand on dry land and watch me with concerned expressions, urging me to just walk like they are.".

This book is classified as a mystery, and I saw some people describe it as similar to Gone girl (My favorite thriller ever). But the mystery part wasn't really big, it was a more character driven book.
But...I had two major problems that really bothered me. Louis' character felt really flat and boring to me. She was there only to move the plot.
The big twist really pissed me off. It made me change my mind about some characters. I won't say more, because of spoilers, but I was so mad that I considered giving this book a low rating.
But I couldn't ignore the fact that it's been a while since a book made me feel so emotionally connected and invested in it. I stayed up until 5 AM to read it, which is rare for me because I like sleeping.
So that's why I decided on 4 stars.

"See, the thing is that happiness is a whore. I’ve never met a more disloyal emotion in my life."

An arc gently provided by publisher/author via Netgalley in return for a review

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I want to thank Amberjack Publishing and Netgalley for this partnership.

I was immediately attracted by the cover, we see James in a station.

We find James who does not agree on this story of the suicide of his boyfriend: an adopted child who has had ups and downs in his life. James is going to ask about Ash, and the only person who can answer him is Ash's big brother who's gone. The more he goes in his answers the more he will discover funny things about what happened during Ash's last day.

A moving, captivating story filled with suspense and twists. I loved the context of the story James who is trying to find out if Ash really committed suicide?

Look forward to reading another book by this author.

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It is so hard to review this book without spoilers! Such great suspense and several unexpected twists! The characters are endearing and the writing is entertaining. Difficult to put down. I will read everything by this author following this!

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