SSR Quarter 1 Book Review

     The book that I decided to read for the first quarter is a fiction young-adult novel titled A Northern Light which was composed by Jennifer Donnelly that includes 383 pages in total. The story is set in the year 1906, where Mattie Gokey reaches a turning point in her life after she shifts working on her father's declining farm for summer work as a serving girl at an extravagant hotel in Adirondacks. As she begins pulling in money, she does her best to keep saving and come up with a decision on how she will spend it once the summer is over. Having recognized her abilities quickly, Mattie comprehends that she has a gift and enthusiasm for writing and is determined to attend Barnard College in New York City. However, she questions herself on how she'll move on with her life when she still has a sense of obligation to her family and her quickly blossoming love-story with the simple, handsome Royal Loomis who has stirred the delicate, vulnerable side of Mattie. Despite her setbacks, she can't deny her desire and love for words.
     While working at the hotel, Mattie gets involved in a young couple's disappearance who had gone out together in a rowboat. Before the woman's departure, Mattie briefly speaks with the woman, Grace Brown, who handed her a package of love letters and asked Mattie to burn them. But once Grace turns up dead, Mattie couldn't help but look through the package and reads the letters and realizes she may have the biggest clue in solving the woman's death and her lover's strange disappearance. 
     A Northern Light turned out to be a simple read despite it being set in a time so far from what I am comfortable with. The setting was quite striking that I was able to visualize the scenes the characters were describing which I especially fancied and there were many fascinating side-stories which had me completely entangled in the book. In addition, adding to the vivid scenery are the marvelously drawn characters. For instance, Mattie’s voice rang clear and genuine, and all the people around her, emitting more light on the mystery and the story. Also, the writing was simple yet poetic, immediately pulling me in without having to adjust to any complex language. I also liked how every chapter the main character would introduce a word of the day which helped me acquire new words that I've never heard of.
     While I enjoyed most of the side-stories, I would have liked to have heard more about Grace Brown's view of the story. I felt like this, the most touching, frightening element of the novel, had the potential to become more central to the plot. In addition, I disliked how the author switches from present to past because when she transitions from one point to another, she often left it on a cliffhanger. Also, one of my favorite scenes was when Mattie reads the last of Grace Brown's letters and discerns how they reflect her own life, it was achingly tragic, yet inspiring. I enjoyed reading A Northern Light – it is a novel that effortlessly intertwines romance, history, and a deadly mystery into something provoking, practical, and entirely original. I absolutely recommend this book for people who appreciate reading a young adult novel with a little hint of historical fiction.