Review: Thin Space

By: Jody Casella
Published:September 10, 2013 by Beyond Words/Simon Pulse
Format: Paperback, 256 pages
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My brother was dead.

Ever since the car accident that killed his twin brother, Marshall Windsor has been consumed with guilt and crippled by secrets of that fateful night. He has only one chance to make amends, to right his wrongs and set things right. He must find a Thin Space—a mythical point where the barrier between this world and the next is thin enough for a person to step through to the other side. But, when a new girl moves into the house next door, the same house Marsh is sure holds a thin space, she may be the key—or the unraveling of all his secrets. As they get closer to finding a thin space—and closer to each other—Marsh must decide once and for all how far he’s willing to go to right the wrongs of the living…and the dead.

This review is of a arc galley from the publisher via NetGalley.

Rating: 3.5/5

Losing an identical twin in a car accident at sixteen is something I know very well. To be honest, I'm surprised I let myself request it, let alone even read it. It hit so very close to home. But I read it. And, really, I more than read it. I devoured it in only a couple hours. Casella is a new voice that I will love to see more work from.

From the beginning, I loved her writing and style. She managed to give Marsh a strong voice that could have very easily tipped to the "annoying" side of the scale, but never did. There are many things while reading that I found either annoying or unrealistic, but the ending set everything straight. Most of those things I had wanted to note Casella clearly had thought out and put in for a reason. I do, however, think she put in a couple of characters that didn't need to be in the story: Lindsay and Heather. I felt they were distractions every time they popped up, like they were characters that never quite made it to the supporting level, but were supposed to be.

Speaking of characters, I very much liked and identified with Marsh. Even if we didn't have losing a twin in common, I think I would have sympathized with him anyway. I will admit, in the beginning, I really, really wanted to see that Casella did research into twinloss; I didn't really see the early stages of losing a twin from Marsh. Casella brought many of the feelings later, but I just feel as though Casella should have spent a bit more time with twinless twins.

As for Maddie and Sam and the others, I liked them. I felt for Maddie, which is a big deal considering the very tough level of Marsh's loss. I didn't, however, care for the characterization of the other students. I don't know if Casella talked with anyone who had been through a loss at a high school, but it just seemed too...as though no one had cared about Austin. I think we should have seen a bit more of their looks. Kate especially. The most realistic characterization, to me, was with Marsh's parents. It was almost as though Casella just reached into my brain and plucked out my memory of how my parents had reacted. It was very, very well done.

Now, I have mixed feelings on the plot and its twist. The plot for me was fantastic and original. Having Marsh walk around barefoot, for one, was so refreshing. The bit with all the jocks and fighting and girls got kind of annoying. Where I get conflicted is when the climax hit. It's not really a spoiler. But the thin space is real. Around the halfway point of the book, I'd be lying if I said I didn't wish the thin space would be fake. I feel as though the message and twist could have been so much more powerful if the thin space didn't exist/they never found it. Kept this a contemporary read. When they went into the thin space, it just seemed so rushed.

The twist. I still don't know how I feel about it. For the most part, it shocked me. I did love it. It wasn't expected at all. Then again, wasn't it? Once I read it and got over the shock, my first thoughts were (without getting into spoilers), Is it that original? I can't say too much without spoiling it, but when you read this, message me on Goodreads or something and we can discuss it.

Overall, I thought this was a great read. I have a feeling the finished product will be even better. I hope, anyway. And I highly recommend it to everyone.