Stacie Ramey

The Sister Pact by Stacie Ramey is an emotional young adult novel that tackles some very difficult subjects such as teen suicide, grief, depression and drug use. It is a realistic and very compelling story that is thought-provoking and ultimately, healing. Due to some of its content, I recommend the novel to older teen (and adult) readers.

In the aftermath of her sister Leah's suicide, Allie Blackmore is grief stricken and haunted by her sister's death. They were incredibly close and as teenagers, they devised a suicide pact. Struggling to understand why her sister ignored their pact and killed herself, Allie begins a downward spiral of using cold medicine and eventually illicitly obtained prescription drugs in an effort to numb her pain. Although she is seeing a psychiatrist, she refuses to open up to her doctor and against medical advice, she stops taking her prescription for anti-depressants. Desperately trying to pick up the pieces of her life, Allie's efforts are hampered by her inability to paint, a toxic relationship with her longtime crush and ghostly appearances by Leah.

Allie is a likable yet incredibly exasperating character. Instead of being honest about how much she is struggling, she keeps insisting everything is "fine". Her relationship with her parents is fraught with tension even before Leah's death and now they are wrapped up in their own grief, Allie is essentially left to deal with her problems on her own. With all of her father's high expectations weighing on her, Allie resents his autocratic orders and dismissive attitude toward her and her mother. Her mom is of absolutely no help since she relies heavily on Xanax to get her through the day and continues to allow her soon to be ex-husband to steamroll over her. It is little wonder Allie chooses unhealthy ways to help cope with her crushing grief and her pain positively radiates off the pages of the novel.

As she tries to understand Leah's decision, Allie keeps going over the events of their last day together. Her memories of their final evening together at a party are hazy but bits and pieces begin to come back to her. Did something out of the ordinary happen to Leah at the party? Do the answers lie in the sisters' dysfunctional home life? The further Allie digs into Leah's life, she is stunned to learn that her sister was keeping many secrets and despite the information she uncovers, she may never discover the reason for Leah's inexplicable decision.

The Sister Pact by Stacie Ramey is a riveting young adult novel that is gritty and unflinchingly honest. What initially drives the story is learning the truth about Allie's family, the reasons for the suicide pact and why Leah committed suicide. However, by the novel's conclusion, it is Allie's journey of self-discovery that holds the reader's attention. All in all, it is a very moving novel that I recommend to adults and older teens.… (altro)

The Secrets We Bury by Stacie Ramey is a young adult novel that sensitively deals with topics of grief and sensory disorders.

Six months shy of his eighteenth birthday, Dylan Taggert runs away from home to avoid being sent to a school for students with a variety of psychological issues. Dylan has a few different sensory problems in addition to not being able to read other people's emotional cues. He also has a few phobias, difficulties staying on task and inappropriate reactions when he cannot handle situations. So, Dylan has decided the solution to his problems is a six month long hike on the Appalachian Trail. With the help of his cousin, Emily, who is also his best friend, Dylan sets off on his adventure where he meets an enigmatic young woman, Sophie and a well-liked, experienced hiker named Rain Main.

Dylan is quite aware of the problems that his issues cause with the people around him but he seems incapable of controlling his disruptive behavior. He knows that running away is going to have an adverse reaction with his mother, but he just cannot deal with going to this new school. He faces many challenges on his hike but he surprisingly manages to power through these issues. Dylan's confidence in himself rises with each obstacle he overcomes and he is surprisingly comfortable with his solitary journey.

Dylan is immediately captivated by another lone hiker he runs into. Despite his difficulty reading other people's emotions, he does accurately assess what some of her actions might indicate. His curiosity about her sometimes leads to intrusive decisions but he is self-aware enough to realize he is invading her privacy. Once they are formally introduced, Dylan is continually surprised by his out of the ordinary his reactions to Sophie.

The other hiker that Dylan meets on his trek is an older man who has vast experience on the Trail. Rain Main (his trail nickname) is an affable hiker who is quite welcoming and very wise. Despite Rain Main's cheery disposition, Dylan is a little uneasy once he discovers some troubling information from other hikers about Rain Main's situation. He is very determined to reach Rain Main but he encounters some difficulties as he strikes out on a mission to reach him before it is too late.

The Secrets We Bury is an engaging young adult novel that tackles some very difficult subject matter in a thoughtful and informative manner. Despite his numerous quirks and sensory dysfunction, Dylan is a surprisingly charming and likable character who undergoes a tremendous amount of personal growth during his adventures on the Appalachian Trail. Stacie Ramey does a wonderful job bringing not only Dylan but also the Trail and the people he encounters vividly to life. An absolutely heartfelt story that will appeal to readers of all ages.… (altro)

The Homecoming by Stacie Ramey is an emotional young adult novel that deals with some difficult subject matter such as drug and alcohol abuse and less directly, teen suicide. It is a true to life, captivating novel of healing that I recommend to older teen and adult readers due to some of the content.

After a tragic accident years earlier left John Strickland's brother Ryan with severe brain damage, his family gradually fell apart. John's parents divorced after months of fighting over their son's treatment plan. Due to his out of control, violent outbursts, John was eventually sent to live with his father whose frequent business trips and long hours left plenty of time for John to cope with his problems with pot and alcohol. As a condition of his probation, he must move back in with mom, Ryan and little sister Livy and submit to random drug tests and attend counseling sessions. His unresolved guilt and anger over Ryan's accident and its aftermath continue to eat away at him and although he has plenty of support from teachers, counselors and next door neighbor, Emily, John continues to turn to drugs and alcohol to numb his out of control emotions. In the aftermath of another accident, will John finally give voice to the emotions that are slowly but surely destroying him and his relationships?

John is an angry young man and it is just a matter of time before all of his rage spills out. He is his own worst enemy as he continually evades discussing what is driving his anger and guilt. Academically, he is an underachiever with a lot of potential but it is not until his school counselor takes an active interest in him that he finds classes that interest him and provide him hope for his future. With his dad's intervention, John is given a chance to join the school's lacrosse team and while this provides an outlet for some of his aggression, his unresolved issues continue to simmer beneath the surface. His interactions with his mother are fraught with tension and her dedication to Ryan's care continues to be a source of contention for John. The one bright spot in his life is his younger sister, Livy, and he will go to great lengths to protect her from the fallout of their shattered family.

One of the most frustrating aspects of The Homecoming is John's refusal to open up about the reasons for his anger and guilt. He has wonderful relationship with his counselor but he barely scratches the surface of his problems during their sessions. Instead of facing his issues head on, John continues to uses pot and alcohol to anesthetize his pain. Even with the threat of his probation being revoked and getting sent to juvie to serve out his sentence, he continues to make poor choices and he deliberately provokes his probation officer. Emily is the only person he feels comfortable enough to confide in but there are topics that he refuses to discuss even with her.

The truth about Ryan's accident is slowly revealed over the course of the novel. The events surrounding John's banishment to his dad's are also withheld for much of the story as well. This slow parceling of details is somewhat frustrating since there is little context for John's behavior or his anger towards his mother. Getting to the crux of the family's problems is what drives the story but it will take a great deal of patience on the reader's part since all of the details are not revealed until the novel's conclusion.

The Homecoming is an emotionally draining yet ultimately healing young adult novel. The characters are immensely flawed and their struggles are realistically portrayed. Narrated in first person from John's perspective, his voice is authentic and he is a sympathetic albeit frustrating protagonist. The story is well-written with a unique storyline and Stacie Ramey deftly handles difficult subject matter with sensitivity. This riveting story provides an unflinchingly honest look at a family's efforts to cope with the emotional fallout from a tragic accident.

Although this is a companion to last year's release, The Sister Pact, it can be read as a standalone.… (altro)