When I think back about this book, I remember it as more of a story about a girl dealing with grief over her sister, not so much about teenage pregnancy. This for me is a good thing, it means I wasn’t preached against the horrors of teen pregnancy, but at the same time we were shown how hard this was for Mandy. There were times when I wanted to yell at Mandy to grow up, for example, the first time she sees Kamram with Delaney she freaks out, at the time they were doing nothing wrong and had done nothing up to that point, so why was her reaction so strong? I also thought at times she was a bit of a spoilt brat, she thinks it was unfair that her parents wouldn’t support her and the baby and look after it while she goes to college, that’s her job not theirs. I loved the girls’ dad, he really loved his daughters and tried so hard for the family, but the mother I just wanted to shoot, she has some serious issues. Kamran was an ok character, there are times when you can see that he cares for Mandy and just got caught up in all the shock, but I would have thought he’d have been able to see through Delaney sooner. I thought Shelly was a great character and would love to hear more of her story.
The storyline is what really captured me with this book, there is so much to it, you have lies, secrets, teen pregnancy, death, family issues, friendship, the list just goes on and on, but it’s not in your face either.
Overall I liked this book and would read another by Holly Cupala

My full review, plus others, can be found here. ( )

TELL ME A SECRET is the story of a girl with a tragic past determined to find a hopeful future.

When I picked up TELL ME A SECRET I was expecting a straightforward story about a pregnant teen girl experiencing the issues that immediately jump to my mind: shocked parents, absent boyfriend, and maturity issues. Holly Cupala surprised me though; her debut is so much deeper than that. Miranda endures horrible treatment at the hands of her parents, classmates, and boyfriend, but she remains strong and fights for what she believes is right.

When Miranda first suspects she may be pregnant, she makes the decision to keep it a secret and avoids taking a prenancy test. She waits months to take the test, preferring to live in ignorance rather than face the facts. Though I was angered by Miranda's actions, I could understand why she made those choices. In fact, I've known teen mothers who waited as long as possible before finally taking the test, so I know that it isn't a far fetched idea. I'm thankful that, while Miranda didn't want to see the proof, she still knew, deep down, that she was pregnant and she avoided alcohol and other teratogens that could seriously harm the baby.

The novel is largely about Miranda's pregnancy, but it was her connection and relationship with her sister, Xanda, that I found most compelling. Xanda, and her death, have had an enormous impact on Miranda. Miranda constantly looks to her memories and the Xanda that resides in her mind for guidance. Xanda was definitely not a horrible person, but she also is not the person Miranda idolizes. It was interesting to see the vast differences between Miranda's childhood perceptions of Xanda and who she really was.. the good and the bad.

Holly Cupala proves that she can, and will, tackle difficult material with TELL ME A SECRET - I can't wait to see what she takes on next! ( )

This review will be a bit different because this is my first audio book ever (well except for The Lion the Witch and The Wardrobe that we had to read along to in third grade). So, I will do this in two parts and try to separate the story from the audio.

The Audio:

I have decided I don't like audio books. Not this one specifically, just in general. I find it extremely difficult to concentrate and found myself missing details. The audio was not bad, I just couldn't focus. Actually, I really enjoyed the reader's many voices. It was easy to differentiate between characters, so that was not as big as a problem as I thought it would be. My only issue with the voices is that the one she used for Essence was so annoying I wanted to punch things. Other than that, if you like audio, this was very good quality (then again, I have no real reference material).

The Book:

I read Cupala's second book before reading this one (both standalones) so I had guesses of what to expect from her writing style. If you're wondering what that is, it would be a heartbreaking story, a hopeful ending and great character development and plotting. Did I get that? Definitely.

Miranda - Rand for short - is still living in the shadow of her dead sister. More accurately, she would give anything to just be like her. When she becomes pregnant and catapults from the "good daughter" to just as screwed up as the dead one, her whole life changes. When secrets come out that changes everything she felt and knew... the future looks even more uncertain. Rand has to learn to separate herself from a future of thinking in her sister's past in order to become her own person and truly be happy for the first time in over five years.

I decided with this novel that I will read anything that Cupala writes. She has a way of tackling a really difficult situation in a heartbreaking yet hopeful way while still depicting it very realistically. This is a hard task to complete! The only way to really describe how I felt while hearing this novel was that I wanted to pull Rand out of her world and hug her. To give her all the love and attention that she is deprived from. That may be Cupala's true talent - making the characters so real that the reader has no choice but to feel for them.

If you are a fan of self-suffering in the form of heart wrenching literature, read this one. In other words, if you like serious contemporaries, I would recommend Tell Me a Secret. ( )

Miranda, no, Rand is a girl with secrets. Yes, we all have secrets but not many of us have secrets that could forever change the landscape of the lives of everyone surrounding us. Unfortunately for Rand her secrets have huge consequences. And it’s just one of many secrets that have sent her and her family in a continuous downward spiral even since before she was born.

Do you keep secrets? Secrets can be some of the most damaging things we carrying with us. Sometimes we do it because we think we are protecting others and then there are the times we are protecting ourselves. As the theme carries throughout the story from character to character you slowly discover that the secrets in Rand’s life began before her birth and don’t ever seem to stop. Again, some are kept with the best of intentions, like those from her mother, and others are intentionally kept from her, including those from her so-called friend Delaney. The most tragic secret is of course the one kept from her by her late sister Xanda.

Holly Cupala’s debut novel, Tell Me A Secret, is a tremendously well written story that explores not only the relationships we have with those around us, but the choices we make and their impact. It’s not often that I find myself enjoying a story about a young girl, still in high school, who after some poor choices ends up pregnant, but Rand was an amazing character. She was incredibly likable and I found myself relating to many of her doubts from when I was a teenager. Didn’t we all question whether there was that guy that would still like us after spilled some of our deepest feelings? Or wonder about the girls around us and whether their intentions were pure? There are so many feelings that get wrapped up into being a teenager and Cupala did a brilliant job communicating each of them in her novel.

It’s almost difficult to believe Tell Me A Secret is a debut novel. Holly Cupala does such an amazing job illustrating each facet of teenage life without sounding condescending or out of touch. Each of the characters in the book brought something different to the experience, even the minor ones. I’m also not an advocate of teenage pregnancy, but Cupala handled a touchy situation with finesse. Without a doubt Tell Me A Secret is a book I would eagerly share with readers of almost any age, especially those that enjoy a well written young adult novel.

Originally reviewed and copyrighted at There's A Book. ( )

TELL ME A SECRET, by Holly Cupala, was a sensational story about teenage pregnancy and the impact it has on everyone involved. Cupala creatively weaved the past and present into one intriguingly original tale. Each chapter dug a little deeper into this family's tragic past as the present situation unfolded keeping me guessing until the very end.

I immediately became emotionally connected to the characters in this book. Mandy was an amazing heroine. Since Xanda played the role of rebel while Mandy was the angel, her being pregnant escalated the tension at home. But Mandy dealt with her church-going mother and workaholic father the best she could. Kamran was definitely a change in pace as a not-so-typical love interest. His shady relationship with Mandy's best friend, Delaney, made my heart ache for Mandy, who was dealing with so much on her own. And Delaney... I don't know anyone who will read this book and not want to smack her. She was such a drama-queen, and I don't know how Mandy was able to stay friends with her for so long. I suppose it was because Xanda's death truly changed who Mandy wanted to be and what life she would make for herself. Even with the many strikes against Mandy, she succeeded in staying honest with herself and always tried to do what was right.

Cupala composed such an heart-rendering book. Specific scenes that come to mind was the night Xanda died and the entire time that Mandy was in the hospital. After finishing the book, I took a deeper look into the title and its meaning. There were so many instances of secrets being kept and exploited it was astonishing. Each new revealing secret was bigger than the previous and it's what made this book pretty fantastic. ( )