Fragile Line by Brooklyn Skye

*based on an ARC edition

     I was wildly impressed by Fragile Line. The novel takes us into the shared brain of Ellie and Gwen, who share the memories of horrific abuse in their childhood. The thing is, Gwen was created by Ellie to protect her from the pain; it's called dissociative personality disorder (what used to be called multiple personality disorder). Ellie starts experiencing blackouts, losing time, discovering things she did without remembering she did them. She meets a boy named Griffin who calls her Gwen. She punches her boyfriend's best friend and doesn't know why. Slowly memories start seeping in from the first 6 years of her life, and they start to paint a picture of why she is covered in scars and has no memory of why. 
    I have a degree in psychology, and initially I was concerned on how DID was going to be portrayed here. There is a lot of discussion among psychologists on whether or not it exists at all; there's only been two documented cases ever. Many more have claimed it but have been debunked. However, Fragile Line manages to illustrate the dichotomy of what is real and what is not for someone with this disorder. Gwen is an alter, created after Ellie was born, and thus we can think she's not real. But as I read the story from her perspective I felt truly sad for her, because she is as real as Ellie. I felt the most sympathy for Ellie's alter; more, in fact, than I did for Ellie herself. 
   If I have a complaint, it's not about the writing, or the story, it's about the character of Shane, who is Ellie's boyfriend and most likely the least understanding boy on the planet (until a doctor confirms what Ellie had been trying to explain to him throughout the first half of the book). If I told my boyfriend I was having blackouts, and losing time, and along with that I was exhibiting behavior totally contrary to my personality, and all he did was say I was making it up and I was a total bitch...well, I wouldn't care too much about whether or not he forgave anything I did. Seriously, if he loved her he would have listened to her when she told him something was really wrong with her. But other than that, Fragile Line was masterfully done. It was suspenseful, well-researched, and compelling. 

We Are The Goldens by Dana Reinhardt

*based on an ARC edition

   We Are The Goldens is a solid, enjoyable novel for the 15 to 18 set. The novel is written in the form of a long letter from one sibling, Nell, to her older sister, Layla, who has gotten herself into a situation she shouldn't be in. Nell's voice is candid, funny, and dry, and she is engaging as a narrator. She is a younger sister whose entire life and self-worth has been wrapped up in her hero worship of her sibling, and as these things often do, Layla has grown past her. And Nell, too, is experiencing the highs and lows of being a teenager starting high school, with confusing feelings for her male best friend to an ill-fated crush on the wrong boy. She is describing her perception of their lives to Layla, trying to make her understand why she is going to do this thing she is going to do, and is desperately hoping that the good times she remembers with Layla won't be a thing of the past.
     I'll be honest, I thought this was going in a more sinister direction than it actually took. I would consider this a snapshot into these two girl's lives, seen through the eyes of the sibling who knows her whole world is going to change as soon as she puts down the pen. As an older reader, I could appreciate the bond of sisterhood through the filter of time, as well as the bad boy experiences, so I would say that even the older readers could find something to appreciate in this straightforward and candid book. It's a definite recommend.