THE ACCIDENTALS by SARINA BOWN

“Have you found what you were looking for here?”
Have I? I still don’t know…”I’m working on it,” I say.

The Accidentals is a wonderfully emotional YA from Sarina Bowen, one of our much-loved Authors.  A coming of age story where a seventeen year old girl is facing a tragedy whilst at the same time having to face a confusing and much-needed confrontation with the past thereby exposing vulnerability and her childlike need for love and acceptance. We loved the family dynamics of this story and how the romance took a back seat to a father and long-lost daughter finding their feet under testing circumstances.

“I’m almost used to you now,” I whisper. He does not reply.’

Rachel was a complex character. Whilst we sympathised with her tremendously we also faced great frustration at her character. Whilst yes she’s young, we did find it odd and ‘un-teenage like’ not to want to find out more on where she came from, how and what exactly happened to place her in the situation she finds herself in. She’s had to overcome so much in her short life and her present and future looks heart-breaking as she tries to find herself and where she belongs. Such a sweet and lovable girl who at moments through the book had us welling up.

‘Our relationship is like an experiment gone awry. Maybe my father and I will never be able to hear each other properly because so much of our beginning was spliced off and thrown away.’

Rachel knows who her Dad is; through his lyrics, his music and stalking him on social media. We broke at the almost lost puppy like behaviour snatching crumbs where they lay. We wanted to grab Rachel out the book and cuddle her something fierce. She’s looking for answers but has no idea on how to actually ask for them, she’s an emotionally closed book at times and her Dad is a bit of an enigma who tries his best but definitely won’t win best Dad award, but when you’re a famous musician living the lifestyle, your father skills do not come naturally overnight. Rachel’s teenage angst and anxiety brought on by the unfamiliar and the loss of the familiar is overwhelming.

‘I can picture Mom looking down…listening to me blend my voice with the others. Standing there, concentrating on the notes, it’s possible to be sad and happy at the same time.’

This was something different from Sarina Bowen and we very much enjoyed it. A beautiful story of hardship and overcoming tragedy. A story of discovering who you are and finding love and belonging where you least expected it. It was highly emotional at times and we loved the romance which brought a ray of sunshine to a girl’s troubled life.