Synopsis

Eighteen-year-old Amelia Griffin is obsessed with the famous Orman Chronicles, written by the young and reclusive prodigy N. E. Endsley. They’re the books that brought her and her best friend Jenna together after Amelia’s father left and her family imploded. So when Amelia and Jenna get the opportunity to attend a book festival with Endsley in attendance, Amelia is ecstatic. It’s the perfect way to start off their last summer before college.

In a heartbeat, everything goes horribly wrong. When Jenna gets a chance to meet the author and Amelia doesn’t, the two have a blowout fight like they’ve never experienced. And before Amelia has a chance to mend things, Jenna is killed in a freak car accident. Grief-stricken, and without her best friend to guide her, Amelia questions everything she had planned for the future.

When a mysterious, rare edition of the Orman Chronicles arrives, Amelia is convinced that it somehow came from Jenna. Tracking the book to an obscure but enchanting bookstore in Michigan, Amelia is shocked to find herself face-to-face with the enigmatic and handsome N. E. Endsley himself, the reason for Amelia’s and Jenna’s fight and perhaps the clue to what Jenna wanted to tell her all along.

Ashley Schumacher’s devastating and beautiful debut, Amelia Unabridged, is about finding hope and strength within yourself, and maybe, just maybe, falling in love while you do it.

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Review

What an unexpected book. I started this, not knowing what to expect (and I didn’t go back and read the synopsis) and I was drawn in from the start and had a hard time putting the book down. It was only when my eyes were drooping did I put the book down. Something woke me early this morning and so of course I picked up the book and finished reading it because I had to know how the book ended.

This book is heavier than what you might expect, it deals with death/dying, grief, and guilt. But it also has wonderment, friendship, and hope for the future.

I loved the friendship between Jenna and Amelia. While it might have seemed one sided, you could see how Jenna and her family cared about Amelia by taking her in and treating her like one of the family. However, part of that friendship did cause Amelia to feel like she had to do certain things because it was what Jenna wanted and because she died, Amelia feels obligated to keep those dreams alive.  But at what cost?  That is part of the journey for Amelia to discover her dreams and passions without Jenna.

I really enjoyed Amelia’s trip to Michigan to discover where this book came from and who sent it to her. In her wildest dreams, she never expects to meet the author herself in this quaint little town. But he has some secrets of his own that keep him from living a full life. The interaction between these two is heart-wrenchingly good. (ok that is probably not a word but how I felt reading the book).

There are a few other characters (Alex and Val) that bring some levity to the story, but they are only looking out for Nolan. You can see the love for each other that has spanned many years.

These are a few of my favorite lines:

“What have you done with my devil-may-care friend?” I grin, “I canoodled him.”

Jenna ordered informational pamphlets from the top three contenders on what I had come to call her College Deathmatch Spreadsheet.

This is beyond bizarre The mighty N.E. Endsley is showing me phone pictures? A fever dream, that’s what this is. I’m dying and this is apparently all my brain can manage to give me in my final moments.

“You must choose, Amelia, what you want your life to be. Only you can provide the courage necessary to tirelessly pursue your choices, and therefore it must be you who decides the path before you.”

“What I wrote made somebody light up from the inside and made her fearsome to behold without her having to move a muscle.”

This book really spoke to my soul and we have to give it 5 paws ups.

About the Author

ASHLEY SCHUMACHER is a young adult author with a degree in creative writing from the University of North Texas. She lives in a small town with her antisocial but lovable husband and more books than is strictly necessary. When she’s not reading or writing, you can find her belting Disney or Broadway songs, protecting her snacks from her greedy golden retriever, hand embroidering, or playing Mario Kart. Amelia Unabridged is her first novel. She lives in Dallas, Texas.

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