Iceling by Sasha Stephensen

genre: young adult science fiction

Lorna's sister Callie didn't come into her family in the "normal" way.  While Lorna's father was on an Arctic expedition, Callie was just FOUND, on a boat, with hundreds of other babies and although she was adopted into Lorna's family and treated with great care, she is still so different.  She doesn't speak.  At all, or even attempt it.  This means that Lorna has no way of knowing how Callie processes the world and despite how frustrating it can be, she is fiercely loyal to Callie.

And that loyalty is why, one day, Lorna makes a crazy rash decision. And that decision leads to a journey to a frightening and unknown place - and Callie can't even help explain it.

This totally gripped me from the start.  The build up is good, it's a totally intriguing premise and the writing is strong and lyrical.  My biggest gripe: it's super repetitive.  I mean, saying the same thing in different ways A LOT of times.  Yes, it would be hard not to understand the world around you.  YES it would be frustrating to have a person who can't understand the world around her as your sister.  That is driven into the ground a bit too much.  However, I was surprised by how things went down and it was more violent and dark than I'd originally imagined it would be.  The ending was super sudden and I wish I somehow knew ahead of time that this was going to be a series because I would've prepared myself to just be left dangling there.  There were also a few times where I read something that didn't make logistical sense and while it was made clear later, a little better editing would've made for a smoother reading experience.

I would read more, though, after all that.  It's a really intriguing idea, these teenagers with no language of their own and their siblings who won't give up.  I appreciate that bond and how it can make you strong enough to do things you might not have thought you were capable of.