Stacey Barlett writes with compassion for children and partners who experience domestic violence. Barlett’s debut young adult novel Free Sings the Sea opens with a vivid rendering of an isolated home in the Appalachian mountains which the main character, eighteen-year-old Shanna, longs to escape. An unexpected encounter with a stranger not only provides Shanna with a means to rescue her family but a chance at love. Bartlett also highlights the beneficial impact of mental health counseling and positive coping skills to manage a traumatic past.
-Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler, LCMCHA, Certified Prevention Specialist, and author of Whispering Through Water
I loved everything about this insightful, brilliantly written, unputdownable book, and I was not prepared for the way it moved my heart. The author touched on some heavy topics with life lessons beautifully woven throughout the pages. “Free Sings the Sea” is a wonderful, heartbreaking, hope-filled story reminding readers to never give up, that healing is possible, and love really can move mountains.
-Kathryn M. Inman, Author of Counting Spoons
Free Sings the Sea is more than a beautiful love story. It is a hope story, a friendship story, a story about perseverance and survival. You will cheer for Shanna as she seeks a fresh start for her family, and her pluck and kindness will touch your heart. This novel is a huge hug!
-Melissa Ostrom, author of The Beloved Wild and Unleaving
Free Sings the Sea is a heartwarming story of healing and recovery. The characters are vulnerable, yet courageous and you can't help but root for them. There are strong themes throughout of resilience, kindness, and mental health, as well as the restorative power of nature and friendship.
-Brieanna Wilkoff, author of I’ll Be There For You
This book was nothing less than beautiful. This story depicts courage and bravery to face the monster of domestic abuse. And wonderfully paints a picture of love in all its forms.
-Angela Hughes, author of The Once and Future Chronicles series
-Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler, LCMCHA, Certified Prevention Specialist, and author of Whispering Through Water
I loved everything about this insightful, brilliantly written, unputdownable book, and I was not prepared for the way it moved my heart. The author touched on some heavy topics with life lessons beautifully woven throughout the pages. “Free Sings the Sea” is a wonderful, heartbreaking, hope-filled story reminding readers to never give up, that healing is possible, and love really can move mountains.
-Kathryn M. Inman, Author of Counting Spoons
Free Sings the Sea is more than a beautiful love story. It is a hope story, a friendship story, a story about perseverance and survival. You will cheer for Shanna as she seeks a fresh start for her family, and her pluck and kindness will touch your heart. This novel is a huge hug!
-Melissa Ostrom, author of The Beloved Wild and Unleaving
Free Sings the Sea is a heartwarming story of healing and recovery. The characters are vulnerable, yet courageous and you can't help but root for them. There are strong themes throughout of resilience, kindness, and mental health, as well as the restorative power of nature and friendship.
-Brieanna Wilkoff, author of I’ll Be There For You
This book was nothing less than beautiful. This story depicts courage and bravery to face the monster of domestic abuse. And wonderfully paints a picture of love in all its forms.
-Angela Hughes, author of The Once and Future Chronicles series
Free Sings the Sea by Stacey Bartlett is a raw and unforgettable story of domestic violence, abuse, escape, courage, healing, and recovery. Shanna is an eighteen-year-old who lives with her mother, sister, and mean stepdad in the North Carolina mountains. She often finds solace in the woods near her house. When her sister tells her that their stepdad will hurt their mother again, Shanna promises her she will find a way to escape from him. She knows no one will come to save them. However, one day, Shanna meets someone who will either be the friend she longs for or the one she'll fall in love with. Shortly after, a plan of action gives Shanna the hope and strength she needs. Will Shanna's plan work? Will she save her mother and sister from their violent stepfather?
Free Sings the Sea is a pitch-perfect portrait of women caught in the trap of domestic violence and breaking the cycle of abuse. It effectively explores the complexity of fighting for your freedom, not letting the world beat you down, moving forward, and starting anew. Shanna's determination and strong personality make her a memorable character who has the potential to inspire and empower readers to take charge of their lives and get where they want to be in life. Stacey Bartlett's hopeful story accurately captures a young woman's determination to save her family and find a safe place where they're finally free, no matter the obstacles. It is a heartfelt debut coming-of-age novel combining romance and suspense that will appeal to the hearts and minds of young adults and adults.
Free Sings the Sea is a pitch-perfect portrait of women caught in the trap of domestic violence and breaking the cycle of abuse. It effectively explores the complexity of fighting for your freedom, not letting the world beat you down, moving forward, and starting anew. Shanna's determination and strong personality make her a memorable character who has the potential to inspire and empower readers to take charge of their lives and get where they want to be in life. Stacey Bartlett's hopeful story accurately captures a young woman's determination to save her family and find a safe place where they're finally free, no matter the obstacles. It is a heartfelt debut coming-of-age novel combining romance and suspense that will appeal to the hearts and minds of young adults and adults.
-Reviewed by Emma Megan for Readers' Favorite
“Free Sings the Sea” is an exquisite tale of hope over adversity where the promise of freedom for the female characters had me turning the pages into the wee hours to quell my craving.
Shanna’s fierce sense of protection towards her younger sister and mother shone as brightly as the moon over the misty, Blue Ridge Mountains—and it is from these soaring mountains and plush valleys nestling their trailer—where I embarked upon my journey of willing the characters to overcome the obstacles stacked against them from the festering cruelty of the antagonist stepfather and husband, Travis.
The backdrop of some of Mother Nature’s finest creations cocooning the cruel terror that existed in the family trailer lent a poetic, breath-holding slant — the expectant universe waiting for growth and freedom to bloom.
The striking scenery, a salve for the darker themes that lurked throughout this story, was beautifully captured by the author: I could smell the pine trees in the woods, zigzag through them while running free with the wild deer, taste the ripe pears, be enthralled by the horse under that big ol’ moon. Exquisite fairytale vibes of snaking danger coiling through the natural beauty and seemingly elusive escape from terror.
There’s a realistic depiction of the insidious and progressive nature of Domestic Abuse. The survival tactics used by the characters expertly captures the strategies utilised by victims of DA: the placement of the glass of water the night before, the creeping about the trailer and grounds, the various tones of voice used to placate the perpetrator, and the expert skills honed by victims to analyse said perpetrator’s current, twisted deployment.
This book was fantastic in creating the atmospheric tension: “Lia cries and pulls the blanket tightly over her head, because everyone knows that if you hide under a blanket, the monster in the room can’t get you. This one can, though. My one thought is to get him away from her and Mom who’s asleep at the end of the hall. And I need to do it fast.”
Travis’ dark character, and the abusive relationship he has with Shanna’s mother, is juxtaposed with the parallel relationship between Shanna and Free, a burgeoning bond that depicts the healthy tenets of a relationship built on trust, friendship, and boundary establishment, but mostly, respect.
This novel was a beautiful and satisfying read. Where there was tension, there was tenderness. Heartbreak turned to hope. Moments of despondent despair, balanced by delectable victory, and where a delicious denouement occurs and the nuanced title continued to wash over me long after I closed the final page…
Shanna’s fierce sense of protection towards her younger sister and mother shone as brightly as the moon over the misty, Blue Ridge Mountains—and it is from these soaring mountains and plush valleys nestling their trailer—where I embarked upon my journey of willing the characters to overcome the obstacles stacked against them from the festering cruelty of the antagonist stepfather and husband, Travis.
The backdrop of some of Mother Nature’s finest creations cocooning the cruel terror that existed in the family trailer lent a poetic, breath-holding slant — the expectant universe waiting for growth and freedom to bloom.
The striking scenery, a salve for the darker themes that lurked throughout this story, was beautifully captured by the author: I could smell the pine trees in the woods, zigzag through them while running free with the wild deer, taste the ripe pears, be enthralled by the horse under that big ol’ moon. Exquisite fairytale vibes of snaking danger coiling through the natural beauty and seemingly elusive escape from terror.
There’s a realistic depiction of the insidious and progressive nature of Domestic Abuse. The survival tactics used by the characters expertly captures the strategies utilised by victims of DA: the placement of the glass of water the night before, the creeping about the trailer and grounds, the various tones of voice used to placate the perpetrator, and the expert skills honed by victims to analyse said perpetrator’s current, twisted deployment.
This book was fantastic in creating the atmospheric tension: “Lia cries and pulls the blanket tightly over her head, because everyone knows that if you hide under a blanket, the monster in the room can’t get you. This one can, though. My one thought is to get him away from her and Mom who’s asleep at the end of the hall. And I need to do it fast.”
Travis’ dark character, and the abusive relationship he has with Shanna’s mother, is juxtaposed with the parallel relationship between Shanna and Free, a burgeoning bond that depicts the healthy tenets of a relationship built on trust, friendship, and boundary establishment, but mostly, respect.
This novel was a beautiful and satisfying read. Where there was tension, there was tenderness. Heartbreak turned to hope. Moments of despondent despair, balanced by delectable victory, and where a delicious denouement occurs and the nuanced title continued to wash over me long after I closed the final page…
-5 star review, Corrie Tait
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