Title: What The Other Three Don’t Know
Author: Spencer Hyde
Publisher: Shadow Mountain Publishing
Publication date: March 3rd, 2020
224 pages
3/5 stars
Goodreads Synopsis
Will I still be loved if I show people who I really am?
Four high school seniors. Four secrets about to be told.
If Indie had it her way, she would never choose to river raft with three other high school seniors, mostly strangers to each other, from her journalism class.
A loner, a jock, an outsider, an Instagram influencer. At first they can’t see anything that they have in common. As the trip unfolds, the unpredictable river forces them to rely on each other. Social masks start to fall as, one-by-one, each teen reveals a deep secret the other three don’t know.
One is harboring immense grief and unwilling to forgive after the death of a loved one. One is dealing with a new disability and an uncertain future. One is fearful of the repercussions of coming out. One is hiding behind a carefully curated “perfect” image on Instagram.
Before they get to the end of Hells Canyon, they’ll know the truth about each other and, more importantly, learn something new about themselves.
What the Other Three Don’t Know is a poignant and gripping YA novel about the unlikely friends who accept you for who you really are and the power of self-acceptance.
Review
**Thank you to Shadow Mountain Publishing, Netgalley, and Spencer Hyde for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review**
What the Other Three Don’t Know tells the tale of 4 high school students who are going rafting down the rapids over summer vacation as part of a class they are taking in the next school year. Each student has their own drama, which we learn for about as the book goes on. The students are not friends, so it has a “Breakfast Club” type feel to it because of how they don’t get along in the beginning.
I have to say, this book did not do it for me. I was struggling to get through the first half and powered through the second half because I knew if I stopped I wouldn’t pick it back up again. The writing was fine, I more had an issue with the characters. I didn’t feel drawn to or connected with any of them, and their development didn’t mean anything to me. There was a weird dynamic between the students, which was seen during dialogue they were having with each other.
There was some action to this ending, which almost made up for the rest of it. I would have liked to see the book almost extend, to get some of the information about what happened when they went back to school. Like the Breakfast Club, you don’t get to see that piece of it.
If you are a fan of the Breakfast Club or morally ambiguous characters who don’t get along super well, I would definitely give this a shot. Also, if you like outdoor adventure settings in books.
Happy reading, bookish friends! 🙂
Baltimore Bibliophile 