Reviewed by Chris
TITLE: Sharing Secrets
AUTHOR: Matthew J. Metzger
PUBLISHER: Finch Books
LENGTH: 228 pages
RELEASE DATE: September 5, 2017
BLURB:
Adam has a secret. But maybe Charlie has a few of his own.
Adam’s got a secret and nobody knows.
He’s promised himself never to get into relationships and risk revealing it, but Charlie Fielding has a way of getting under one’s skin. One party, one kiss and Adam is faced with a horrible choice—tell Charlie the truth or keep quiet. And either way, lose the only friends he’s had in years.
But Charlie might have a secret, too—and everybody knows but Adam.
REVIEW:
Nobody knows.
Adam has a secret. One he had repeatedly failed to keep hidden over the course of his life…but he is determined that this time no one will find out. A new school, with new friends, should make that easy. Adam knows the rules, what not to do, what not to say. As long as nobody knows, he’s safe. But his not-so-secret crush on his friend Charlie threatens to upset all his plans. Because Charlie has a secret too.
Yeah…I loved this. Huge shocker, I know. 😛
Once again Matthew J. Metzger gives us an excellent book full of great characters, wonderful twists, and just such a damn good story that I’m left quite bereft when it ends. And if I didn’t like being kicked in the feels so damn much I would curse his name. Seeing as I am not quite recovered from his last novel release, I can say I’m a bit relieved to return to his more YA centered stories. I’d say I’ve come full circle, but it is more of a spiral…a never-ending book-buying spiral.
Sharing Secrets, is a good summary about what this book is about. Both Adam and Charlie have secrets–but they are not the ones you think they are. And can I just say I loved the twists in this book. I am not going to give them away, because that would make me a horrible person, but nothing is ever as it seems here. I went in expecting one thing–and while that thing was still there–it was actually one of the few things that didn’t play hugely into the story. And the things I didn’t expect. Damn. Let’s just say, well played.
One of the things I can talk about, though, is how refreshing reading Metzger’s teenage characters is. I just love them. The colorful cursing, the way they act around each other, the way the talk and feel…it makes them relatable. Even though I’ve never met a single school-age English person in my life. And they are all flawed, but not in the exactly the same way. When a author is able to create a character that is Adam or Charlie or Phoebe instead of just “angst-filled teenager 1, 2, etc…” it makes the book worth reading. Because you care about those characters instead of just feeling sorry for those bunch of characters over there. And to make me care at all about teens in a story means that the author knows what he is doing.
While I would not call this a light-read, I also don’t think it was all doom-and-gloom either. Adam and Charlie are both dealing with some pretty heavy things, but there was a sense of hope to this book that I enjoyed. I cried, but I also laughed. I cared enough about the characters to feel with the characters.
If you love reading YA I definitely think this is for you, and if you are anywhere close to the level of fanboy over this author’s work as I am then I doubt I even need to prod you to go buy it. For those on the fence…um, I’d say it is worth the risk. Even if YA isn’t your jam, normally. Metzger is very good at writing characters, and his stories always suck me right in. There hasn’t been a book of his that I’ve ever regretted reading (even the one that nearly killed me with feels and hard limits). I just adore his writing style and this book was so. damn. good.
RATING: 
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