BOOK REVIEW: A Danger to Herself and Others by Alyssa Sheinmel

Title: A Danger to Herself and Others
Author: Alyssa Sheinmel
Publication: February 5, 2019
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Genre: YA Fiction, Teen, Mental Illness
Pages: 352

SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)

Only when she’s locked away does the truth begin to escape… 

Four walls. One window. No way to escape. Hannah knows there’s been a mistake. She didn’t need to be institutionalized. What happened to her roommate at her summer program was an accident. As soon as the doctors and judge figure out that she isn’t a danger to herself or others, she can go home to start her senior year. In the meantime, she is going to use her persuasive skills to get the staff on her side.

Then Lucy arrives. Lucy has her own baggage. And she may be the only person who can get Hannah to confront the dangerous games and secrets that landed her in confinement in the first place.

REVIEW:

**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

What I got was not what I was expecting from A Dang er to Herself and Others by Alyssa Sheinmel. I was expecting a bit of a mystery and then maybe a happily ever after once the mystery was solved. That was definitely not it.

The story follows Hannah as she is put into a psychiatric facility after her best friend at a summer program has a tragic accident and she is blamed. Hating her stay, but trying to pretend she’s doing everything she is suppose to so they will let her out, Lucy moves in to her room. Instead of a little company, Lucy ends up being the one person that might help Hannah come to terms with everything going on inside her.

Twisty. That’s one word I would describe this book as. Alyssa Sheinmel had me fooled for a good chunk of this book, and then when I thought I figured it out, I was convinced my mind was just playing tricks on me and I had it backwards yet again. Hannah is weird and Sheinmel wants you to feel that way I think. She’s the awkward kid in school and she can make people uncomfortable with her smarts, her over-achieving ways, and the oddity that just seems to be Hannah. That plays over for the reader. The characters leave much to be known, but give just enough away to make you yearn for more and want to know more about their lives. The only little issue I had was that sometimes it flowed slower than I’d like, which caused my interest to wain. It would always pick up after a bit, I just wanted it to maintain the intense suspense like the majority of the story.

A Danger to Herself and Others is a true psychological thriller that will have you guessing your own sanity along the way. Alyssa Sheinmel wrote a steady flowing mystery that kept me wanting to know what the end outcome was going to be. Anyone would enjoy this story and should pick up a copy. I’ll be checking out more from Alyssa Sheinmel.

STAR RATING: 4/5

Pick up your copy of A Danger to Herself and Others by Alyssa Sheinmel on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or a bookstore near you. Make sure to add it to your To Reads list on Goodreads and leave feedback for the author when you are finished. You can also check out more of her novels here on her website!

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