Everything You Are: A Novel

A more haunting book than any I have read in a long time. Braden Healey is a drunk. Not just an alcoholic, but a drunk. He left his family 11 years ago when his wife made a demand he could not live with. As a result of that demand, Braden has memories he canʼt, won't, and refuses to remember. When he was a young boy, as a musical prodigy, his mother took him to a music store to buy him a new violin. By the time he left the store, he did not have a violin, rather a cello and a signed contract with old luthier. Years pass and Braden is a musician of great renown. There is a conflict in his family, which drives him away. He came home when his 17 year old daughter is left alone after another family tragedy, a car accident which killed her mother and brother. His daughter, never understanding the conflicts between adults, is not at all happy to see him, and made that very clear in the most horrible way a parent can face. Both blame themselves for the accident. Are they to blame? After the old luthier dies, his granddaughter, Phee, takes over the music shop. He had taught her everything he knew before he passed, including the details of the contracts. Yes, more than one. She was tasked with looking after the musicians who signed the contracts, as well as continue the family tradition of making and repairing stringed instruments. The consequences of not following through with the contract, in this instance, were the driving force of the book. Phee takes her responsibility to remind those who signed the contracts to live up to them intensely. Other than Braden, there is only one other musician who did not live up to his end of the bargain written about; Braden got off lucky when he broke his end of the bargain. The other person was able to continue to honor his end — Braden got off lucky. Or did he? His daughter became the musician her father no longer was. I read this in one sitting. I did not feel time pass; I was engrossed in this story. I did not get up for anything. I read this book. The characters are engaging, even at their worst. Not all the characters are likeable. One character in particular is not likeable at all (reminding me of several people I have known). I was yelling at the interaction between this character and another. I was angry the author took the easy way out to complete this one storyline, but realize how necessary it was to continue the rest of the story without distraction. Admittedly, I cried at the end. Tears of release, tears of joy, and tears the book was done. Not everything was tied up in a pretty little bow, and the ending for some characters was left for the reader to infer. The tears the book was done was solely because I wanted to know more about this lovely world the author created for us. The author has a firm grip on teenage girls and their thought processes, even if it appears they don't think, just do what they believe is right at the time. The adults are more questionable, but that is part of the joy of the book. We can figure out the teens, but what are the adults up to? Lots of surprises there. The genre of the story is hard to fit. Fiction? Check. Magical realism? Check. Fantasy? I would not say so. I would prefer this book to have the ability to happen. Folklore with a musical background? Perhaps. The music is definitely there. The entire story is about music and those who make it. I would love to say there are other authors a reader may have read who can touch a heart as much as this does, but I cannot. Giving this only five stars seems to be an injustice, and deserves many more. It is obvious the author put her heart and soul into this book, and for that, she deserves more than five stars. Who knew I would love a book about a cello so much?

I read a lot of books but I've never read anything quite like Everything You Are. Perhaps "magical realism" would be an appropriate genre as there is a strong element of the supernatural woven into the plot. Very well written, at times so intense that I had to force myself to keep reading, with flawed but completely engaging characters. I happen to be a hypnotherapist and appreciated the realistic depiction of hypnotherapy. I really wish half-stars were available for these reviews as I would have been happy to give this original novel 4-1\2 stars.

Everything You Are Kerry Anne King Lake Union Pub, Oct 1, 2019 331 pages Women’s Lit, Adult Lit, Contemporary Fiction Amazon Early Releases ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The cover is lovely and makes me think of the bouquet of flowers that Phee shows up with when all the other flowers are formal funeral arrangements. Her flowers are bright and cheerful. Phee is always a bit different. I like the touch of the marks that are used on either side of the words “a novel” that look like fs. These same markings are found on musical instruments, such as cellos, which play such a major role in the story. The story is amazing. I realized that it was being released tomorrow and had stopped at 80% last night when I went to bed. So I finished reading it this morning and sat down to write this review immediately. I want this posted before the book is released so you all know just how wonderful this book is. It’s one of those that will make you cry in places and make you want to shake people at times or maybe give them a good swift kick in the butt. Or at least a good talking to. Phee is the character that the story starts out with and she is the one who holds it all in place until the end when it swings back to her. But the active story seems to really focus on Braden Healey, a gifted cellist with damaged hands, and his 17-year-old daughter, Allie, also a gifted cellist. Braden and his now late wife were estranged for 11 years while he was an alcoholic, amnesiac, and living totally away from all of his family and friends. Allie was taking cello lessons her father was providing funds for while her mother was trying to get her into pre-med school and keep her life strictly regimented. Phee was maintaining the cello as was called for in the life-long contract Braden had signed at the age of ten with Phee’s grandfather. And this is where the magic part comes in… Yes, I said magic. The cello has a soul which Braden feels when he plays the cello. Phee feels the soul of the cello as well. She was there in the shop the day he signed the contract, and somehow she got caught up in the loop of magic. She has been in love with Braden and his cello ever since. Even for the eleven years when he was among the missing, or unknown, when he was away from the cello not playing. Allie also feels the soul of the cello now that she plays it. I don’t want to give away any more of this beautiful story of forgiveness and love. I can’t recommend it highly enough for those of you who enjoy such tales. Damaged people helping people, finding forgiveness and finding resolution, finding love. I definitely give this one five stars and highly recommend it. This is an author I’d like to read more of. Thank you, Amazon for offering this book as an Early Release this month.

I enjoyed this book, even though there were a few things that I didn't care for. While the majority of the story was interesting and captivating, the ending felt as if it had not been fully thought out. The depth that was present through 70% of the novel faded toward the end. Part of my attraction to this book was because the protagonist was a cellist. As a classical pianist, I tend to over analyze books that have music at their core. While I did find the idea of being bound to one's instrument intriguing, there was one mistake in the book. The character, Braden, flippant says to an Uber driver, "Beethoven didn't write for cello." In fact, Beethoven composed several cello sonatas between 1825 and 1828. There are also some earlier sonatas for cello and piano, in 1796. While that is probably a minor issue to most readers, Braden was a character who lived his life for music, so he should have known this. A little fact checking on King's part would have helped. Plot aside, there was a fixation on dog slobber. While it initially helped me to imagine the type of dog it was, King mentioned it almost every time the dog was in a scene. After a while, the description became redundantly disgusting. Yuck. I began to dread any mention of the dog, particularly if I was eating while reading. So not necessary. LOL

“Everything You Are" by Kerry Anne King is an interesting novel that is parts mystery/suspense and part fantasy. Phee has turned eighteen and discovers that she is taking over her grandfather’s business, which includes inheriting many of the superstitions and curses that apparently accompany certain stringed instruments. Each instrument has a soul and only the right person can be entrusted with caring for it. One of Phee’s responsibilities is to make sure that certain people who did sign a contract for an instrument continue to play it, or there could be a devastating effect. Phee’s grandfather sold Braden his cello. Though he had a lucrative career, he is unable to play and lives in an alcoholic haze. Because his ex-wife and son were killed in an accident, he returns home to mend the estranged relationship he has with his daughter, Allie. One of Phee’s responsibilities is to reunite Braden with his cello and make sure he plays again. King expertly moves the reader through the different point of views and plot lines, the latter of which is peppered with plenty of folklore. Yet, King also addresses more realistic topics such as infidelity and forgiveness. The author did a fair job is developing the majority of the characters (especially Phee); I cared enough about them to keep reading. This is the first novel I have read by King, but I am eager to now go through her previous works. If you are looking to read something different, I highly recommend this book. I'd like to thank NetGalley for providing me an advanced copy.

Bravo! Kerry Anne King, Author of "Everything You Are" has orchestrated such an intense, captivating, fascinating, unique, emotional, symbolic and thought-provoking and suspenseful novel. The Genres for this novel are Fiction, Magical Realism, Fantasy, Folklore with a Musical Background. The timeline for this story is in the present and goes to the past when it pertains to the events or characters in the story. The author has vividly described her setting and characters leading to a certain pattern. The author describes her dramatic characters as complex, complicated, flawed and stressed. Can you imagine a musical instrument choosing YOU to caress it, take care of it, and play it? Phee MacPhee has not only inherited her Grandfather's Musical shop, but also some dark secrets and unusual promises. Phee's grandfather claims that he re-built many instruments after World War Two, and they consist of terrible memories during that time. The instruments have a soul, just as music has a soul. It is Phee's job to ensure that certain people who did sign a contract for an instrument continue to play it, or there could be a devastating effect. Braden Healey was chosen by a cello from Phee's grandfather shop. Braden had a successful musical career until there was a terrible accident. Braden claims he can't play the cello anymore. His daughter Allie now plays it. Unfortunately, tragedy occurs, where Phee has to find Braden immediately. Kerry Anne's vivid descriptions remind me of "Peter and the Wolf",(Serge Prokofiev) where the instruments tell a story. I can almost choose an instrument for each character, in this story. There is such a magical and mystical feel to this story. There is so much symbolism in this story!! Kerry Anne King describes the importance of facing your problems, seeking help, the importance of family, friends, forgiveness, communication, love, and hope. I highly recommend this thought-provoking story.

Give me books with flawed people, good intentions, intense emotions, and a strong dose of psychology, and I'll be blissfully in those worlds all day. This is one of those books. The tale isn't pretty; no happy ever after princess wedding finale with the bride and groom cooing sweetly at each other. Yet I'm smitten by these characters, even with each page unfolding how much trauma could be heaped upon one family. The secondary character group of the Adventure Angels is brilliant - I'm envisioning them in other fiction to brighten things up. It's too much, bordering on sadistic, what these characters go through, yet it reads as so realistic and heartfelt that I didn't want the book to end. An example of the writing: "Allie has been aware of him in the same way she is aware of stars in the sky, beautiful but outside her reach. She hangs out with the music kids and takes AP classes. He dates the wild girls and is in the general track. Stars and boys like Ethan are great at a distance. Too close, and they’ll burn your wings and dump you into the sea, a lesson she learned both from the story of Icarus and watching the drama of other girls who have dared to fly too close to the sun."

I liked the characters in this book, especially Phee, but I don't think they were particularly nuanced. I looooved the alternative to AA presented. Very original concept, I thought. I was very upset about Allie's arc at the end. After.... The event.... She is shuffled to the side as kind of a prop for inspiration or something for the last part of the book. But the story itself was engaging and kept my interest. I don't typically like to read on my phone, so when I read books in this format, they need to be pretty dang good to get me all the way to the end like this.

Loved this book so much. The characters are so believable and so sympathetic and the idea of the curse drew me in completely; I couldn’t put it down. I found myself wishing there were more books following the other owners of the instruments so I could find out their stories too. Loved the ending.

Everything You Are was a great read. The fact that it had a basis in music and obsessive musicians didn't take away from the storyline, even for people not necessarily music oriented. The characters were believable and well developed. It kept me reading and I was driven to find out how it all turned out in the end. Loved it.

On most levels I really enjoyed this book. The characters are realistic and flawed-but-likeable, and it’s told at a good pace, with a good plot. The main themes are of relationships, alcoholism, grief, music, and these are all well written. My problem with it was that I didn’t quite buy into the book’s concept. Phee’s belief in and evidence for the ‘curse’ was the element that underpinned the story, and I just couldn’t connect with that. The correlation between the musicians who stop playing and tragedy was Phee’s evidence, and she persuades others that it’s true. But I just had the phrase “correlation doesn’t equal causation” running through my head in an indignant tone. And I don’t believe in curses: reading about some mystical elements is okay, but this was a bit too much for me. That said, the other key element of the plot is of the mystery surrounding Bradon’s past: what happened all those years ago to move him from ‘involved father and musician’ to alcoholic loner? And what happened between him and his brother-in-law? That element really helped the book to move along. Overall a good read.

Worth a read, full of pathos and the sad truth of damaged relationships. A tale of love overcoming fear. Well done.

This is a delightfully crafted novel where the power and release of music is woven into a family story. Cello solos will ever remind me of this haunting and lyrical story.