Books As You Know It: Blog Tour: The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes {Review+Giveaway}

The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly
by Stephanie Oakes
Publisher: Dial/Penguin
Release Date: June 9th 2015

Genre: Young Adult, Retelling, Contemporary, Fantasy, Fairy Tale, Thriller
Rate: 3.5 STARS

Synopsis:

With a harrowing poetic voice, this contemporary page-turner is perfect for fans of Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak, Julie Berry's All The Truth That's in Me, and the works of Ellen Hopkins.

The Kevinian cult has taken everything from seventeen-year-old Minnow: twelve years of her life, her family, her ability to trust.

And when she rebelled, they took away her hands, too.

Now their Prophet has been murdered and their camp set aflame, and it's clear that Minnow knows something—but she's not talking. As she languishes in juvenile detention, she struggles to un-learn everything she has been taught to believe, adjusting to a life behind bars and recounting the events that led up to her incarceration. But when an FBI detective approaches her about making a deal, Minnow sees she can have the freedom she always dreamed of—if she’s willing to part with the terrible secrets of her past.

The Sacred Lies of Minnow By is a hard-hitting and hopeful story about the dangers of blind faith—and the power of having faith in oneself.

I didn't realize how much The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly was out of my comfort zone until I started it. And I am awed by the way Stephanie Oakes put this story together. I loved that the story was told from the current time and how we got to know of the past through her recollections, thoughts, and interviews. There are such heavy themes, like belief, that are emphasized and that aren't talked about enough in YA. I loved how we see all the different beliefs and perspectives from the girls (such a diverse cast!) in the prison and even in the camp. I feel like in our world we don't take the time to fully understand the different perspectives and that just creates all kinds of trouble.

Minnow had such a great voice and was pretty awesome narrator. We see her character develop from the her time in the camp to present day. I loved seeing her question everything. She's basically learning everything from the start and I can't even imagine how she would take in all the new information. There's so much for her and she just gets it. I would love to meet her and just talk to her about this kind of stuff because I feel like she wouldn't judge. It was so easy to feel and connect to her because of that.

I kinda really loved Dr. Wilson and his relationship with Minnow because he did seem to care. They both had their own guards on and they both knew it. I love how conversational their interviews were too. We got an insight into what was going on in the camp and in Minnow's mind. Minnow goes through so many horrifying moments that it really is surprising that she's doing as well as she is.

Thought provoking and haunting, The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly portrays a deeper level of thoughts and questions about the world around us. Not exactly sure who I would recommend this to but if you want to just see life in a different perspective and go through a different experience this is the book for you. Happy Readings!

Stephanie Oakes is a teacher and YA author from Washington State. Her debut novel, THE SACRED LIES OF MINNOW BLY (Dial/Penguin, June 9, 2015), about a girl who escapes from a religious commune only to find herself at the center of a murder investigation, is based on the Grimm fairy tale, "The Handless Maiden."

THE ARSONIST, her second YA mystery through Dial/Penguin, is scheduled for publication in fall 2016.