Girl in Pieces: 4 out of 5

This is a hard book for me to review. I really liked it, so it has a special place in my heart. But I really struggled with it as well.

Girl in Pieces synopsis (from GoodReads): "Charlotte Davis is in pieces. At 17 she's already lost more than most people lose in a lifetime. But she's learned how to forget. The broken glass washes away the sorrow until there is nothing but calm. You don't have to think about your father and the river. Your best friend, who is gone forever. Or your mother, who has nothing left to give you.
Every new scar hardens Charlie's heart a little more, yet it still hurts so much. It hurts enough to not care anymore, which is sometimes what has to happen before you can find your way back from the edge."

Girl in Pieces is a very dark novel on self harm and alcoholism. It is written in a somewhat fragmented text. Imagine getting a glimpse at someone's journal but never being able to fully read it. That didn't bother me, but I can see how it will bother some readers. It made it hard to follow but I came to appreciate it more after a Q&A with the author and understanding the thought behind it. It is meant to be the way Charlie thinks, the way someone hurting so much and so confused and trying to forget so much thinks. It makes perfect sense now. In a way, I wish I knew that before reading the book, it is easier to appreciate the writing style now. Clever!

Here is the thing I struggle the most in this book: there are depressing books that move the reader, and there are depressing books that are just...well... depressing! There is no light in the end of the tunnel here. It is as realistic as it can be. Someone who has been through all that may get better, but fully heal? forget? You will NOT have a good feeling when you are done reading. You will be in a place as dark as the author must have gone in order to write it. And that is a good thing, shows how good the writer is. But it is also a hard thing to come to terms with.
When I finished the books I was completely speechless. 'That's it?' 'That's the ending?' 'But what about Riley?' 'What about Charlie?' I felt in the end as fragmented as the story. Not complete. There is no sequel, this is it. But I can help but want more, I can't help but be my selfish self and desire a happier ending.