Sourcebooks, Inc., 2015

When Allie’s sister Leah commits suicide, Allie is devastated—who wouldn’t be? But Allie takes the death especially hard because Leah and Allie had made promises, in fact, they had a suicide pact. Now Allie is utterly bereft and can’t understand why Leah would go without taking her adoring younger sister with her. With her parents a mess and all the usual high school confusions with friends, enemies, and loyalties—not to mention the pressures of getting into college—will she ever be able to put together the pieces of her sister’s last days? And what about her own shattered life? Can she put it back together again?

Stacie Ramey does a masterful job of presenting Allie’s myriad of emotions in an incredibly turbulent time. The Sister Pact is a ride through dark days, rays of hope, and the return to despair. Allie is making hard decisions in every aspect of her life. Her decisions are often bad ones, mistakes that anyone might make as a teenager, but most especially a grieving one. And Allie seems to be the last one to know that despite it all, she is strong, stronger than her sister ever was.

I loved this book for the unshirking portrayal of Allie’s pain, and that of the people around her. I loved it for the realistic ways the teenagers failed one another and tried to save one another. It is a book I would have loved as a teen because the story gives the reader a chance to examine each decision, each emotion, each solution with Allie and evaluate whether that choice would work for them. It left me cheering for Allie and I think it’ll leave you cheering, too.

I received a free electronic advance reader copy of The Sister Pact from Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.