Milly is tired of being bullied. Everywhere she goes, she
can't escape Amelia who torments every little flaw about her
and never stops. As much as she wants to get away from
Amelia, she never can because they live in the same body.
After a traumatic past Milly can't remember, Amelia has been
her constant companion. When Milly finds a journal, her
memories slowly start coming back, and once they do, life
will never be the same.
DISCONNECTED brings up the tough and powerful subject of
mental illness. Milly is disconnected from her past, and
part of that has resulted in a disorder she hasn't realized
yet. Lisa M. Cronkhite does a wonderful job of showing what
Milly is going through and bring it to a level of
understanding that makes you hope desperately that Milly
finds answers. The mystery behind her family is complex and
intriguing, and the plot twists are excellent.
The romance is a bit rushed, though sweet. I also wish the
main friendship was a little more expanded. It feels cut and
dry in areas. However, one of Milly's later friendships is
enjoyable and develops nicely. Neither issue was a huge
detraction from the book, but it did stop me from liking it
as much as I hoped to.
Overall, DISCONNECTED is a great story and well worth the
read. Lisa M. Cronkhite has a strong voice in her writing,
and I hope to read a lot more of hers. DISCONNECTED would
find a lovely home of shelves with titles such as The Half Life of Molly
Pierce.
Seventeen-year-old Milly is continually bullied by Amelia
Norris. Day in and day out, Amelia torments Milly and even
threatens to hurt her, but Milly can’t tell anyone—not a
soul. Why? Because Amelia is Milly—they both co-exist as one
in the same body. Milly is so disconnected from her past
that she feels compelled to find out what truly happened to
her when her parents were still alive.
After a mysterious fire, she and Grandpa George move into
Aunt Rachel’s Victorian home where Milly then begins to
unravel puzzling clues to her family history. Through dreams
and scattered memories, Milly journals her story, trying to
cope by putting the shattered pieces back together, all the
while resisting her inner demon. But Amelia won’t go down
easily, and is determined to cut Milly out of the real
world—literally.
After Milly stumbles across Aunt Rachel’s notebook, she
begins to wonder who her real family is. Little by little,
Milly assembles the pieces of her shattered past and begins
to feel like everything she thought to be true is one big lie.