Every Breath

Every Breath by Ellie Marney (Allen and Unwin)
PB RRP $18.99
ISBN 978-1-74331-642-9
Reviewed by Ann Harth

Ellie Marney has what it takes to captivate a young adult audience in Every Breath, the first book in the Every series.

Rachel Watts and her family have been forced to leave their failing farm and move to an affordable place in Melbourne. Rachel is miserable, missing the space, the freedom and her four wheeler. Her parents and brother are exhausted from long shifts in unfulfilling jobs and Rachel deals with high school and much of the housework. The family, once close and relaxed, now snipe at each other daily.

Even though money is tight, each night Rachel takes dinner to her neighbour, James Mycroft, a 17-year-old classmate and forensic genius. Mycroft’s orphan status and haunted past make him a complex and fascinating character and Rachel’s conflicting and growing feelings for him give this book a wonderfully romantic twist that keep the pages turning themselves.

When Dave, a homeless man and friend of Mycroft’s is brutally murdered, Rachel and Mycroft are the ones to discover the grisly scene. Though the police decide it’s a random sport killing, Mycroft suspects there was a stronger motivation and convinces Rachel to help him check it out. She is swept into the complex crime investigation, and the two of them set out to prove the killing had a more specific motive than cruel sport.
In their pursuit of the truth behind the murder, Rachel and Mycroft follow a web of intricately woven clues that lead them through the streets of Melbourne, the hospital’s mental health unit and end in a terrifying and riveting scene at the zoo.

Every Breath moves at a blistering pace, made even more intriguing by the strong characters of Rachel and Mycroft. Mycroft’s battle with his painful past and the couples’ growing attraction for each other add an element of emotional conflict that takes this book to a deeper level.

I would highly recommend this for a young adult audience. This book is a powerful crime novel entwined with a sizzling romance. Readers of Every Breath will wait eagerly for Ellie Marney’s next book, Every Word.

Ellie Marney is a native Queenslander who grew up with her nose in a book. She has travelled all over the world, but now lives in Melbourne. Every Breath is her first novel for young adults. For more information on Ellie Marney and her Every series. Please visit www.elliemarney.com

Ann Harth is a published children's author and writing tutor at Australian College of Journalism. She loves to read, write and is committed to creating children's literature that inspires, entertains and triggers a tiny twist in the mind. Her latest middle-grade novel, The Art of Magic, and her book for budding authors, Writing for Children – In the Beginning are available from Amazon.