Try Not To Breathe by Holly Seddon

Amy Stevenson was the biggest news story of 1995. Only fifteen years old, Amy disappeared walking home from school one day and was found in a coma three days later. Her attacker was never identified and her angelic face was plastered across every paper and nightly news segment.

Fifteen years later, Amy lies in the hospital, surrounded by 90’s Britpop posters, forgotten by the world until reporter Alex Dale stumbles across her while researching a routine story on vegetative patients.

Remembering Amy’s story like it was yesterday, she feels compelled to solve the long-cold case.

The only problem is, Alex is just as lost as Amy—her alcoholism has cost her everything including her marriage and her professional reputation.

In the hopes that finding Amy’s attacker will be her own salvation as well, Alex embarks on a dangerous investigation, suspecting someone close to Amy.

Told in the present by an increasingly fragile Alex and in dream-like flashbacks by Amy as she floats in a fog of memories, dreams, and music from 1995, Try Not to Breathe unfolds layer by layer to a breathtaking conclusion.

Amy had been attacked and left for dead 15 years ago, since then she has been lying in a hospital vegetative state. Unable to communicate or respond. 

Alex has lost her husband and her job along with other things due to her drinking problem. Now her drinking could kill her. She is a journalist and she is determined to write a story about people with Amy's condition. She comes across Amy in the word by pure chance, remembering her story from many years ago she is instantly interested in knowing more. Her determination to write a health story turns into wanting to find out exactly what happened to Amy. 

Jacob is Amy's boyfriend from back in the day, now married and a baby on a way, he still visits Amy on a regular basis, without his wife knowing. 

Alex begins her investigations straight away, while battling with her alcoholism. She soon comes across Jacob who is helping her discover the truth. 

I absolutely enjoyed this book. I was gribbed from the first page to the last. This has been a truly amazing read. The writing just flowed and the characters were so believable and touchable. I enjoyed Amy, Alex and Jacob both in equal measures. 

To get a glimpse into Amy's mind while she is in a state similar to a sleep almost, is so interesting. To realise how much she notices around her and seeing how confusing her mind has become made this story esp unique. I wanted her to get better from the first hospital visit.

Alex is a very interesting character. The way she deals with her alcoholism has my mind blown. After loosing everything you can almost understand the deep hole she has fallen into. But it's the way she puts her everything into the story, despite her own fight, that makes her incredible. 

Jacob hasn't gotten over what has happened in the past, how can you when there has never been any closure. There is still so much he doesn't know. Amy is his secret and he feels like he hasn't got the right to move on with his life if Amy can't. 

But what really happened 15 years ago? Who has hurt Amy? What happened in the days leading up to her attack? Will the truth come out? Will Alex be able to get to the bottom of things? 

I couldn't stop turning the pages. I wanted all the questions answered. I couldn't figure it out, having many suspicions, changing every few chapters. I couldn't help but feel for Amy. What an awful thing to happen and what an awful way of life. It broke my heart, not only reading about Amy but also about her family and everyone who has been affected by this. 

This isn't just a very intriguing book, it has a lot of heart in it too. It's the sort of book that will have you feeling all sorts of emotions and stays with you for a long time. And most of all will have you guessing all the way though. 

Thank you for Corvus Publishing for my beautiful copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book will be released on 7th January 2016