Far From You by Tess Sharpe

 Nine months. Two weeks. Six days.

That's how long recovering addict Sophie's been drug-free. Four months ago her best friend, Mina, died in what everyone believes was a drug deal gone wrong - a deal they think Sophie set up. Only Sophie knows the truth. She and Mina shared a secret, but there was no drug deal. Mina was deliberately murdered.

Forced into rehab for an addiction she'd already beaten, Sophie's finally out and on the trail of the killer - but can she track them down before they come for her?

"For three months, I've been stuck, stagnant and waiting, behind white walls and therapy sessions while Mina's killer walks. It hits me all at once that I'm finally free, and I jam the faucets shut. I can't bear to be inside for another second."

In this book we meet Sophie, who is in rehab after watching her best friend be murdered in front of her and them finding a bottle of Oxy on her even though she was supposed to have been clean. She is back home with a vengeance and determined to find out what really happened that night.

"It's the first thing I've done that isn't about Mina. It's for me, and for Mom, who'd claw her fingers bloody fighting for me."

Sophie obviously has a hard time regaining her relationship with her parents and other people who are close to her after being accused of causing Mina's murder by them believing she was there to score drugs that night. But it was nice to read about it. It didn't just happen overnight and for that, I could relate to it. Having had a trouble teenager of my own, I felt Sophie was very real and the struggle to fight her addiction was authentic.

"Mina led, and I followed. She hid, and I was her shelter. She kept secrets, and I guarded them. Mina lied and so did I. Sometimes we were downright ruthless to each other."

So just when you think you have this book figured out at about the 50% mark, you are thrown for a twist which I rather enjoyed. The writing style was very interesting. We went from present time to flashbacks of her drug years and of the night it all happened. I must say, in the beginning I was really confused as to what was the present and what was the past. Once you get that down pat, it was a nice easy read. For a YA book however, I will say it dealt with some deep issues. I would recommend this to older teens or adults but may be a little cautious of letting my child read it. The mystery part was just so-so to me. It was kind of all over the place and it just seemed a little bizarre for me on why the murders happened and who did it. That being said, I would love to read more from this author in the future.

Action packed is the first thought that comes to mind as I write this review.  From page one till the end I was engulfed in the story and journey of Sophie.  As a background for this story we learned early that she along with her best friend Mina and Mina’s brother Trev had been in a car accident a few years ago which left Sophie with a damaged back and leg and she will be limping and taking numerous shots in the back for pain for the rest of her life.  She was also left with an addiction to Oxy from the prescribed medication she was given to manage the pain. 

Sophie finds herself in a rehab facility now after she was going to a party with Mina one night.  Mina took a detour to go talk to someone about a story she was writing and it ended with Mina shot to death, Sophie knocked out and drugs planted in her jacket pocket.  Mina was her life, her best friend and her heart, there was no way she would ever recover from that loss, but she was sure she had to prove she hadn’t relapsed and she was not the reason they were on that deserted road.  She also needed to find out who the man with the ski mask was that took Mina away from her.

Trevor had never gotten over the death of his father.  Becoming the man of the house at an early age, he spent his life protecting his mother and sister Mina.  He fell in love with Sophie many years ago and the guilt of being the one driving when the accident happen drives him to protect Sophie even more, but how does he handle the news that the police think it is because of Sophie and her drug habit, that put his sister in the grave? 

So many secrets and lies are exposed in this story.  The author did a great job at bringing the characters to life as they go on the mission to find the truth not only about Sophie and who killed Mina but also about a young woman who went missing in the same town a few years back.  Could it all be connected to what led Mina on the chase that killed her?  With Sophie’s parents not believing her and putting limitations on her freedom, she is forced to do things she would have never felt necessary before, but she needs to find a way to say goodbye to Mina, to let her family know she was clean. 

The ending was an edge of your seat thrill ride as the truth is discovered and this author shocked me with the conclusion.  I thought I had this mystery figured out half way through but I was totally wrong.  One thing that I did love about this was the author didn’t stop at who was behind this; she went on to let us see what happened to the characters we had grown to love.  We weren’t left wondering about their future and I really enjoyed that.  Make sure you get your copy of this book and be prepared for some wonderful writing and a lot of twists and turns that will keep you guessing till the end of the book.