'Sarah! I love all of your books, you've inspired me so much' - user, MySpace'I don't know how to explain how amazing your books are' - user, MySpace

I'm Annabel. I'm the girl who has it all. Model looks, intelligence, a great social life. I'm one of the lucky ones. Aren't I? My 'best friend' Sophie is spreading rumours about me. My family is slowly falling apart. It's turning into a long, lonely summer, full of secrets and silence. But I've met this guy who won't let me hide away. He's one of those intense types, obsessed with music and totally unafraid of confrontation. He's determined to make me listen. Will I ever find the courage to tell him what really happened the night Sophie and I stopped being friends? This is a captivating, emotionally turbulent, unputdownable teenage fiction - the natural step up for older Cathy Cassidy fans.

I'm Annabel. I'm the girl who has it all. Model looks, intelligence, a great social life. I'm one of the lucky ones. Aren't I? My 'best friend' Sophie is spreading rumours about me. My family is slowly falling apart. It's turning into a long, lonely summer, full of secrets and silence. But I've met this guy who won't let me hide away. He's one of those intense types, obsessed with music and totally unafraid of confrontation. He's determined to make me listen. Will I ever find the courage to tell him what really happened the night Sophie and I stopped being friends? This is a captivating, emotionally turbulent, unputdownable teenage fiction - the natural step up for older Cathy Cassidy fans.

Sarah Dessen is one of America's most successful writers of teenage fiction. Her books have won various awards, many of them spending several weeks on The New York Times bestseller list. Sarah lives in the countryside in North Carolina with her husband, some lizards and two very spoilt dogs. This is her first novel for Puffin.

2008-08-31 I'm listening...

Just Listen is a story of choices, family, love, friendship and music. A strange combination, but it's one of those things that makes this book unsual.

Annabelle, like most of Sarah Dessen's main characters, is somewhat reserved. While I know there are justifiable reasons for this, it's still slightly annoying that her protagonists always have a similar 'voice'.

Annabelle is very much alone in the story, her ex-friend Sophie spreading vicious rumours about her after her boyfriend, Will, harrassed Annabelle. Her old friend Clark doesn't speak to her, either, and Annabelle is initially too shy to speak to 'intense' Owen. Her family is slowly being driven apart, first by the death of their grandmother, which shatters her soft-spoken mother, then an illness developed by her older sister Whitney, her dad and eldest sister Kirsten both on the sidelines. Whitney being the strong, silent-type and Kirsten being hyperactive and assertive.

Annabelle was an interesting character to read about. Despite her ordeal with Will, her struggles to keep her family close together, and her awkward experiences with Owen and Clark, she still remains quiet about everything, which was very frustrating. While I felt sorry for her and was moved by her isolation, other times I wanted to slap her and tell her to get ahold of herself. The fact she is surprised Will strikes again and that the victim (another ex-friend of Annabelle's) speaks out, seems to be a rather stupid reaction on her part. Owen wasn't particularly likeable, personally, as his bluntness and bossy attitude began to grow irritating. While Owen and Annabelle eventually end up together (which is obvious and inevitable) I felt like their relationship developed very slowly, which was frustrating. While it was an engaging read, it was fairly obvious in the book what was going to happen next. Possibly better to rent rather then buy.