By Anna Jarzab
Anna Jarzab's debut novel (Delacorte 2010) is part mystery and part
inner glimpse at dysfunctional families and the perceived entitlements
at a wealthy private high school. Neily Monroe, 17, is the ex-boyfriend
of Carly, a beautiful girl who spiraled out of control after the death of
her mother and was brutally murdered months before Neily begins his
story at the spot he found Carly's body. Audrey is Carly's cousin—and
the daughter of the man convicted of her murder. Audrey comes back to
school and back into Neily's life hoping that he will help prove her
father's innocence. Never truly convinced that the right person was
convicted and still in love with Carly, Neily agrees, although he is not
eager to open old wounds. The narration alternates between the teens'
perspectives—Neily, narrated by Mike Chamberlain, and Audrey,
narrated by Allyson Ryan. Told through chunks of recollections from
when Carly was alive alternating with current events, the dual narrators
offer a well-rounded picture. The portrayals, while uneven in their
voicing and pacing, vividly bring to the surface images of teens coping
with intense tragedy, emotions, and a desire for closure. Listeners will
be fully immersed in the mystery as it unfolds.
The novel takes place in Empire Valley, California.
Empire Valley is a wealthy suburb in the Bay Area of
California. The majority of the story is centered
around a private college prep school called Brighton
Day School.
Neiland Monroe, called Neily, is
the main character in the novel.
He is an only child, and his
parents are divorced. His
mother is a pediatric nurse and
his father is a computer
software executive. At the
beginning of the story, he is
haunted by the murder of his
ex-girlfriend Carly the year
before. Even though they were
broken up at the time of her
death, he still is in love with
her, and wonders if she had felt
the same just before her murder.
Although not a traditional “antagonist” Carly is
clearly the character that causes the conflict in the
novel. In the year before her death, she started
behaving wildly and hanging out with the wrong
crowd. She kept getting herself into bad situations.
Those close to her chalked it up to her mother’s tragic
death due to cancer. But was that the only reason?
Enzo Ribelli—Audrey’s father, accused of
murder.
Cass Irving—Audrey’s boyfriend,
Adam Murray’s best friend.
Harriet—Neily’s therapist
Harvey Rosenberg—Neily’s best friend
The central conflict in the novel is Neily’s determination
to solve the mystery of who killed Carly and why. He
struggles with all the students at his school, the police,
his parents, and mostly with himself, as he tries to find
peace with Carly’s murder, and the question of if she
ever really loved him.
Neily is so haunted
by his ex-girlfriend’s
death, and the
memories of finding
her body, that he
finds himself at the
old stone bridge
where she died, and
falls asleep on the
ledge. He just wants
to feel close to her
once more.
The theme of All Unquiet Things is that truly
loving someone requires forgiveness when
they hurt you, for whatever their own reasons
are.
I really liked All Unquiet Things. It was both a
mystery and a book about love and relationships.
The dynamic between the protagonist and the other
characters was interesting. The mystery of what
had caused Carly to turn against Neily and also
who was guilty of her murder kept the reader
guessing right up to the end. It was easy to feel his
pain as he struggled with the loss of someone he
had loved. My favorite lines from the novel are:
“Anyone who’s ever had a person disappear from
their life knows the feelings. It’s an emptiness that
still has boundaries, faint outlines that serve as
reminders that something is missing, and all you
can do is try your hardest to pretend like it never
was” (Jarzab 136).
Sally Smith
Period 4
November 6, 2014