All That's Left Unsaid: A Novel
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Description
A Phenomenal Book Club Pick!
For fans of Everything I Never Told You and The Mothers, a deeply moving and unflinching debut following a young Vietnamese-Australian woman who returns home to her family in the wake of her brother’s shocking murder, determined to discover what happened—a dramatic exploration of the intricate bonds and obligations of friendship, family, and community.
Just let him go. These are the words Ky Tran will forever regret. The words she spoke when her parents called to ask if they should let her younger brother Denny out to celebrate his high school graduation with friends. That night, Denny—optimistic, guileless, brilliant Denny—is brutally murdered inside a busy restaurant in the Sydney suburb of Cabramatta, a refugee enclave facing violent crime, an indifferent police force, and the worst heroin epidemic in Australian history.
Returning home to Cabramatta for the funeral, Ky learns that the police are stumped by Denny’s case: a dozen people were at Lucky 8 restaurant when Denny died, but each of the bystanders claim to have seen nothing.
Desperately hoping that understanding what happened might ease her suffocating guilt, Ky sets aside her grief and determines to track down the witnesses herself. With each encounter, she peels back another layer of the place that shaped her and Denny, exposing the seeds of violence that were planted well before that fateful celebration dinner: by colonialism, by the war in Vietnam, and by the choices they’ve all made to survive.
Alternating between Ky’s voice and the perspectives of the witnesses, Tracey Lien’s extraordinary debut is at once heart-pounding and heart-rending as it probes the intricate bonds of friendship, family, and community through an unforgettable cast of characters, all connected by a devastating crime. Combining evocative family drama and gripping suspense, All That’s Left Unsaid is a profound and moving page turner, perfect for readers of Liz Moore, Brit Bennett, and Celeste Ng.
Book Information
Posts
As an asian immigrant I really loved reading this book. Descriptions from the interior design of the homes, struggles that the characters faced during their youth and the complex relationship between a daughter and her parents really hit close to home for me personally. Even though we only know Denny as a character who is already dead the author manages to describe him in such a way that it felt like I have lost my own brother (I dont even have a brother). The memories and his absence are haunting and as a reader I was on constant edge in order to find out what truly happened to Ky´s Brother Denny. My only wish was that the ending of the book, where we finally find out what happened, would have been longer. The anticipation was so great therefore it was almost sad to see that the secret this book is based on resolve in just a few pages. It felt a bit rushed. Nonetheless I still enjoyed reading this a lot and I would definitely read more from the author in the future.
Description
A Phenomenal Book Club Pick!
For fans of Everything I Never Told You and The Mothers, a deeply moving and unflinching debut following a young Vietnamese-Australian woman who returns home to her family in the wake of her brother’s shocking murder, determined to discover what happened—a dramatic exploration of the intricate bonds and obligations of friendship, family, and community.
Just let him go. These are the words Ky Tran will forever regret. The words she spoke when her parents called to ask if they should let her younger brother Denny out to celebrate his high school graduation with friends. That night, Denny—optimistic, guileless, brilliant Denny—is brutally murdered inside a busy restaurant in the Sydney suburb of Cabramatta, a refugee enclave facing violent crime, an indifferent police force, and the worst heroin epidemic in Australian history.
Returning home to Cabramatta for the funeral, Ky learns that the police are stumped by Denny’s case: a dozen people were at Lucky 8 restaurant when Denny died, but each of the bystanders claim to have seen nothing.
Desperately hoping that understanding what happened might ease her suffocating guilt, Ky sets aside her grief and determines to track down the witnesses herself. With each encounter, she peels back another layer of the place that shaped her and Denny, exposing the seeds of violence that were planted well before that fateful celebration dinner: by colonialism, by the war in Vietnam, and by the choices they’ve all made to survive.
Alternating between Ky’s voice and the perspectives of the witnesses, Tracey Lien’s extraordinary debut is at once heart-pounding and heart-rending as it probes the intricate bonds of friendship, family, and community through an unforgettable cast of characters, all connected by a devastating crime. Combining evocative family drama and gripping suspense, All That’s Left Unsaid is a profound and moving page turner, perfect for readers of Liz Moore, Brit Bennett, and Celeste Ng.
Book Information
Posts
As an asian immigrant I really loved reading this book. Descriptions from the interior design of the homes, struggles that the characters faced during their youth and the complex relationship between a daughter and her parents really hit close to home for me personally. Even though we only know Denny as a character who is already dead the author manages to describe him in such a way that it felt like I have lost my own brother (I dont even have a brother). The memories and his absence are haunting and as a reader I was on constant edge in order to find out what truly happened to Ky´s Brother Denny. My only wish was that the ending of the book, where we finally find out what happened, would have been longer. The anticipation was so great therefore it was almost sad to see that the secret this book is based on resolve in just a few pages. It felt a bit rushed. Nonetheless I still enjoyed reading this a lot and I would definitely read more from the author in the future.