Book Review: Drawn by Cecilia Gray

Drawn

Cecilia Gray

Published 'December 15th, 2013

325 Pages

A wholly original tale of friendship and betrayal through the eyes – and lies – of one extraordinary girl.

Sasha has a secret – that she can make you spill your secret with nothing more than a question. Her strange gift makes her a burden to her foster family and a total freak of nature. Not that Sasha cares. Why should she when no one cares about her?
Then the CIA knocks on her door. They want to give Sasha a new identity and drop her into a foreign country to infiltrate a ring of zealous graffiti terrorists. They want to give Sasha something to care about.
To survive a world where no one is who they seem, Sasha needs to make people trust her. But when that trust blossoms into love, Sasha is forced to decide between duty and friendship, between her mind and her heart, and whether to tell the truth or keep her secrets.

Sasha is a girl with a gift, one that she sees as more of a curse. She has the unique ability to make people speak the truth - whether they like it or not. Growing up, this obviously causes some problems. She's seen as a freak, has difficulty connecting with anybody, and isn't the tightest with her foster family. Just as she thinks she's doomed to a life full of misery, Sasha gets a visit from the CIA and her life is changed forever.

In Drawn, Sasha has a new life. She works for the CIA, helping to solve difficult cases. Her specialty is making criminals spill the beans, no matter how terrible a crime they committed. When she is relocated to a new country for her biggest case yet, Sasha is both terrified and excited. She resides with a new temporary family, befriended the daughter who has no idea who she really is.

With a sensitive case that puts her in a number of awkward situations, Sasha finds out more about herself than she ever thought possible. Friendships are forged and boundaries are pushed, and for the first time ever, she finds herself siding with the criminal. Watching and reading about her internal struggles was different than many of the other books I read, but I really did enjoy getting deep into her thoughts.

There were cool comic strips at the beginning of chapters that I feel added a really nice touch. Sasha loved to draw and the story revolved around all things art. Everything was intertwined perfectly, and while I wasn't too keen on the story in the first few pages, things quickly changed for me. Drawn was a unique story that left me thinking about our world and many of the issues surrounding it.