Safe with Me

A Novel

By: Amy Hatvany

Narrated by: Joy Osmanski, Rebekkah Ross, Cassandra Campbell

The screech of tires brought Hannah Scott’s world as she knew it to a devastating end. A year after she signed the papers to donate her daughter’s organs, Hannah is still reeling with grief when she unexpectedly stumbles into the life of the Bell family, whose fifteen-year-old daughter, Maddie, survived only because Hannah’s daughter had died. Mesmerized by this fragile connection to her own daughter and afraid to reveal who she actually is, Hannah develops a surprising friendship with Maddie’s mother, Olivia.

The Bells, however, have problems of their own. Once on the verge of leaving her wealthy but abusive husband, Olivia now finds herself bound to him in the wake of the transplant that saved their daughter’s life. Meanwhile, Maddie, tired of the limits her poor health puts upon her and fearful of her father’s increasing rage, regularly escapes into the one place where she can be anyone she wants: The Internet. But when she is finally healthy enough to return to school, the real world proves to be just as complicated as the isolated bubble she had been so eager to escape.

A masterful narrative shaped by nuanced characters whose delicate bonds are on a collision course with the truth, Safe with Me is a riveting triumph.

©2014 Amy Hatvany (P)2014 Simon & Schuster

Wonderful!

I am really enjoying Amy Hatvany as an author. I love the way she writes. Her stories are compelling, characters are easy to connect with and the story is real. Although this one really tugged at my heartstrings, I didn't mind because it was a beautiful story.

great story

love this book although I wish it would have showed what happened to him at the end I hope he rots in hell.

I enjoyed it

The story starts immediately and keeps moving through the whole story. It was insightful and made you think about domestic abuse a little differently.

Riveting Hatvany

Loved this story - at times it moved me to tears, and at other times made me want hit him (listen and you'll find out who!). The 3 narrators were perfect, especially Rebekkah Ross. This is my first Amy Hatvany, and I'm looking forward to trying more.

Wow! ☺️

This really was a fantastic book, from the story to the narration and everything in between. I don't usually read books like this- it's sad. It's important that people read it though, because if it helps even one person get help from domestic abuse, it was all worth it. Great writing, great narration.

Excellent narration and not and ordinary story

Would you consider the audio edition of Safe with Me to be better than the print version?

Yes. Narration is excellent.

What did you like best about this story?

It looks like real.

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

all narrators were great. they made this book sound like Hanna, Madie and Olivia tell their stories themselves.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

a lot of emotions. Very sad story. I couldn't stop listening. I read it in two days. Good book.

Any additional comments?

I would recomend this book to people, who likes books about family like "My sister's keeper" by Joudi picoult.

As I listen to this

I'm not too far into this book, and have some issues. First of all, after being a hospital chaplain involved in the organ donation process, I don't feel very positively about the way that it's conveyed here. I seriously doubt that anyone would know about an impending donation and I found it is handled much more sensitively on all sides than is portrayed here.

Then the descriptions of farm life are a little too trite -- shucking corn, canned blueberry jam. As a Kansan with many rural friends, while many may have enjoyed these past times and even depended on them for income, this is a little too much shorthand.

All of this makes me wonder if the author is writing from any depth of research or knowledge.

I'll post again after listening to it all. The writing and tone is good so I'm interested in continuing. I'm curious to see what happens as the issue of organ donation continues to unfold.

Juvenile

What disappointed you about Safe with Me?

The cadence of narration is horrible. The story itself is dull & the writing is very amateur.

Has Safe with Me turned you off from other books in this genre?

No

How did the narrator detract from the book?

The narrator who for the younger character is distracting.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Disappointment and frustration

Any additional comments?

I will never listen to a book by this author again. Terribly disappointed that I spent $ on this listen.