Frankie by Shivaun Plozza

Pages: 314
Publish date: March 23rd 2016
Publisher: Penguin Teen Australia
ISBN: 9780143573166
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon US – Amazon AU – Dymocks

Frankie:

Frankie by Shivaun Plozza was one of my most anticipated books this year by an Australian author, it just sounded like my kind of book and it was. Frankie was a heartbreaking, heart-warming and absorbing contemporary that captures the reader from the first page. 

Frankie follows protagonist Frankie Vega as she goes on a journey of self-discovery, more heartbreak and finding her place. Frankie is a usual protagonist, she is mean, rude, hard-headed and feisty, but not in the way that makes you want to put the book down and stop reading, no it is quite the opposite, her attitude makes you want to keep on reading.  

When a kid shows up saying that he is Frankie’s half-brother, she doesn’t know what to do. Does she trust him and let him in her and let him break her like everyone else? Or she let him go now? But it’s Frankie we are talking about and she cannot let things, so when he goes missing, she does everything in her will power and power to find out where he is.

I adored Frankie, I would not want her to be my best friend because we would clash all the time, but she was such a fascinating protagonist.  Frankie is fierce and strong and if I went missing, I would want her out there looking for me. She has had a tough life and she channels that and comes off as this ‘bad’ girl that is always getting into trouble.

She lives with her Aunt Vinne above her aunt’s Kebab shop, she has been kicked out of school and doesn’t want anyone to know and her supposed brother has just gone missing, oh and you know what this gorgeous boy with stupidly blue eyes comes into the mix. Lets’ just say that Frankie has a lot on her plate.

There were parts in the book where all I wanted to do was hug Frankie, but I feel that she might punch me in the face if I did that. There were parts that also made me cry, right near the end – arrg my heart.

I enjoyed the relationship between Frankie and her Aunt. Even thought at times it was a bit strained, it worked quite well for the situation that they were both in.

The romance was such a little piece of Frankie, but it was beautifully done. There wasn’t a need for a bubbling romance, but the way that Plozza handle it was perfect. Nate was intense and intriguing and capture Frankie in a way no way else had before.  It was slightly there, but it did add to both the story and the characterisation of Frankie.

I adored that Frankie was set in Melbourne. It’s my home, and sometimes it does get boring when books are all set in the same place or places that I have no clue about. Even though I don’t live in Collingwood, I know how it looks and feels so it was truly interesting. Plozza has captured Melbourne perfectly.

Overall, Frankie by Shivaun Plozza is a brilliant debut novel that captured my heart. It’s a story of heartbreak, belonging, finding yourself and what it is to be a family. It captures Melbourne as Melbourne from the language to the setting, it brings to light that sometimes when you think that you are alone, you are not alone and all that you need to do is let them in. Frankie by Shivaun Plozza is a must read.

Have you read Frankie? Did you love it as much as me? Are you going to read it? Why not also check out my interview with Shivaun Plozza where we talk her writing journey, Frankie and more.