Great read. The author wrote a story that was interesting and moved at a pace that kept me engaged. The characters were easy to invest in.

The inherent interest of the subject matter of this unusual novel goes some way to compensate for its faults. Not that it’s a bad novel, not at all, but it’s not always a successful or convincing one. The central character is Beth, who has had more than her share of tragedy and bad luck in life. After nine years she is still grieving for her partner Dan who suddenly and inexplicably moved out on her. She’s never comes to terms with her loss and often resorts to self-destructive behaviour to mask her unhappiness. In an effort to find meaning in her career she has learnt British Sign Language and supports deaf students. At a Riding for the Disabled weekend to which she accompanies one of her clients she meets Sam who is battling Multiple Sclerosis. The novel expertly tackles the challenges of disability and is based on the author’s own personal experience. The people Beth meets all have physical disabilities and have had to adjust to them, just as Beth must learn to live with her emotional issues. The book highlights some very important topics and is to be applauded for that. But for me the book lacked focus, bringing in as it does so many problems. The romance aspects felt unconvincing and too rushed, and although we later find out more about Dan, his story too felt unrealistic. Basically there are too many sub-plots and a tighter narrative structure would have made for more of an impact. Nevertheless I found it a reasonably engaging read and even if I couldn’t relate to the characters I could at least empathize with their predicaments.

I absolutely LOVED this book! It features a main character who is a sign language interpreter and also multiple characters with various disabilities. Finding books with accurate portrayals of disabilities is so rare these days. As someone with a physical disability, there are many accurate portrayals of what it looks like to live with a disability, but this one is getting it right so far. Heck yeah, Anna Lickley!

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

“Senseless” is a story about overcoming trauma and about how you can’t choose what happens to you, but you can choose your mindset. At the beginning of the book we meet Beth. She works as a Communication Support Worker, a person that signs British Sign Language to deaf people at a college. Even though she took this job because she wanted to “change things”, she feels frustrated and taken for granted. Though a series of flashbacks, we can witness some of the events that had a very deep impact in her life and personality. In the present, Beth struggles with depression, alcoholism and meaningless sex full of self-loathing.

Interspersed with Beth’s, we find some chapters about Sam, a young father who is forced to leave his job as a firefighter when he is diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. His chapters jump in time, showing us his different stages of acceptance towards his condition.

Beth and Sam meet by chance, and even though she is always “the helper”, he and a group of people with disabilities help her deal with her traumas.

I though the book was a good read. Its language is simple but efficient and it raises awareness about the struggles of people with different disabilities (MS, deafness, etc). I think it also acknowledges the important role that CSW and BSL interpreters have in society, role that is sometimes taken for granted or even made fun of.

I liked the first half of the book better than the second, though. I think the first half, with its different flashbacks, does a great job in making us understand everything that has happened to Beth. However, the second half seems a bit fuzzy to me, as if everything was happening very fast. The big reveal near the end, though huge, felt poorly developed and the relationship between Beth and Sam felt a bit forced. I think the book premise is very interesting but the book is too short to explore so many deep topics. Maybe if it were longer, some aspects would have been further developed and the story would be more compelling.

I read a bit of background information about the author and her disabilities, and how many parts of the book are based on her own experience, and I thought it is very inspiring that she has decided to use her time to share the reality of living with disabilities and overcoming challenges.

Thank you NetGalley and Unbound Digital for this ARC.

** spoiler alert ** "

A quote:
“Beth was so tired of this. How many times did she have to remind them? Signing British Sign Language was not just gesturing and repeating what you heard. It was translating from English to another language.” (Quote from ARC)

This is a very compelling story of what it means to be a sign language interpreter – with glimpses into deaf culture and how deaf and hearing people see/apprehend the world differently – and also a great depiction of a young man living with multiple sclerosis.
I really liked the take on the difficulties and challenges of moving between two different worlds and languages, whether you’re a sign language interpreter or a translator, and the professional ethics and obligations of these jobs.
I found the romance a bit underdeveloped – Beth and Sam only meet halfway through the book – but the portrait of a young and very troubled woman trying to excel at BSL, without patronizing her clients, is amazing.
I loved the hero – although I would have liked to see more of him. It’s unusual to find such a wounded hero, and the description of the ups and downs of his condition was very believable.
With his optimism and strength, firefighter Sam turns out to be an endearing and strong character.
The heroine’s struggles are, in a way, more difficult to watch, but still realistic. I guess depression, alcoholism and casual sex are less interesting conditions/inclinations in terms of fiction, but her traumatic past and hidden scars make those issues understandable.
I enjoyed the British setting and the secondary characters too.

Very good book about figuring out who you and where you are headed. Well written and engaging it will definitely stay with you long after the last page. Definitely pick up this gem of a book Happy reading!

"Senseless" by Anna Lickley.

5 stars.
I loved it! A real page turner!
Well written, easy to follow, believable, interesting story, good characters you get to know and care about...
Unlike most of the things you read this is based on the author's real issues, so it makes details, everything interesting and believable. This feels real, this IS real! It will change the way you see people with disabilities, how you interact.

This is a good book you will enjoy!

And I want to tell you, Anna Lickley, you are talented, you are brave, you don't want pity, you want to help others with their disabilities! Amazing! Congratulations!
And keep writing, I will keep reading!

Thank you NetGalley and Unbound for the ARC of this book. This is my honest review. All opinions are my own.

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