Chains is a gripping novel about two girls, Isabel and Ruth, who have been slaves all their lives. At the brink of the American Revolution, their owner dies, and sets them free in her will. But through the turmoil, nobody finds a lawyer or reads the will, and Isabel and Ruth are sold on to a cruel family in New York…

I enjoy the way in which Laurie Halse Anderson writes. This was clear from the first sentence, and the context is gripping too:

‘The best time to talk to ghosts is just before the sun comes up. That’s when they can hear us true, Momma said.’

Halse writes in a way that describes the character, without having to describe the character. This sentence clearly shows that it is a young person speaking; they are not from Britain, which is easy to see from the choice of words; and finally, the mother is most probably dead. I have not come across such deeply descriptive writing such as this, and thus it made the book a very enjoyable read.

The story itself, however, was like under-mixed Ready-Brek.  There were clumps of action halfway through that slid down easily; but the rest was powdery and stuck in the throat, making my progress through the book, in places, like swimming through luke-warm wallpaper paste. Halse describes her daily routines in too much detail, and too often, leaving bits of excitement few and far between.

Overall, I found Chains an interesting read, full of description, but lacking in action.

I would struggle to recommend this book.