Outside is a very well written book about Ele and her life inside with Zeb, Bee, Queenie and Cow.
The main character Ele tells the story of Outside, what is real and what is make believe? The book and the character develops as she experiences more and more things. This book starts with Ele’s limited vocabulary but as she experiences more and more outside her vocabulary and character develop.

I would recommend this book and would like to thank Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book early.

This is a story where the less you know before you read it the better so while I’d usually provide content warnings before my review they’ll be at the end of this one, so it’s up to you if you want to read them or not.

Ele lives Inside a Tower with the Others and collects Proofs of the Outside. She dreams of being an Outside Person instead of an Other but knows there are Dragons, Giants and Ogres Outside. Inside is anything but a fairytale because of Him but Inside is all she knows.

Ele is one of those girls whose story and spirit will super glue themselves inside your mind. Her resilience and spunk under unimaginable circumstances inspire me to want to be as brave and capable of facing my fears as she did hers. Her love of reading endeared her to me and, like ‘Matilda’ before her, she reinforced my belief that with books and your imagination you can endure and ultimately overcome any adversity.

Her voice, which I originally found disconcerting and disorienting, became easier to read the more I got to know her. Having only known Inside she doesn’t speak like any other character I’ve read. I loved her descriptions of objects that you and I take for granted and sometimes it took me a while to figure out what it was that she was experiencing.

Maybe it’s because I’ve read so much fiction and nonfiction with similar themes or because I try to focus on all of the details in books I plan on reviewing but I picked up on clues of some potential surprises early on. I was disappointed that there were no big revelations for me but from what I can tell based on early reviews I’m an anomaly. I did keep waiting for [SPOILER - the police (or anyone in authority, really) to show up and I found it somewhat suspicious that it took so long but also acknowledge that for the story to unfold the way it did they couldn’t get involved too early - SPOILER].

Free Bonus Short Story! If you sign up to join Sarah’s Reader’s Club at her https://www.sarahannjuckes.com/readers-club you’ll be emailed ‘Inside’. It’s available in MOBI, ePub and PDF formats. It accompanies ‘Outside’ and is really, really good, but I cannot stress this enough - please read ‘Outside’ first or you’ll be in Spoiler World before you know it. I’m not sure if there’s an expiry date on this offer but the link worked at the time I posted this review.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Children’s UK for the opportunity to read this book. 

Content warnings include [SPOILER - physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual assault, neglect, isolation, grief, suicide, dissociation (which was described brilliantly), physical and mental illness, and living in captivity - SPOILER].

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Outside is a very dark, harrowing tale of a girl, Ele, searching for proof of a life outside of the four walls she's kept in. With only three other people for company, she must obtain proof of outside and survive the visits of the man she only calls Him. Grieving for the loss of her friend Zeb, who was killed for trying to escape, Ele must be careful as she plots to go from Inside to Outside. 
I really did enjoy this book. I was gripped, and intrigued, and constantly guessing about Ele, and Him, and what answers would come out at the end, It was very similar to Room by Emma Donoghue, in the sense that Ele only knows one of everything. There's Door, Wall - only ever one of everything, and of course she doesn't know the real names for things. Lights are sun bars, clothes are extra skins, and a lot of what she does know about the outside world is from the three solitary books she owns. 
However, the thing I loved most about Room is the emotion in it. It is heartbreaking at every turn, as you would suspect from a story about this topic, and even when it was happy, it was heartbreakingly happy. Outside, on the other hand, has very little emotion to is. I found it very hard to connect with Ele, and this was made even harder by the language it was written in - this made it authentic, of course someone locked away from the real world isn't going to speak the Queen's English, and I appreciated the book being written in this voice, but I still found it hard to feel anything emotional towards the story. Some of the big emotional parts are swept over quite quickly, not giving you time to comprehend, some are just handled the wrong way, and I feel this really let the book down. 
I also found it very hard to follow, quite a lot throughout the book actually. Of course Ele was confused and disoriented at times, and when she encounters new things she describes them with the limited knowledge of the world that she has. But I was lost so many times because I couldn't follow these descriptions, and I think if you're going to write things this way, you need to be very clear, even in a voice like Ele's, you need to make sure the reader is following your train of thought, without you actually saying the words to describe it properly. Again, this withdrew me from the plot and from Ele's character quite a bit, because I was so confused and lost in the story. 
Despite these two points, I still thing it's a reasonably good book, and I would be interested to see what else Sarah Ann Jukes writes in the future.

Ele has been kept in the tower by Him for as long as she can remember, she knows there is an outside, but she for not know what the outside look like. Eventually Ele escapes and goes Outside but where are the gingerbread houses and the Dragons and giants. 

A well written book that I thoroughly enjoyed,

Thank you to Penguin Random House UK Children’s, Netgalley and Sarah Ann Jukes for the chance to read and review this novel. 

This book was a dark, twisted, heartbreaking story of abuse, yet also one of strength, resilience and triumph. The story is told by Ele, a young girl who remembers no other life than the single room she shares with her friends, the Others, who aren’t quite like her and talk in their own language. They’re all held captive by a frightening man known only as Him who sends their food down a pipe and visits once a week. She did have a brother, Zeb, but he is gone now, taken away by Him, and Ele knows she must escape before she meets the same fate. But before she can she must prove to the Others that Outside does exist and isn’t just pictures in her books so that they will go with her.

I found it a little confusing to understand what was going on at first but soon things became clearer, although like Ele we don’t get to see the full picture until the end. The language in this story is very simplistic, like a young child would speak even, which feels authentic when the narrator is someone who has always lived in isolation and never attended school. She also has a juvenille and often innocent way of seeing the world that is telling of her captivity, like how she thinks Outside will be full of things such as dragons and other creatures from the fairytales that helped her survive.

I enjoyed this book as soon as I started reading but part 2 was when I found Ele’s story even more compelling. I felt protective of her as she was so vulnerable, alone and confused. When Willow and Ezra were introduced I was glad the author chose to write these two particular characters for the unique qualities they each offered Ele. This part was also where the book became more uplifting and was a very transformative time for Ele as she learned even more truths and opened up about what she’d gone through. Though the subject matter was at times difficult, it was written in such a way that it never felt too heavy and I would say this was more a tale of courage, hope and kindness. It was a quick read for me both because of the way it was written and because I couldn’t put it down. A perfect read for anyone who enjoys Young Adult Fiction or who enjoyed the book Room.

This is a heartbreaking tale that, after getting used to the style of writing, turned out to be a brilliant page-turner.

Superb story, written so well, and in no way dumbed down for YA, I didn't realise it was a young adult story and loved it. I couldn't put it down, I needed to know what was truth and how it was going to play out. Thank you NetGalley, and Sarah Ann, this is an amazing first novel :)

This novel kept me guessing from start to finish, I was permanently on the edge of my seat and I couldn’t stop reading. Juckes has created a true work of art, a hard hitting thriller that I will never forget. This novel was truly unique, it is a testament to the power of imagination, and it’s ability to help you survive even the hardest situations. 

Immediately I felt protective of Ele, although not entirely understanding her situation I could feel the impact it had on her, and imagine the horror of being trapped inside. Despite everything she was strong, her determination to escape was powerful in itself, and that after everything she didn’t lose hope. 

Overall this was one of the best books I have read this year, it was a truly tragic tale that Juckes captured perfectly. There is so much more I could say but I don’t want to give anything away, I will be keeping an eye out for other titles by this author. If you are a fan of YA thriller novels definitely give this one a look.

Obvious similarities to Room, but written in a completely different style, and from a fascinatingly fairy-tale perspective, an interesting take on this subject.

A compelling page turning read.  Ele is so well-drawn I felt immediately desperate for her in her terrible situation.  I read it very quickly and can't fault it, despite it's gloomy subject matter.

A pretty good YA novel and a refreshing change from the glut of Hunger Games and Divergent type stories. Quite intriguing as we’re not sure just how Ele came to be on the ‘inside’ and why she’s never been outside. I agree with others who say that you have to get used to Ele’s speech and I found some of the other characters a little two dimensional and their descriptions confusing, Willow is apparently brown but goes red a heck of a lot! I also wondered why there weren’t any trees. All in all a good read that I’m sure both teenagers and the young at heart will enjoy. My thanks to Penguin and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.

Thank You Netgalley for giving me the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is told mainly from the point of view of a girl called Ele who has been held captive for a long time possibly forever. She is unsure if there is an outside and constantly looks for proof with any tiny glimpses she gets. She lives in a tiny room with the "Others" and her brother. After her brothers failed attempt to escape (she even assumed he had died in the struggle) Ele decides she has to escape and she manages it. After the escape she traps her captor and runs. When she finds a place to hide she is discovered by a boy called Willow who with his dad's help look after Ele. 

The book was very easy to read and you just had to reach the end to see what happens so I finished very quickly. The only downside is I felt the end was a little rushed and some questions were left unanswered but all in all I really enjoyed the book.

Ele has always lived Inside in the Tower. She and Zeb used to look for evidence of the Outside, but since Zeb went down the drain the Others don’t like her to speak about it. Until one day, when they tell her that she needs to forget about them and run, run, run. And so the next time He visits, Ele runs. And she finds the Outside. And it’s brighter and louder and scarier and so much more amazing than she and Zeb ever thought it would be. But she can’t forget about the Others or how she abandoned them, and so - with the help of her new family - she must go back Inside one final time...

Ele’s naive point of view and limited vocabulary - the result of her narrow understanding of the world before she escapes to Outside - mean that we can thankfully only imagine the true horror of her captivity. Her new family - Willow and Ezra - are patient, kind and thoughtful and are the perfect antidote to Ele’s life Inside. This is a powerful story about the will to survive and about the kindness of strangers.

This book was amazing! I stayed up late at night as I couldn't put it down, Ele is a girl kept in a small room by "Him". We don't know who he is or how she got to be there but clues are given throughout the book. I totally was gripped from page one and loved the book. It is a heart-wrenching read but also full of hope and sad and funny in parts, I cannot wait to read more from this author!

This was a slow start but it developed well. With a very different and interesting dialogue. The story is mainly about Eli and I found it fascinating the way that her comprehension of the normal English language really made me think. It is a lovely story of love, friendship and above all survival.

I enjoyed this book so much I read it in one sitting.  The story is from the point of view of the captive Ele.  As such we are drawn into her world, her reality and ultimately her fate.  Beautifully written, well paced, twisty to the end.  Highly Recommended.

This is being pitched as the YA answer to ROOM by Emma Donoghue, and after reading this novel, I feel like this is a pretty apt comparison – though there’s still plenty to surprise you about OUTSIDE if you’ve read ROOM already.

Ele, our protagonist and narrator, is held inside a single room – and her captor is known only as “Him”. She shares this space with the Others, who are not quite like her. Her brother, Zeb, used to be held here too – until he made a mistake that meant that Ele never saw him again. She passes her time by reading storybooks and tapping out a secret code to Jack, a boy who may or may not be on the other side of the wall. She is sure that an Outside exists – and she wants to prove it to herself.

There are a lot of twists and turns in this book – Ele escapes (I don’t count that as a spoiler seeing as it’s literally in the blurb) and finds herself having to face the Outside alone, away from Him and the Others and Jack. Her backstory of how she ended up in the Inside with Him and the Others is slowly revealed as she gets to grips with living on the Outside, and it managed to surprise me constantly.

Ele’s narration took a little getting used to – her learning has been limited to what she hears from Him and her books, so she often uses the wrong words for things (for example, calling a car a “dragon”), and her sentences tend to be quite blunt and simplistic. I was a bit confused at first because her narration made me think she was from a certain place (which only led to more confusion when it was revealed where the book is actually set) – but this is actually a rather clever plot point which makes sense towards the end of the book.

Despite the very dark subject matter (with Ele being a victim of abuse and kidnapping by Him), there’s a lot of warmth in this story, with lovely elements of found family and discovery and freedom. The relationships between the characters were well-drawn and realistic, and I closed the book feeling hopeful for Ele and her future.

I haven’t read many YA books, and at first I wasn’t sure about this, but within a few pages I was utterly hooked. 

Ele is held captive in a room by a man who she only knows as ‘Him’. When Ele discovers a hole in the wall, the truth of ‘outside’ comes pouring in. 

A unique and thought provoking read,  well written with great characters.

I thought Ele was a great character. I loved her narrative voice and the way her language adjusted as her world expanded. The supporting characters are also engaging and help to nudge the story along. However, I always felt I knew where the story was going, so there weren't any surprises. I also felt that aspects of the plot relied on people doing things that they really would do, like informing the police. 

It's a lot like Room by Emma Donoghue.

Brilliantly written, very easy to follow and lots of twists to keep you guessing just how it's going to end. Highly relatable characters. Can't wait for more from the author.