A story of redemption. I was rooting for all of the main characters in their quest to work through loss, grief, alcoholism, family relationships that are so badly broken, and a good old fashioned curse! Music and a cello are at the center of the relationship between Braden, his daughter Allie and Phee, the granddaughter of the cello maker.. I loved having the cello and music as the thread that holds them together.  Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

This book covers some interesting themes.  Grief, Alcoholism, teen angst, and a good old fashioned curse.  When Ophelia MacPhee inherits her grandfathers store and workshop she soon learns there's more to the job than she thought..  
As a Luthier she has a responsibility to keep the instruments she makes maintained,.   Some instruments require more care than others.

This is where Braden Healey comes in.  He owns a cello made by Ophelia's grandfather.  

As part of the extra care, Ophelia needs to meet with Braden to discuss the cello.

Ophelia arrived in Braden's life when he was very vulnerable.  He is getting to know his daughter Allie.  He and Allie both have some intense personal issues they need to resolve as well as the management of the cello.  

This book is a great read.  I give it a solid 4/5 stars.

Braden is a famous cello player with a great life ahead when he has a terrible accident. He loses his wife, his son and injures his hands so he can no longer play the cello. He is struggling desperately with the loss of his family and his purpose in life, making music. Now a broken alcoholic he needs to repair the relationship with his daughter Ally. As a side plot, Phee who is the granddaughter of the man who sold Braden his cello,  believes her grandfathers cello was cursed. Something always happens to cut the players career short .Phee wants to help lift the curse from the family, help Braden and even starts to have feelings for him.. Can she, Braden and Ally forgive, heal and come together. 

King’s writing was beautiful, almost like reading poetry and I loved the characterisation of Braden and his alcoholism, The image of him weighing up his life against the glass in front of him rang true and the self-pity of the addict was well drawn. I was a bit confused on the curse and the rules of it, but Phee certainly believes and is determined to see Braden continue playing. The length of time it takes Braden to change things is very short, but I think waiting might have dragged the novel out for too long. In the end this is a novel full of relatable characters, and I was rooting for Braden to turn his life around.

Family drama and music combined with folklore in this tale of Brandon, his daughter Allie, and Phee, the woman who owns the luthier shop where his cello was made.  There's a secret, of course, and some sadness, but it's a good tale with a happy ending.  Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.  A good read for those who like stories of redemption.

I enjoyed this book! A little magic, mystery, love and romance. It was a quick and easy read! Great developed characters!

‘Avoiding talking about things is much more dangerous than having conversations.’
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How gorgeous is Eveything You Are?  It’s more than just a pretty cover.
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Synopsis:
One tragic twist of fate destroyed Braden Healey’s hands, his musical career, and his family. Now, unable to play, adrift in an alcoholic daze, and with only fragmented memories of his past, Braden wants desperately to escape the darkness of the last eleven years.
When his ex-wife and son are killed in a car accident, Braden returns home, hoping to forge a relationship with his troubled seventeen-year-old daughter, Allie. But how can he hope to rescue her from the curse that seems to shadow his family?
Ophelia “Phee” MacPhee, granddaughter of the eccentric old man who sold Braden his cello, believes the curse is real. She swore an oath to her dying grandfather that she would ensure Braden plays the cello as long as he lives. But he can’t play, and as the shadows deepen and Phee finds herself falling for Braden, she’ll do anything to save him. It will take a miracle of forgiveness and love to bring all three of them back to the healing power of music.
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I really enjoy books with a family drama and this novel, told from multiple points of view, was such a good one.  It covers family, addiction, loss, forgiveness, music and throws in a touch of magical realism to weave it together so effortlessly.  The three main characters were written with so much feeling and I couldn’t help but get so invested in this story and devoured it in a couple of sittings. •
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

More like 3.5 stars

This is a story of a broken family trying to confront their past and connect through music. I believe it must be an amazing experience for someone, who cannot imagine their life without playing the instrument and understands the magic it brings. Even though I am not a musically oriented person, I enjoyed the “magical realism” elements of this story. I liked the premise of an ancient curse and the backstory of the instruments, I would even appreciate a bit more of them. 

In terms of the story, there were moments, mainly at the beginning, where I thought about giving up reading it. However, the author’s choice of pacing the book makes it difficult to choose the right moment, because the plot is developing so quickly you cannot have the excuse of getting bored. I still don’t understand, how it is possible to fit a storyline of an average soap opera into one book and do it well. I do appreciate the balance of the writing style, in the ratio of descriptions, dialogues, and plot. I believe that not many authors can do it with a plot so full of turns like this one.

I received this book "Everything You Are" from NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own. Magic, mystical. I really like books that have this theme. The story focuses on "the cello" - it's mystical and magical. I enjoyed reading this book. Unique with great characters.

An enchanting story that can haunt you deeply.  This is a story about musicians, interrupted lives, and an overwhelming calling by these specific musical instruments.  It touched on various topics such as death, alcoholism, parent/child relationships, and more.

This was a beautiful, heartwarming story Of a woman, a man and a cello. That may sound silly but it is the cello that links them all together. The characters in this book have all gone through their own personal hell, from death to alcohol abuse. The families of the two main characters are drawn in to their story and must endure one heartbreak after the other until a group of “angels” helps them heal.  This book forces you to believe that a touch of magic may be the reason for the events that have occurred yet this is not a fantasy or religious book.  It is a wonderful story of love and forgiveness and the strength that we each must find to first forgive ourselves.  I loved these flawed characters who made me laugh and cry.  Thank you to Net Galley, Kerry Anne King and Lake Union Publishing for the opportunity to read this book

Topical books that delve into the frailties of the human spirit tend to be more difficult for me to review with a dispassionate eye. The works that I love the most are those that elicit emotion organically. I laugh or cry because I  can feel what the character is going through—not because I was told to laugh or cry. I was informed that Braden was a dismal  character filled with self-loathing and self-pity. It was his characterization that set the tone for this book. Although extremely well-written, I could not enjoy the tale as much as if I was allowed to discern how much I should sympathize with him being cursed. However, my personal preference does not preclude me from recommending this book. Many other will absolutely love it.

Thank you to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing, and  Kerry Anne King for an ARC of 'Everything You Are' in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

I highly recommend this book.   Very unique plot line, which was told by three POV.   All thru the book i kept wondering what happened at the cabin that caused Braden's PTSD, making him unable to play his cello again.   The last few chapters explaining it took me completely by surprise.  Looking forward to more books by Kerry Anne King in the future.

This book has likable characters, and addresses alcoholism and loss. One of the main characters  has inherited her grandfather’s luthier store, and the story revolves around the instruments from that shop. It is a little far-fetched in that the deceased  grandfather has the ability to bring wrath upon anyone who may sell or give away one of his instruments. There is a lot of bad language, and if not for that, I would have given the book one more star.

3.5/5 stars for this haunting family drama!

I did receive this book in exchange for honest review from Netgalley.

Not gonna lie, this was a cover request on my part :P That and the fact I love a good family drama/saga. But the story is so much darker than the cover would lead you to believe. The beginning of the book was a little slow and difficult to follow, but about halfway through it really picked up! I absolutely loved the last quarter or so of the story. Great characters, great story. Definitely recommend if darker family books, like VC Andrews (maybe not that twisty lol) are your thing!

Trigger warnings for suicidal thoughts and PTSD.

Wasn’t sure how this was going to go, magical and mystical or family drama? Turns out story had little bit of everything in it. Which is not a bad thing. I enjoyed it and found it an easy read.

This is a story that took me into a book that is written with words but drew me into it with the power of music at it's core. Music is a universal language and speaks to the heart, mind and soul. This book did just that for me. I fell into the pages like I would at a symphony as a maestro conducts the orchestra to create magic and an experience in melodies and notes. It is a book that has a story that captivated me and kept me reading. Just as a great musical piece draws me to listen, this book drew me to turn the pages. I love the inscription at the beginning of the book: "Without music, life would be a mistake."-Friedrich Nietzsche" 

The characters in this book are complicated but ones I found I connected to. Ophelia "Phee" MacPhee is a young eighteen year old girl and she inherits her grandfather's luthier business. As he's dying he has her promise to make sure Braden Healey, a young man he sold a cello to when she was young, play the cello or else a curse would cause terrible things to happen. Braden has a "contract between him and the cello, an idiot piece of paper he'd signed when he was still a child-rambling on about a curse that would befall him if he didn't play." 

Braden Healey has a secret even he doesn't remember after a terrible accident. He can no longer play the cello because of the injury to his hands. He loved the cello and it was a part of him. He has a daughter, Allie, who loves the cello herself but life is turning tragic, her father has left her family when she needed him and now she is finding acceptance in all the wrong people, places and things. She's rebelling and wants her father only until she's "of age" and can be on her own. 

The cello....it speaks, lures, draws these people to herself. It's like she has life, a soul. and the characters depend on her to breathe. Phee, Braden and Allie each have a connection to the cello in their own unique and intimate ways. How can these people find healing for all the hurts they have endured? Is it possible for the cello to mend the brokenness and pieces they each find their lives in? 

This book looks at some very difficult subjects that cause divisions and hurt in families. Kerry Anne King addresses these issues in a sensitive and compassionate approach through the characters. It's a story about accepting mistakes, forgiveness of themselves and each other, supporting through love and devotion, and one of never giving up. Through hardships and addictions, loss of trust and forgiveness, fear of failure and then finding love, this book took me on the emotional "concert" of the character's journey. I felt that if I closed my eyes and just listened, I would hear the cello calling along with Phee, Braden and Allie. This book is marvelously and beautifully written. The passages are musical artwork in written words. Music penetrates deeply and so does love. This is found in "Everything You Are" written by the very talented story creator, Kerry Anne King. I highly recommend this book!

A wonderfully written book of love, guilt, and redemption. It's the story of a father who suffers from ptsd, abandons his family, and sinks into alcoholism. When a tragedy reunites him with his teenage daughter, his attempts to reconnect are stymied by her pain and resentment. 

In the midst of all this angst is a curse put on the family by, believe or not, a cello. Yes, odd as it may seem, this musical instrument was an almost human character in the story. But don't let that dissuade you from trying this book. The author is a beautiful writer. I really appreciated how easy it was to read. She displayed the thoughts and emotions of each character without an excess of words.

Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review.

Wow. I don’t even know what to say. I really did not like this book. I didn’t like the multiple perspectives. If it had been done from one perspective it would have flowed better. Maybe even just two perspectives but more than that just made it confusing and it was hard to keep track of the timeline. I couldn’t even finish the book after the sex scene. It was just very problematic and I really thought that Allie was smarter than that. All of the characters really annoyed me actually. I absolutely hated Ethan. I couldn’t believe he threw her phone into the ocean and then took her to that sleezy motel. He was so manipulative and crazy. Not only was the sex scene problematic, but the author also downplayed and somewhat made fun of suicidal thoughts. I also thought that the whole hearing the cello music that no one else could hear and the cello curse thing were really weird and unnecessary. Obviously, I did not like this book and I would not recommend it.

“Everything You Are" by Kerry Anne King is an interesting novel that is parts mystery/suspense and part fantasy. Phee has turned eighteen and discovers that she is taking over her grandfather’s business, which includes inheriting many of the superstitions and curses that apparently accompany certain stringed instruments. Each instrument has a soul and only the right person can be entrusted with caring for it. One of Phee’s responsibilities is to make sure that certain people who did sign a contract for an instrument continue to play it, or there could be a devastating effect.

Phee’s grandfather sold Braden his cello. Though he had a lucrative career, he is unable to play and lives in an alcoholic haze. Because his ex-wife and son were killed in an accident, he returns home to mend the estranged relationship he has with his daughter, Allie. One of Phee’s responsibilities is to reunite Braden with his cello and make sure he plays again.

King expertly moves the reader through the different point of views and plot lines, the latter of which is peppered with plenty of folklore. Yet, King also addresses more realistic topics such as infidelity and forgiveness. The author did a fair job is developing the majority of the characters (especially Phee); I cared enough about them to keep reading. This is the first novel I have read by King, but I am eager to now go through her previous works. 

If you are looking to read something different, I highly recommend this book. I'd like to thank NetGalley for providing me an advanced copy.

Wonderful book. Everything You Are by Kerry Ann King is a story of a horrible accident that leaves one person dead and one person with neuropathy from frostbite in his hands. Braden Healey's life is disrupted when he loses the ability to play his cello and must give up his career as a cellist. This accident shatters his family. Even though Braden can't remember the accident he blames himself. He starts drinking heavily. Fast forward eleven years. Braden's ex-wife and son are killed in an auto accident and his older daughter Allie needs him. At least she does for 6 more months. Then there is Phee or Ophelia McPhee. She is a luthier. Her grandfather has made a cello which is now owned by Braden. But Phee thinks that cello carries a curse and must be played by Braden or something bad will happen. There is a lot of tragedy, sorrow and hurt in this book but thanks to Phee and the cello there is magic and happiness as well. I would highly recommend it.