You Have Seven Messages is a young-adult novel about identity and acceptance.  14-year-old Luna lost a part of her identity when her mother was killed in a car accident a year ago. Now she is using seven voicemail messages from her mother’s phone to discover the mysteries surrounding her mother’s death.  There are family secrets that must be discovered, no matter the cost.  Her uncle may hold missing puzzle pieces for Luna, but he lives in Italy.  The boy next door could probably teach her a thing or two, but Luna’s heart must be open enough to listen.  While this book sets forth a strong plot, the writing style is not consistent with the target audience and focuses heavily on mature themes around homosexual relations.  The exploration of these relationships does, however, encourage readers to listen to their own hearts and become whoever they want to be.  

This book was sent to Compass Book Ratings for review by Delacorte Books

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language: 2 anatomical terms; 2 religious profanities; 1 derogatory name.

Violence/Gore: second-hand reports of car accident; audio track of the death of a character

Sex/Nudity: 4 scenes of nudity; references to “sleeping around”; boys whistle at breasts, references to pornography; few flirtatious pinches of the buttocks; picture of anatomical body part taken; many depictions of homosexual lifestyle; depicted affairs; prostitution reference; bra buying, sexual education.

Mature Subject Matter:

Death of family members; gender/sex identity issues; homosexual relationships; sexual affairs.

Alcohol / Drug Use:

A teen goes to a bar.