I came across Katya Balen when I read October October this year and was simply captivated by her writing. Though I enjoyed the metaphor of her 'stormy' personality and the sea, I felt that overall her character arc was less dynamic than Tom's. In The Light in Everything, the author of the award-winning October, October has crafted another superb middle-grade novel. We see their journeys towards acceptance and happiness and their passage through a period of change in their lives that all children undergo at some point, albeit mostly in a less extreme way.

When they learn that they're going to be moving in together, both cope in the way their personalities might lead you to suspect.It's a very astute and accurate portrayal of the different sides to the same coin - two varying views on how children react when their single parent that they have held always in the highest of regards - as their sole caregiver and comfort of companion - bring a significant other into their small world of their own. I think that really helped me form realistic responses and thought processes, because I’ve absorbed so many. Emotionally charged as the story is, there are things that should be considered if offering this to a child as a teacher. Domestic abuse, bereavement, bullying and trust issues play their part but, ultimately, this is a story of families, love and friendship. Katya Balen does such a brilliant job of bringing these two characters to life and allowing us to feel everything that they are feeling.

A brave heart-dive into the deep emotions of Tom and Zofia, it’s beautifully told with care and tenderness. She can switch between them so well that you could almost believe they're written by different people. The water is cold most of the time, but Zofia is used to it and with her wetsuit on, she braves the waves when others wouldn’t dare. Origami becomes something much bigger than paper shapes in the book - it is an escape, it is a connection, it is hope, it is shared, it is a secret. From the author of October, October, The Light in Everything is a middle grade novel which can equally move any adult who cares to pick it up and dive in.Character development is brilliant and Tom and Zofia will make readers laugh, cry and have hope for their future.

Once again Balen shows how brilliant she is at taking unlikable characters and, by perfectly delineating with utmost clarity every mood, feeling, thought, emotion and event they go through, leading the reader to a place of love and understanding and acceptance. The Light in Everything is a powerful story of two remarkable characters who are dealing with their own insecurities and are then thrown together in a blended family. It’s an interesting, brutal, unusual and beautiful way of living, and I found myself (like all authors do! It takes awhile - there is struggle and pain on that journey - but the resolution is truly genuine and heart-felt.

When complications arise in Fiona’s pregnancy, the children’s characters finally unravel – and this provoking, simply-told story reaches its uplifting close. And while Zofia rages, Tom’s anxieties and fears intensify, their mutual dislike and mistrust of each other deepening as each day passes.