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oprah_wimpy's review against another edition
5.0
Haunting. I am still digesting this book. Beautiful writing. Probably my favorite book this year.
bookclub_dropout's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I highly Recommend it--unsettling and definitely an interesting perspective. I read the audiobook and am so glad I did. The Author interview at the end was excellent.
karlyo83's review against another edition
5.0
TRIGGER WARNING: Sexual Assault, Grooming, Pedophilia, Suicide
My Rating System: 5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ticked all the boxes LOVED IT!!!
Spanning the years from 2000 to 2017 Vanessa starts out as a fresh faced 15 year old excited to embark on the journey that is her new boarding school. She is ambitious and smart and on yearning for adulthood when she becomes entangled in an affair with her much older English teacher. Jacob Strane who is 42years old begins to groom Vanessa and changes her life forever.
Fast forward to 2017 where Vanessa is in her 30s and still in contact with him and believing that her 'affair' was nothing to worry about, it wasn't abuse and she is in complete denial about how he has destroyed parts of her that she can never get back.
Amid the rising wave of allegations against this disgusting inappropriate behaviour there are young women coming out and accusing him of abuse, Vanessa is thrown into a world that she doesn't believe in and doesn't want to be part of... But will ignoring the ghosts of the past be her undoing forever??
There is a quote from Stephen King on the inside cover of this novel that states: This story is hard to read but it is even harder to put down... I don't think that could be closer to the truth about this book. It is an emotionally heartbreaking story about a young girl whose innocence is ripped apart and never put back together.
Everything about this story is heartbreaking even the 'wins' if you can call them that... it is not the story you recommend to your emotionally unstable friends, it is not the novel you read when you have had a hard day and the Trigger Warnings definitely need to be heeded. Do not go into this thinking that it won't emotionally drain and ruin you because believe me... It Will!!!
That does not mean I don't recommend the book, quite the opposite the book is beautifully written and the story is laid bare with nothing held back. It is a cold hard look at the predators that walk amongst us in plain sight, posing as normal human beings. It is a devastating journey into how someone can irrevocably change the course of a young girls life and insert into them a darkness that wasn't originally there but they have manipulated them in believing the mantra of "This is all my Fault".
Vanessa will infuriate you as a reader but her story is raw and real and her abuse has changed her and to survive she needs to believe certain things that don't trend well with other survivors. She is unpopular in the way she handles it but she cannot survive her story any other way. To me this was so heartbreaking, and I cried for Vanessa. I cried for all girls like Vanessa because while this is fiction you just know it is the darkest truth for so many girls and women out there and the fractures it created in my heart will be long lasting.
I don't want to say that this book was good because the story itself was not a good story - it was told so well though, it was important and beautifully written. It draws the reader into a world of sadness, manipulation, loneliness and terror in a powerful way. If you can emotionally cope with reading this sort of novel then I highly recommend it.
It will weigh on your heart and soul just as it has done on mine long after you put it back on the shelf.
This was my second Book Grocer read and it is one I wont forget.
My Rating System: 5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ticked all the boxes LOVED IT!!!
Spanning the years from 2000 to 2017 Vanessa starts out as a fresh faced 15 year old excited to embark on the journey that is her new boarding school. She is ambitious and smart and on yearning for adulthood when she becomes entangled in an affair with her much older English teacher. Jacob Strane who is 42years old begins to groom Vanessa and changes her life forever.
Fast forward to 2017 where Vanessa is in her 30s and still in contact with him and believing that her 'affair' was nothing to worry about, it wasn't abuse and she is in complete denial about how he has destroyed parts of her that she can never get back.
Amid the rising wave of allegations against this disgusting inappropriate behaviour there are young women coming out and accusing him of abuse, Vanessa is thrown into a world that she doesn't believe in and doesn't want to be part of... But will ignoring the ghosts of the past be her undoing forever??
There is a quote from Stephen King on the inside cover of this novel that states: This story is hard to read but it is even harder to put down... I don't think that could be closer to the truth about this book. It is an emotionally heartbreaking story about a young girl whose innocence is ripped apart and never put back together.
Everything about this story is heartbreaking even the 'wins' if you can call them that... it is not the story you recommend to your emotionally unstable friends, it is not the novel you read when you have had a hard day and the Trigger Warnings definitely need to be heeded. Do not go into this thinking that it won't emotionally drain and ruin you because believe me... It Will!!!
That does not mean I don't recommend the book, quite the opposite the book is beautifully written and the story is laid bare with nothing held back. It is a cold hard look at the predators that walk amongst us in plain sight, posing as normal human beings. It is a devastating journey into how someone can irrevocably change the course of a young girls life and insert into them a darkness that wasn't originally there but they have manipulated them in believing the mantra of "This is all my Fault".
Vanessa will infuriate you as a reader but her story is raw and real and her abuse has changed her and to survive she needs to believe certain things that don't trend well with other survivors. She is unpopular in the way she handles it but she cannot survive her story any other way. To me this was so heartbreaking, and I cried for Vanessa. I cried for all girls like Vanessa because while this is fiction you just know it is the darkest truth for so many girls and women out there and the fractures it created in my heart will be long lasting.
I don't want to say that this book was good because the story itself was not a good story - it was told so well though, it was important and beautifully written. It draws the reader into a world of sadness, manipulation, loneliness and terror in a powerful way. If you can emotionally cope with reading this sort of novel then I highly recommend it.
It will weigh on your heart and soul just as it has done on mine long after you put it back on the shelf.
This was my second Book Grocer read and it is one I wont forget.
know_it_nalls's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
kim_reads_1129's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
ldillaway's review against another edition
5.0
I had to sit with this book for a while before I could rate or review it (9 months apparently), but it’s stuck with me and I think it’s really well done. It has a very dark and difficult subject matter, one that frankly hits a little too close to home at times, but it handles it with empathy and care and feels like a portrayal of processing this kind of trauma that is very rooted in reality.
It’s about a topic that is difficult enough I wouldn’t feel comfortable recommending this book to others, I think people need to come to it on their own, but if you are looking to read about this topic this book is done very well.
It’s about a topic that is difficult enough I wouldn’t feel comfortable recommending this book to others, I think people need to come to it on their own, but if you are looking to read about this topic this book is done very well.
ru_th's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
sydneygraceo's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
geochamp's review
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5