Reviews with content warning for Sexual harassment - I'm the Girl

Thank you to Netgalley and MacMillan Audio for an ALC of this one

I experienced a very weird feeling throughout this. It is such an uncomfortable read--not in a bad way, just like...it is hard to get through. Definitely look into trigger warnings before this one.

The sexual harassment is sooooooooooo uncomfortable. I know that is the point but like it hurts so bad to "see" that play out. Like yikes. Poor Georgia...and everyone else.

This was so good and the atmosphere was perfect. I really did enjoy it despite how uncomfortable I felt. I mean, that was kind of the point, right?

Content Warnings

thereadingraccoon's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I’m The Girl is a young adult mystery about a sixteen year old who discovers the body of a local girl. It contains thriller elements but it is also is a coming of age story. Due to the graphic nature of this book I recommend it to readers sixteen and older.

Georgia is struck by a car while riding her bike to Aspera, a golf course and resort for the rich and famous where she’s dreamed of working as one of their elite “girls” since she was thirteen. When she wakes up injured by the side of the road her bike, cell phone and the explicit photographs of herself she was carrying are all missing. While stumbling to find help Georgia discovers the body of Ashley James, the thirteen year old sheriff’s daughter in the brush nearby. As she recovers from her accident she’s enlisted by Ashley’s older sister (Nora) to investigate exactly what happened that night. But due to all the attention from the murder and accident and her youthful beauty she attracts the notice of the Aspera owners (Matthew and Cleo) and she’s finally closer than ever to being an actual “Aspera girl”. Georgia juggles her skeptical older brother slash guardian, a blossoming romance with Nora, unexpected demands at Aspera, the investigation into the murder and the demands for answers from Ashley’s grieving father.

As a reader you are very aware that something isn’t right with Aspera and only the main character’s age, naïveté and ambition keeps her from seeing the reality. It is a “ripped from the headlines” type novel echoing the #metoo movement and Jeffrey Epstein allegations as Georgia is pulled into a world of sex, money and power where the bodies of young girls are commodities to be bought and traded.

I will state right off that this is not the feel good book of 2022. It is dark and gritty and has detailed scenes of the grooming and exploitation of a minor. The mystery and thriller elements keep the reader interested but there are also serious topics of discussion about abuse of power, consent and female sexuality. I thought Courtney Summers did an excellent job of showing the more complicated and human parts of a teenage girl and her desire to be special and beautiful.

Overall this is a dark and tragic story about two teenage girls that are abused and exploited for the gratification of powerful men and the wall of secrecy that protects abusers. I would recommend it to readers that enjoy reading about challenging contemporary topics.

3.5 stars

Content Warnings

clarereadstheworld's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

I found this book deeply disturbing.
I really struggled to identify with the main character, who was so desperate for any tiny scrap of validation from the male gaze that she was totally blind to how grossly she was being manipulated and abused by those around her. I know this kind of thing happens in real life, and it's important to have books and discussions about it, but I felt the writing, much like the main character was sorely missing in depth and maturity.
Not only this, I think it would be a rather dangerous book from the impressionable younger audience it seems to be written and marketed to. Seriously, do not let younger girls read this book, and even as a full grown semi mature adult I wouldn't really recommend it either.

Content Warnings

annamariahz's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

When sixteen-year-old Georgie discovers the body of her classmate's thirteen-year- old sister, she is thrust into a world far more dangerous than she could understand. Georgie is trying to escape her family's poverty and believes that her beauty is her way out. But the privilege and wealth of the people around her quickly become dangerous. This is not a fun read (please check the trigger warnings before you read this book). It is uncomfortable and heartbreaking. The entire story is told from Georgie's perspective, and she is a very unreliable narrator. But as the reader, you can see the dangerous situations that she enters and the grooming the adults are doing around her, even when she doesn't, which makes it very unsettling to read. But it also discusses such important topics, and it was incredibly moving.

Thank you to Wednesday Books for gifting me this ARC as part of a Goodreads giveaway. It was a gripping read!

Content Warnings

kaitsteak's review against another edition

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dark sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No

2.5

CW: sexual assault, sexual harassment, drug overdose

This is my third book I’ve read by Courtney Summers. I liked it less than Sadie, but more than The Project.

The book follows sixteen-year-old Georgia Avis. The book opens with Georgia stumbling onto a murder scene. She and the murder victim’s sister investigate the murder at an exclusive club. The story is intriguing and held my interest, but the characters read a little flat. I wish we got more insight into the motivation of the characters, especially the protagonist.

The book is marketed as a YA book, but I think that is misleading, given the level of violence and sexual assault in the book. The book is attempting a social commentary on class and gendered power dynamics, but I don’t think it quite gets there. The topic is presented, but without commentary or in-depth analysis.

**SPOILER RE: CONTENT WARNINGS***

There are a few scenes in which Georgia’s adult male employer sexually assaults her. One in particular was troubling because he kept asking “Can I kiss you?” throughout and kind of implies Georgia, a minor, consented to this encounter. In my opinion, the book doesn’t address that power of power negates and her minority negates that “consent.”

Content Warnings

bookcrushin's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book fucked me up. Not sure that’s a good or bad thing? All the content warnings. Be informed. Wonderfully crafted and written but this dark, suspenseful story isn’t for everyone.

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