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A review by cocoonofbooks
Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman
4.0
It was fascinating to listen to this so soon after reading [b:The Body Keeps the Score|18693771|The Body Keeps the Score Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma|Bessel van der Kolk|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1594559067l/18693771._SY75_.jpg|26542319]. Among other things, Hartman is asking the question, "What would it look like for someone with PTSD to live and recover from trauma in a medieval fantasy-type setting?" Our protagonist, Tess, doesn't have access to EMDR or neurofeedback therapy, but she discovers other ways of healing, from moving her body in strong and purposeful ways to reteaching her body how to approach physical intimacy slowly, in a safe environment.
This book was recommended to me by a listener of Get Booked after I wrote in asking for a book in which the protagonist has experienced a past trauma but you don't know what it is when the book opens, and who finds love that supports her in her healing but isn't healed by love itself. At first, I thought the recommender was mistaken because the source of Tess' trauma seems clear early on, but in fact, there are layers and layers of past experiences that are revealed throughout the course of the book.
I had a hard time getting into this book at first and thought about abandoning it because Tess was such an unlikable character, but I'm glad I stuck with it and got to see her transformation into confidence and healing. I could have done without the whole side plot about Kikiu because I never really understood the point of it, but I enjoyed the rest of Tess' adventures and.
I don't feel strongly about picking up the sequel (which I don't think has been published yet anyway), but I'm glad this was recommended to me and enjoyed going on the road with Tess.
This book was recommended to me by a listener of Get Booked after I wrote in asking for a book in which the protagonist has experienced a past trauma but you don't know what it is when the book opens, and who finds love that supports her in her healing but isn't healed by love itself. At first, I thought the recommender was mistaken because the source of Tess' trauma seems clear early on, but in fact, there are layers and layers of past experiences that are revealed throughout the course of the book.
I had a hard time getting into this book at first and thought about abandoning it because Tess was such an unlikable character, but I'm glad I stuck with it and got to see her transformation into confidence and healing. I could have done without the whole side plot about Kikiu because I never really understood the point of it, but I enjoyed the rest of Tess' adventures and
Spoiler
I appreciated how Hartman gives us a chance to see what happened to all of the characters from the rest of the book via Brother Jacomo's experience following Tess' trailI don't feel strongly about picking up the sequel (which I don't think has been published yet anyway), but I'm glad this was recommended to me and enjoyed going on the road with Tess.