A review by saramoser
When We Were Bright and Beautiful by Jillian Medoff

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

<spoilers>A extremely troubling and tough read about sexual assault, statutory rape, child abuse and grooming. Told from the view of the accused rapists sister, who sustained abuse most of her childhood and into adulthood and had covered this traumatic upbringing with falsified stories that she had conjured in her mind-to protect herself and her family. This read takes you inside the mind of the victim, while looking at how a family can react when they have abusers and trauma deep rooted in the family, but are able to cover this up with money. A lot of reviews low stars simply because they don’t like the ending, the ending lacked justice. But in the world we live in, isn’t that often the case? <spoilers>
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