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A review by katykelly
The Places I've Cried in Public by Holly Bourne
5.0
Difficult topic, difficult to read. But forcefully impressive and hugely upsetting.
Within a few pages I could see the stunning realism of this story. I thought briefly that this would be a simple tale of a teenage girl getting over a first love. But I was so, so wrong.
Romance, flattery, exhilaration. Manipulation, abuse, obsession. Amelie bares her heart to us, looking back over the first months she spent in London after moving away from her Sheffield home, friends and sweetheart. A talented singer/singwriter, she is almost instantly swept off her feet by the cool Reese, whose constant attentions and protestations of adoration can't fail to make their mark on her. Soon in love, she tells us about what went wrong later.
And it's devastating. Reminding me of Thirteen Reasons Why in some ways, the darkness involved, Bourne takes us about as deep as a YA novel is going to delve, into something honest but brutal. Relationship hell.
I wept reading the second half of this, more than once. It was painful, made me angry, and almost hurt physically to read certain chapters. I would have liked a little resolution as to how certain characters moved on after the end of events, there were questions in my mind. But Bourne did give her story appropriate closure.
WARNING: VERY graphic sexual content, often suggested but some made fairly explicit. Themes incredibly mature and likely to upset.
I would place this on my library shelf in the 'age 14 and above' section. And recommend both young adults and those adults interested in YA fiction to pick this up. It won't be one you forget.
Within a few pages I could see the stunning realism of this story. I thought briefly that this would be a simple tale of a teenage girl getting over a first love. But I was so, so wrong.
Romance, flattery, exhilaration. Manipulation, abuse, obsession. Amelie bares her heart to us, looking back over the first months she spent in London after moving away from her Sheffield home, friends and sweetheart. A talented singer/singwriter, she is almost instantly swept off her feet by the cool Reese, whose constant attentions and protestations of adoration can't fail to make their mark on her. Soon in love, she tells us about what went wrong later.
And it's devastating. Reminding me of Thirteen Reasons Why in some ways, the darkness involved, Bourne takes us about as deep as a YA novel is going to delve, into something honest but brutal. Relationship hell.
I wept reading the second half of this, more than once. It was painful, made me angry, and almost hurt physically to read certain chapters. I would have liked a little resolution as to how certain characters moved on after the end of events, there were questions in my mind. But Bourne did give her story appropriate closure.
WARNING: VERY graphic sexual content, often suggested but some made fairly explicit. Themes incredibly mature and likely to upset.
I would place this on my library shelf in the 'age 14 and above' section. And recommend both young adults and those adults interested in YA fiction to pick this up. It won't be one you forget.