Scan barcode
A review by chloe_liese
The Rakess by Scarlett Peckham
5.0
I haven’t been so moved by a book in a long while. If you’re a lover of historical romance, a feminist, a reader who wants something to sink their teeth into, this is your story.
“We realized, that night, that we’d miscalculated… If no woman was safe, what was the point of being cautious? If the finest lady any of us knew could be abducted from her home by the man to whom she had dutifully born two children, then what did adherence to the codes of feminine respectability protect? Perhaps there was more freedom in being the kind of woman who was not respectable. For such women had little left to take away.”
“Sometimes the grim realities of womanhood, and the danger of addressing them when one lacked power beyond rage, were so heavy it silenced all discussion. One did not need to name the feeling. One simply felt the weight.”
This is not an easy book. There are deeply troubling, heart wrenching themes. But this is women’s history. And for so many women still in the world, this is their reality. Finishing the story I feel more deeply connected to the resilience, empowerment, and sheer determination of womankind to survive and make life better for themselves and future female generations. I am touched by the man who loves this woman, not perfectly, but passionately, and with a deep desire to know her fully and support her in the pursuit of her convictions.
I could praise and wax philosophical on this book all day long, honestly. But I hope you’ll read it for yourself. Prepare to see a woman ruined, wrecked, ravaged, but ultimately resilient and triumphantly loved. I hope she inspires you, as she has inspired me.
CW/TW: death and abandonment by past romantic partners, trauma surrounding stillbirth, miscarriage, sexual harassment, slut shaming and misogyny, spousal coercion, kidnapping and control, depictions of alcohol addiction and recovery.
“We realized, that night, that we’d miscalculated… If no woman was safe, what was the point of being cautious? If the finest lady any of us knew could be abducted from her home by the man to whom she had dutifully born two children, then what did adherence to the codes of feminine respectability protect? Perhaps there was more freedom in being the kind of woman who was not respectable. For such women had little left to take away.”
“Sometimes the grim realities of womanhood, and the danger of addressing them when one lacked power beyond rage, were so heavy it silenced all discussion. One did not need to name the feeling. One simply felt the weight.”
This is not an easy book. There are deeply troubling, heart wrenching themes. But this is women’s history. And for so many women still in the world, this is their reality. Finishing the story I feel more deeply connected to the resilience, empowerment, and sheer determination of womankind to survive and make life better for themselves and future female generations. I am touched by the man who loves this woman, not perfectly, but passionately, and with a deep desire to know her fully and support her in the pursuit of her convictions.
I could praise and wax philosophical on this book all day long, honestly. But I hope you’ll read it for yourself. Prepare to see a woman ruined, wrecked, ravaged, but ultimately resilient and triumphantly loved. I hope she inspires you, as she has inspired me.
CW/TW: death and abandonment by past romantic partners, trauma surrounding stillbirth, miscarriage, sexual harassment, slut shaming and misogyny, spousal coercion, kidnapping and control, depictions of alcohol addiction and recovery.