Author: Nikki Barthelmess
Year Published: 2020
Genre: YA fiction
Pages: 384
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Location (my 2020 Google Reading map): USA (NV)
FTC Disclosure: I was given a digital copy of this book for an impartial review
Summary (from the inside flap of the book): College freshman Victoria Parker is trying to move on with her life after surviving sexual assault by her father and six months in foster care. She’s focusing on the positives—attending college, living on her own, repairing old relationships and making new ones, and getting involved with an abuse survivors activist group on campus. But everything’s thrown into disarray when a strange woman shows up, claiming to be Victoria’s aunt and asking Victoria to lie about what happened to her.
With her father’s sentencing in a few months, she’s nervous about having to share the truth of what happened with a judge. She’s not even sure if she has the strength to go through with it. But when her fellow club members begin pressuring her to speak out, Victoria has to decide how to share her story while remaining true to herself.
Challenges for which this counts:
FTC Disclosure: I was given a digital copy of this book for an impartial review
Summary (from the inside flap of the book): College freshman Victoria Parker is trying to move on with her life after surviving sexual assault by her father and six months in foster care. She’s focusing on the positives—attending college, living on her own, repairing old relationships and making new ones, and getting involved with an abuse survivors activist group on campus. But everything’s thrown into disarray when a strange woman shows up, claiming to be Victoria’s aunt and asking Victoria to lie about what happened to her.
With her father’s sentencing in a few months, she’s nervous about having to share the truth of what happened with a judge. She’s not even sure if she has the strength to go through with it. But when her fellow club members begin pressuring her to speak out, Victoria has to decide how to share her story while remaining true to herself.
Review: I read Nikki's first book, The Quiet You Carry, because her husband was my student when he was in high school. I read this second book because I liked the first book so much! This book is due to be released in October 2020.
This book follows the further life of Veronica, a character that I felt for quite deeply in the first book. In this follow up, Veronica finds her voice, literally, and is quiet no more. She learns that she is in charge of how she feels, what she says, and who she gives her time to. I love that this character, who starts out as insecure and unsure of herself, figures out what matters to her even though there are loud forces all around who want her to be something else.
This book does not only deal with the aftermath of abuse, but with friendship, love, family, the fostercare and legal systems, bullying, and more. Yes, it all stems from the affects of abuse, but it's more than that. It's about figuring out what matters and who we are. And Nikki Barthelmess does all this with style, compassion, and empathy.
This book follows the further life of Veronica, a character that I felt for quite deeply in the first book. In this follow up, Veronica finds her voice, literally, and is quiet no more. She learns that she is in charge of how she feels, what she says, and who she gives her time to. I love that this character, who starts out as insecure and unsure of herself, figures out what matters to her even though there are loud forces all around who want her to be something else.
This book does not only deal with the aftermath of abuse, but with friendship, love, family, the fostercare and legal systems, bullying, and more. Yes, it all stems from the affects of abuse, but it's more than that. It's about figuring out what matters and who we are. And Nikki Barthelmess does all this with style, compassion, and empathy.
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