Teenage girl traumatized by horrible incident, cast out from teen social sphere, unable to express emotions, repressing a dark self and a dark secret. I know this story. Not just because I was once a teenaged girl, but because I guessed from about page 10 what the big trauma was and how to fix it. (Okay, not page 10. I was listening to the book on CD. It must’ve been minute 10.) I didn’t really like being a teenaged girl, ravaged with social concerns, disabled by insecurity, making mistakes that now, as an adult, I can’t see the point of. And I can’t just accidentally forget that adult wisdom and watch a character fumble around, delaying the inevitable happy (or at least happier) ending.
With all the sympathy in my heart for the character and her trauma, I want to yell at her to just do the right thing already, cut off the dying branch of the tree that is your self (the author’s image, not mine) and let’s get on with life.
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars – Mediocre
