Frankly, this was a lot darker than I expected, but I still enjoyed it. I think I have a (fairly?) high tolerance for reading about trauma and seeing the post effects of it, so I was able to deal. Definitely check the content warnings though. Even as someone who hasn't experienced these things and isn't a survivor, some scenes are intense. The way her flight, fight or freeze instincts are demonstrated is skillfully both emotional and gripping. 

The only real flaw of this book was the ending. Most of Part 4 (the book is split into four parts) felt unnecessarily dragged out. It seemed like she was trying to shove in a bunch of character development/reveals at the end and it was just hard to care because the rest of the book is so action action action that in comparison when you’re just having conversations between characters it’s dull. I did like the last chapter though, much appreciated. It felt like she was taking back the last bits of her power that her mother had over her. It also nicely wrapped up something that’s hard to do with, because being a trauma survivor is a lifelong battle and has repercussions for decades. 

All in all, I liked it even though it was darker than I like for my contemporary books (which for me are meant to be pure escapism, easy, cute, at most sad, but not straight up violent) and the ending was slightly annoying. Should’ve read this first and then Some Girls Do to feel better lol. Like, I thought Ruby’s mom was bad, but in comparison to Abby, she’s an angel. 

Song: Play With Fire by Sam Tinnesz