Friday, February 14, 2014

ARC Review: Faking Normal

by Courtney C Stevens
5/5 stars
HarperCollins Children's Books, 2014
336 pages
YA Contemporary Issues
Scheduled to release February 25

Source: Received an e-ARC from the publisher through Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

I actually almost skipped over this book while reviewing upcoming titles because it didn't seem flashy or strong enough to hook my attention. But I'm a die-hard contemporary fan so I decided I would give it a try anyway, picking it up as the expiration date approached.

And at first it seemed like a pretty basic contemporary. Over the previous summer, something happened to Lexi, something that torments her, that robs her of sleep, and leads to her furiously scratching her skin in the middle of the night. Though outwardly Lexi seems to be the same, the trauma of the past summer is taking its toll. Complicating her life is the new boarder in her family's house, Bodee Lennox whose father murdered his mother, leaving him orphaned and warmly welcomed by Lexi's family. His silent strength is a safe refuge for Lexi as tries to confront the past and stop faking normality.

From the writing, it soon becomes apparent that Lexi was raped but that she struggles to use that word because she didn't say no. This absolutely broke my heart. From my readings around the internet, I've seen this offered as a defense against rape. Because the word "no" was not uttered, it is suggested that it was not rape. But it definitely is and it makes me all the more passionate about supporting yes means yes and the idea of affirmative consent (visit here for a starting point). Her rapist is a pretty big part of her life (see SPOILER DISCUSSION below for a few more thoughts) and Lexi is genuinely concerned about ruining his future prospects with her words. I've read more than a few YA books about rape but I don't remember one where the young lady was forced into such close continual contact with her rapist and that relationship had such an emotional impact on me. Though it crept up on me, the emotions of the book really built and hit hard near the end.

While this secret hangs over the entirety of the book, there are other important moments and relationships. The abuse of Bodee's mom by his dad and the horror of living in that household are something unraveled through Bodee's closeness to Lexi. Female friendship plays an important role with Lexi and her two friends wading through the difficult moments of humanity. Lexi's often annoying older sister is also important with a shining moment of heroism at the end; you know I can't resist a sister-sister relationship.

Overall: An incredibly emotional read that is a strong example of writing in YA contemporary. I am so glad I gave this book a chance!

SPOILER DISCUSSION:
Stevens totally faked me out. Though I initially suspected Craig, the writing soon led me to Collie just like Bodee before swinging back with Lex's confession. I couldn't believe how long Lexi held it together before finally sharing and was completely swept up in her emotions. I also can't believe the coldness of Craig to put her through that. Even if she had been enthusiastic, he's a teacher who's a good decade older than her and who professes to be in love with her sister. What a sick twisted man!
END SPOILER

15 comments:

  1. Awesome review sweetie :D I'm so glad you loved this book! And that you decided to give it a try :) I really enjoyed it too. <3

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    1. I was not expecting much but I'm so glad we both gave it a shot and liked it!

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  2. You know what? We've had this on our TBR stack for a while, but like you, never felt inclined to pick it up for some reason. Your review totally changed our minds. Thanks!

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    1. I hope you like it too-I bet you'll have some interesting things to say!

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  3. I never suspected, to me it was always Collie. But anways, I loved Bodee in this one and its made my faves of the year so far

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    1. It was just a vibe I got but then I thought I was being too suspicious and Collie had to be the culprit.

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  4. Wow, this one sounds heart wrenching! I love the cover too. I might just have to read this one.

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    1. I hope you do decide to check it out-I thought it was just amazing!

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  5. I think I'm going to have to grab this one. I really like how you describe this one. It sounds very emotional and hard hitting, but really good.

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  6. Your glowing review of this book is the 2nd I have read and I am just so curious about this book now! Like you and the other reviewer, I read the summary of this and thought: been there, read that. But it sounds as if this book really is so much MORE than expected. I'm definitely adding it to my TBR because I love contemp as much as you and I am always up for being surprised about a book I expected less from:)

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    1. I maybe should have expected more after checking out some reviews but I was still so surprised-I hope you love it too!

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  7. Yours is the first review I've read for Faking Normal. Like you I love contemporary YA, particularly emotionally intense stories. Thank you, off to grab myself a copy.
    Speaking of emotionally intense YA ... you might like Laura Wiess, she's not very wide read but writes exceptional YA. I just reviewed Me Since You.

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    1. I'm so glad to introduce you to this title-it's getting so many raves! I have not read any Wiess so thank you for sharing about her so I can check her writing out for myself.

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  8. I finished this one on Friday & I just didn't connect with it. I felt terrible for her, I did, and I think the author did a great job of really going through the ping pong of emotions but it just wasn't enough for me to be on track with her. Maybe too much was going on, maybe the structure didn't work for me. I did guess the person before the end but I was swayed and afterwards felt the author would have subtly folded in other characters without me thinking they were some kind of suspect? Also, did not like the sister at all and I was so infuriating. SO infuriated. I don't know if what happened after the reveal even made up for how immature and out of line that sister was. I'm still mad.

    Definitely looking forward to reading more of this author's work though. Thought Bodee was a great NICE GUY character and I liked the desk lyrics detail. (Would have liked for her friends to be less involved with that though.)

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