I received this book as an ARC from Bookish and worried that I wouldn’t be able to follow the story because it’s the second book in a series. I bought book 1, and raced through it because I loved it so much. You don’t have to read The Hiding Girl to follow along with the story, but it makes reading this more enjoyable experience when you do.
The law has caught up with Emily, and she’s landed in juvenile prison awaiting trial. She’s made quite a few mistakes lately, but she has a good lawyer, and she’s hoping the law will see she felt her actions were necessary. While I enjoyed this one, I didn’t love the court case as much. The prosecutor harassed Emily a lot, and I feel that wouldn’t fly in court. That Emily was 13 when this happened is overlooked in her trial. Sure, they are aware she was 13, but to me, it was something that needed discussion and should weigh into their decisions.
Poor Emily, even if Box hadn’t told us she had PTSD, it was clear from the way she needs to discuss her traumas in a detached style, lest the pain overtakes her. “... suppressing my emotions is the only way to keep from drowning in them.” The characters are fantastic, and the storyline is addicting. I loved that Box talks about how detrimental ‘for-profit’ prisons are. America definitely needs prison reform. Overall, this was an enjoyable read. I’m hoping we haven’t seen the last of Emily and Curtis.
The law has caught up with Emily, and she’s landed in juvenile prison awaiting trial. She’s made quite a few mistakes lately, but she has a good lawyer, and she’s hoping the law will see she felt her actions were necessary. While I enjoyed this one, I didn’t love the court case as much. The prosecutor harassed Emily a lot, and I feel that wouldn’t fly in court. That Emily was 13 when this happened is overlooked in her trial. Sure, they are aware she was 13, but to me, it was something that needed discussion and should weigh into their decisions.
Poor Emily, even if Box hadn’t told us she had PTSD, it was clear from the way she needs to discuss her traumas in a detached style, lest the pain overtakes her. “... suppressing my emotions is the only way to keep from drowning in them.” The characters are fantastic, and the storyline is addicting. I loved that Box talks about how detrimental ‘for-profit’ prisons are. America definitely needs prison reform. Overall, this was an enjoyable read. I’m hoping we haven’t seen the last of Emily and Curtis.