School Library Journal Starred Review (Fri May 01 00:00:00 CDT 2015)

Gr 9 Up-Romy Grey lost her friends, including best friend Penny, and all high school social status when she accused the local sheriff's son of rape. But then she and Penny go missing the night of the annual senior party, and Romy is found on the side of a road the next morning with no memory of what happened. She has to try and reconcile life as the ostracized girl who is found when the beloved girl is still lost, while dealing with the lasting trauma of her assault. In a society that too often seeks to place blame on the victim, Summers's book offers a deft and timely examination of the aftermath of rape in a small town where corruption and power trump justice. "You can't deny you were attracted to him," the sheriff says in one of the book's flashbacks, before commenting on the teen's state of inebriation at the time and her clothing ("short skirt, skimpy shirt"). The dynamics between Romy and other characters, such as her supportive mother and new stepfather-figure, and her out-of-town diner coworker and love interest Leon (whom she doesn't tell about the rape), are well written. Romy is complex and likewise developed well as the story progresses; readers will feel for her as she grapples with her most vulnerable moments and see hope in her times of strength. Not all loose ends are tied up by the end, and the book is more powerful for it. VERDICT Readers will be drawn into this moving story set in small-town America. Essential for libraries serving high school students. Amanda Mastrull , Library Journal

ALA Booklist (Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 CST 2015)

When Romy accused the well-regarded sheriff's son of rape, not only did no one believe her but she became the town pariah. Months later, she lives her life like a shadow, melting into the background to avoid scorn and desperately clinging to any shred of control she can muster, while inside she simmers with fury. When she wakes up next to the highway with her clothes undone and no recollection of how she got there, she is terrified to face the same kind of vitriol from her community a second time, so she keeps quiet. When another girl goes missing the same night, however, Romy slowly realizes that she needs to reveal the painful truth. Summers takes victim-shaming to task in this timely story, and the cruelties not only of Romy's classmates but also the adults she should be able to trust come heartbreakingly to the fore. Romy's breathy internal monologue is filled with bitter indignation, and while the narrative style may require some patience, older teens who like gritty realism will find plenty to ponder.

Voice of Youth Advocates

Rape culture, class prejudice, and bullying are all handled sensitively and powerfully in this novel. Summers writes books targeted to older teens, and this one features a protagonist named Romy who is perpetually slut-shamed and treated as a liar by her classmates because she claims to have been raped by one of the sons of the wealthy town sheriff. Fearful of the sheriff's threats, she has never officially filed charges for the crime. The anger and fear that simmer just below her quiet surface build up as her peers' daily acts of cruelty accumulate. Her only crimes are being poor and having too much to drink at a party, yet she is treated by almost everyone in her small town as the guilty party. At the diner outside of town where she works to scrape up enough savings to eventually escape, she finds herself attracted to one of her coworkers but wonders if it is worth taking a risk to find some happiness. Meanwhile, forces in her hometown seem bent on dragging her down. Then, her former friend, the most popular girl in town, vanishes.While jumps back and forth in time can make this a challenging read, readers will definitely be compelled to find out whether Romy breaks free from her demons or implodes from the pressure.Sean Rapacki.