No Virgin by Anne Cassidy

Pages: 183
Publish date: November 3rd, 2016
Publisher: Hot Key Books
ISBN: 1471405788
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU

No Virgin:

Trigger Warning: There are scenes that include rape, assault, and the aftermath.

I received a copy of No Virgin by Anne Cassidy from Hot Key Books (Allen and Unwin) in exchange for an honest review. This has in no way influenced my thoughts and feelings about the book.

Firstly I want to say, that I have struggled to write this review. Everything that I seem to have wanted to say just didn’t come out right. On the other hand, this book is powerful, heartbreaking and raw to the core.

No Virgin follows protagonist Stacy as she deals with the aftermath of being raped. It’s a heartbreaking journey that’s raw and will slap you in the face. The book begins with Stacy after she has been sexual assaulted, she’s in a bathroom. Her mind reeling with what has happened. She gets up, walks out and is faced with her rapist, he gives her money for a cab and she leaves.  Nevertheless, The lead up to her assault is told after her best friends suggest she writes her thoughts, how she feels.

Stacy is a very shy protagonist. She keeps to her best friend, doesn’t tell her family much and also does what she has to, to get through high school. I had a real hard time connecting with Stacy. I am not entirely sure what it was, there was something that separated us. However, I did like Stacy’s passion. All she wants to do is work in the fashion industry, and she has figured out things on her own.

There isn’t much of a relationship between Stacy and her family. She lives with her mum, fourteen-year-old sister and her sister’s kid. However, this family is pretty dysfunctional. Her sister is nowhere near a mother to her son, relying on others around her including Stacy to look after him. It’s hard to see this, to witness someone so young looking after a baby. It’s like the world is on Stacy’s shoulders. All these people need her, but there isn’t many there for her. However, from the little that we do see, her father does try.

The rape scene was… hard to read. I had to step back, put my book down and breathe. I had to try and centre myself. It’s not for the fainthearted. Nevertheless, it was also heartbreaking.

What I liked most about the book was how Anne Cassidy dealt with the aftermath. Stacy wasn’t sure what she wanted to do. How she was supposed to deal with what did happen. If she was going to report him. If she need help. And there is no doubt there are other people that feel this way too.

I always like to read books that explore difficult topics. They are heartbreaking, hard to read and most of the time, take a lot out of me. But, we need books that deal with rape because it’s real.  Things like this happen in the world that we live in. And if teens are blind to it, or don’t know it’s going on – they won’t know how to deal with events like this when they do happen.

Overall, No Virgin is under 200 pages, and nevertheless, it packs a punch. It has so much in it, but nothing overtakes. There is the time before and then everything after. It’s hard, raw and real. However, No Virgin is not for everyone. It’s not sugar coated and so it shouldn’t be.

Have you read No Virgin? How did you feel about it? Are you planning on reading it? Also, have you read other books by Anne Cassidy? Let’s Chat!