Dang it Dr. Berry, you did it again! Did I love this story, no I did not; but as I found myself yelling at the characters (much to the surprise of my coworkers at my many outbursts), I knew it was good because it was making me feel things and react. This was dark, which if you've read Lucinda Berry, you'd expect nothing less; but this is a different dark than Saving Noah. Saving Noah was an emotional rollercoaster, this one was just dark from start to finish because sometimes "saved" isn't really saving you and the unflinching look at the aftermath was even darker than the beginning. Imagine screaming at a mother (I totally was yelling at her constantly!) because she's not listening to her child tell her what she needs after being held captive as a sex slave for four months?!? Imagine being 16 years old and having to drink your way through your day because that's the only way you're able to cope because only one person is listening to you and they're not being heard either??? Imagine having the guilt that a person has died because of your actions, even if you had no idea it would happen or that would be the outcome? Imagine carrying the shame (though she should not be ashamed because she did what she had to do and it was excruciating for her) of having to give yourself a "coat hanger" abortion to avoid birthing your rapist & captor's child? I can't even! So for Ella to come out of this and for nobody to listen to her, I'm shocked her actions and reactions weren't worse, honestly. Randi the advocate was the only one that heard her, and she couldn't get anyone to listen to her either. I was riveted by this story because I had to know if Ella was going to finally find some peace and be heard and try and find her way back to some semblance or normalcy. I knew Sarah was going to need far more than any help or therapy she was getting because she was so far gone into herself after spending so much time with John. I think what she had was beyond Stockholm Syndrome, and I hope she finds the help she needs, truly.
The only reason this wasn't five stars is because the narration for Sarah was not good, very instruction manual reading versus fictional story reading, so wooden and robotic.