All The Rage book review

All the Rage

by Courtney Summers (Goodreads Author)

 

The sheriff’s son, Kellan Turner, is not the golden boy everyone thinks he is, and Romy Grey knows that for a fact. Because no one wants to believe a girl from the wrong side of town, the truth about him has cost her everything—friends, family, and her community. Branded a liar and bullied relentlessly by a group of kids she used to hang out with, Romy’s only refuge is the diner where she works outside of town. No one knows her name or her past there; she can finally be anonymous. But when a girl with ties to both Romy and Kellan goes missing after a party, and news of him assaulting another girl in a town close by gets out, Romy must decide whether she wants to fight or carry the burden of knowing more girls could get hurt if she doesn’t speak up. Nobody believed her the first time—and they certainly won’t now — but the cost of her silence might be more than she can bear.　

With a shocking conclusion and writing that will absolutely knock you out, All the Rage examines the shame and silence inflicted upon young women after an act of sexual violence, forcing us to ask ourselves: In a culture that refuses to protect its young girls, how can they survive?


My Review: 8/10

Though this is not up my usual alley, I was fully warned about what I was getting myself into with that synopsis, and the plot intrigued me.

This was so well written. At first, the writing is jarring, not knowing who is narrating, what's happening, what tense we're in, trying to get your bearings as the reader. That was a little annoying. But you get your feet under you quickly enough and before you know what hit you, you missed dinner, you've been reading for hours and you're snapping at anyone making noise around you, because, because... intense things are happening.

For full disclosure, at 50% of the way through, I couldn't take the suspense anymore and the synopsis had promised me a twist and I was hoping against hope for a happy ending somehow. So I skipped to 87% and finished the book from there.

I felt like this book did such a good job of exploring the emotional and psychological effects of rape and the ramifications of villainizing victims. I thought Romy's actions, reactions, thoughts and feelings were realistic.

This was more of a 6 for me because, though I thought it was well written and I liked it, I didn't *love* it and probably won't read it again. However, I rated it higher because since it was just a personal preference over content, that wouldn't stop me from recommending it to others. If you like young adult thrillers and/or fiction that explores the psychological effect on tramautized teens, I do believe you will really enjoy this book.