Book review: Finding Annie, by Katherine Turner

In this novel, we follow Annie, a young woman who, after 12 years, goes back to her hometown where she has to face a terrible trauma and find the strength to overcome it. In a touching and elegant narrative, Katherine Turner transports us to the mind and the heart of a survivor of sexual abuse and rape. She makes us live the process of healing, change of self-perception, and the way back to a path of hope and love of the character.
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‘Finding Annie’ is a tribute to all victims everywhere, but it’s also a calling for a society that, unfortunately, still lets such crimes happen. Annie’s pain is my pain too, as of all women in the world that are not safe just for being alive. Please, do yourselves a favor and read this book. It’s raw, it’s beautiful, it’s human.

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Ana’s review on Goodreads

Since I started reading ‘Finding Annie’, I couldn’t put it down. What a beautiful story! I loved the characters from the prologue to the last page, and I could feel with intensity each of their actions (All the raw emotions! The romance! The tension!). I could deeply understand their motivations and everything falls into place in every line.

Katherine Turner makes an incredible work to bring the readers close to the mind and heart of a survivor, and for that, I thank her very much. Through her book, she has brought to my world situations that I’ve never considered before about living with the aftermath of trauma caused by abuse and rape. As women, we know exactly how the world can be hard on us, and even for those that haven’t experienced any kind of violence, there is always the shadow of a ‘yet’ hanging on the back of our minds. More than a beautiful story about the power of love in the process of healing from trauma, Katherine’s book is an important addition to the discussion of how we are going to create a world where being a woman is not a threat to your life.

I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

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Josie’s review on Goodreads

Once I started reading I couldn’t put it down! Annie is back in her hometown for a sabbatical year while her mom is traveling overseas. Going back to her old life means facing the people she hasn’t seen for twelve years, including the sweet and wise Mrs. Renner, the scary and dangerous Charlie, and her intense and protective ex-boyfriend, Rob. As I turned pages, I felt emotions rushing when I found out about Annie’s childhood, the reason she left the city without saying goodbye, and how those ghosts never left her alone. Narrated from the points of view of Annie and Rob, this is a beautifully-written story about the long and difficult process of healing from bad traumas through love. The dialogs are to the point and move the narrative at an enjoyable pace. I felt connected to the character, and thanks to the excellent caption of the scenes I could feel the fear, the pain, and the joy they experienced from page one. I loved it from cover to cover! It is important to shine a light on how sexual abuse is NEVER, EVER, the victim’s fault. I got an ARC in exchange for my honest review and I am grateful for having the opportunity of reading this amazing book!!