Book Review: Cut Me Free by J. R. Johansson

Title- Cut Me Free

Author- J. R. Johansson

Publisher- Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group

Release- January 27, 2015

Amazon- http://goo.gl/8Vcf0s

BOOK SUMMERY:

Seventeen-year-old Charlotte barely escaped from her abusive parents. Her little brother, Sam, wasn’t as lucky. Now she’s trying to begin the new life she always dreamed of for them, but never thought she’d have to experience alone. She’s hired a techie-genius with a knack for forgery to remove the last ties to her old life. But while she can erase her former identity, she can’t rid herself of the memories. And her troubled history won’t let her ignore the little girl she sees one day in the park. The girl with the bruises and burn marks.

That’s when Charlotte begins to receive the messages. Threatening notes left in her apartment–without a trace of entry. And they’re addressed to Piper, her old name. As the messages grow in frequency, she doesn’t just need to uncover who is leaving them; she needs to stop whoever it is before anyone else she loves ends up dead.

MY THOUGHTS:

 

There are not many books that I need to take a couple minutes to process them after reading, but this was one of them! Cut Me Free is a dark, gripping story about human trafficking and abuse. Piper was locked in her attic with her little brother by her parents and they were physically abused by them. This concept reminded me of the story, “Flowers in the Attic”, and this could have been what happened if there were only two children and only one escaped.

After recusing a girl who was sold to an abusive man, Piper has been finding threatening boxes with a note inside each of them. Throughout most of the book Piper tries to figure out who is leaving these boxes while keeping her new friend, Cam, away from it all. I will admit the beginning of the book was a bit slow moving for me, but once Piper saved Sanda I was completely engaged and flew through this book!

I like that this book stayed true to the YA genre, there were no inappropriate scenes between Cam and Piper. Although, sometimes I got frustrated with them, but I understand that Piper came from an abusive household so it was hard for her to trust anyone. Cam’s cousin, Lily, kind of made it seem as though Cam falls for the young girls her helps often, which made me dismiss his sincerity at times. Although, the ending was perfect.

I do recommend this book to anyone who would like get chills and a thrill while reading it.

Book Review: Play of Light by Debra Doxer

Title- Play of Light

Author- Debra Doxer

Synopsis

At fourteen, my life was perfect. The beach was my playground, and the boy who stole my heart lived just around the corner. But perfect never lasts. In one horrifying moment, I lost it all. My family was destroyed, and the boy I believed in turned his back on me. Paradise became a nightmare.

That was five years ago. Everything changed when we moved from our home by the sea. I’ve changed, and I don’t like who I’ve become. I miss the smiling, carefree beach girl who disappeared that terrible night. I want to find her again. I want to face the people we ran from so long ago. Most of all, I have to face Spencer. So I can prove that when he broke my heart, he didn’t break me.

But when I see him again, Spencer Pierce is no longer the boy from my memories. He’s now a man who could devastate me if I let him. He watches me when he thinks I’m not looking. There’s regret written on his face when he’s near. Each time I see him, my heart aches for what might have been, and I think his does too. How can I convince myself I’m over him when I suspect he never got over me?

MY REVIEW

Play of Light was a story about Sarah and Spencer whom shared a past, not only did the story dive into the characters present life, but also the past. Most stories that I read in this genre speak about the past relationship two people have together, but do not it really show what went on or events that conspired. Play of Light on the other hand spent several characters showing how Sarah felt about Spencer and how their relationship grew from strangers to friends. I think this allowed me to grow an attachment to both Spencer and Sarah.

There was a lot of mystery while reading this story; we never really knew what was going on with spencer and his uncle. I also like how at the end of the story there were a couple of events that I knew was coming. I kind of thought I knew what Spencer’s BIG secret was, but boy was a wrong and I am very glad I was.

This was definitely a nice simple romance novel and worth the read!