"My name is Nico. I am thirteen in two weeks and two days. I come from Moldova. My country is shaped like a bunch of grapes and no sea touches it. I shake my head. No. No. No—my name is Natasha Popescu, I am fifteen years old, from a village in Romania whose name I've forgotten." (loc. 2240*)

I don't often start with content warnings, but "Cloud Girls" calls for one—be aware that this book is about the sexual abuse and exploitation of children.

In Dublin, Sammy is struggling: Her mother is alcoholic and abusive, and her father is physically present but decided a long time ago not to see his wife's illness, or her treatment of Sammy. In Moldova, all Nico wants is to run and play in the trees—but at twelve, her period has come, and she is no longer considered a child.

Here's the difference between them: Sammy thinks she's still in control. Nico knows she isn't.

"Cloud Girls" slips from small-town Moldova to suburban Ireland, following these two girls as they land in a brothel and their lives become about survival. And it's devastating: once they're in the system, there is precious little they can do to get themselves out of it, and nobody coming to rescue them. For Sammy, that feels like a good thing initially (nobody looking for her means freedom from her mother), but it rapidly becomes apparent to her that she has bitten off far, far more than she can chew, and landed somewhere that she'd never have been able to envision. Nico, too, knows that nobody is coming to rescue her: perhaps her father told himself that he was selling her off to a better life, perhaps he even told himself that he believed that to be true, but...well.

"I have only been in this house three days and three nights and already it seems as if three lifetimes have passed." (loc. 3766)

I am reminded strongly of "The Unbreakable Heart of Oliva Denaro," of the ways in which girls have long been treated as disposable. In "Oliva Denaro," puberty means that it's time for Oliva to be married off, and rape means it's time for her to be married off to her rapist; in "Cloud Girls," puberty means that it's time for Nico to be sold off. Decades have passed, and the countries are different, but Sammy and Nico are not in a better situation than Oliva. And so many people are complicit: Nico's father, who sells her, and the people who buy her; the adults who choose not to believe Sammy when she says that home is not a safe place; the border agents who look closely but opt not to ask; the drivers and madams and other brothel employees; the hotel workers who look the other way; the hotel guests who look the other way; and of course the men paying to abuse these children.

"All I could think, as I was watching, was thank God it's not me. Something bad has taken up space inside me, and I want to turn away from it, and me." (loc. 3989)

Harding walks a very careful line here: this is a book with a staggering amount of abuse, and she is very careful about what makes it on the page and what is left to be inferred. Go into it with caution, but she's written it for good reason.

Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.

*Quotes may not be final.

This is a truly heartbreaking tale of two young women, Nico and Sammy who never meet until close to the end but endure the same humiliation and abuse. Each are "sold' to a trafficker and have no idea where or why they are leaving their families. And in the final destination, Ireland they are subjected to all sorts of horror, but also some kindness and eventually they meet. Fortunately, Harding speaks to the resilience of the human spirit even as these girls suffer and wonder if they will ever be released from the prison that is often their own minds.
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

Cloud Girls is a heartbreaking and emotionally charged novel that explores the lives of two teenage girls, Sammy and Nico. Sammy is a streetwise girl who is struggling to survive in a world that has failed her at every turn. Neglected by her alcoholic mother, she seeks attention from boys and men, looking for protection that she cannot find at home or school. Nico, on the other hand, is a preternaturally beautiful and naïve girl from a small village in Eastern Europe. Her family is facing desperate times, and her father agrees to marry her off to a stranger who offers a better life in Ireland.

As the two girls find themselves living in a suburban brothel in Ireland, their friendship and unexpected acts of kindness form a powerful bond. The novel is a poignant reminder of the failings of society and the cruelty that can exist beneath its surface. It exposes the dark underbelly of life and the struggles of those who fall through the cracks. Yet, at the same time, it highlights the resilience of the human spirit and the power of love and goodness even in the darkest times.

The author does an excellent job of bringing the characters to life and making the reader care about their plight. The story is well-crafted and engaging, with a writing style that is both lyrical and gritty. The novel is an emotionally charged read that is not for the faint of heart, but it is a book that is hard to put down once you start reading. Cloud Girls is a poignant and powerful novel that will stay with readers long after they have turned the last page.

I must say I really enjoyed this, I think more people need to read this to bring awareness to sex trafficking. Nico and Sammy were both so different, and even though I knew they probably wouldn't get a happy ending I truly was rooting for them! This is definitely a dark subject, and even though it doesn't go into serious detail it may he upsetting to some. Thank you to NetGalley and HarperVia for giving me a chance to read this amazing book!

Thank you Net Galley and the publisher for an ARC of this book .
I didn’t know this book was going to be about sex trafficking. It’s an important issue and happens every day. I just couldn’t get into it. It is well written but too depressing for me.

Cloud Girls is a dark story that delves into how two girls from different circumstances both eventually wind up ensnared with sex traffiicking. Sammy is from Dublin, a 15 year old "problem" teenager who can't find her own way of an abusive home life and is let down by the people around her who don't quite manage to care enough to help her onto a different path. Her choices when she tried to escape her homelife eventually lead her into the world of prostitution and then into the trap of a sex trafficking group.

Nico is barely 12 and living in a rural Eastern European village. Life is still very much controlled by men there, and Nico not her mother can find the power needed to go against her father's plan to "marry" her off to a stranger for money. Nico very quickly must let go of any hope that the life her father told her awaited her when she ends up in the grips of the same sex traffickers as Sammy.

The 2 girls form a friendship and are the only support and hope each other has. The ending of the story is as heartbreaking as the rest of the book, and it reminded me that sex trafficking in many forms is still a huge problem throughout the world.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Really hard to read due to the subject matter. I did think it was well written though. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC for the purpose of this review. Four stars for the author crafting a heartbreaking story.

Wow is all I have to say after reading this book. I also will say PLEASE know that there are TW within this book. This book was by far the most emotional experience I have ever had reading. The way this author wrote this book was exceptional. Lisa Harding kept the stories very authentic and true while respecting the graphic nature of the situations.

The way she brought to life and light the stories, struggles, pain and hurt of the main characters in this book — two teenage girls, different countries was out of this world. Each coming from different background and their voices were so unique and they felt so real. My heart cried out for both of them the entire way with each page turn. The character/world building here was perfection. I had tears running down my face it was an emotional roller coaster.

I appreciate Lisa writing this book topic because domestic trafficking is not talked about enough and is a very large wide issue in our world. This book alone makes an impact, gives voice to those who didn’t or do not have them.

As difficult and dark as this book may be I highly recommend it as a read. I give this book 5-stars. To capture all that and bring the reader into that world like Lisa Harding has. I have recommended this to go all all my female friends/families reading lists.

This book is beautifully written but I found the subject matter to be incredibly difficult. It's definitely not for everyone but I'd still definitely recommend it!

Heartbreaking. Tragic. Soul crushing. Gut-wrenching.

These are some of the words that can describe this book, but I don't think any are strong enough.

This is a story that needs to be told again and again.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This story is about two young girls who, under very different circumstances, become involved in sex trafficking. I'm ok to read about dark subject matter, but I cannot for the life of me figure out what the point of this book was?Just incredibly sad, repetitive and almost gratuitious at points.

I’m just left here staring into space after finishing Cloud Girls. Yes, we know it happens. Yes, it is everywhere. But to see it put into pages, so heartbreaking and eloquent makes it somehow more real.
International and domestic sex trafficking is everywhere, where you least expect it. How do we stop it? How can we save these victims? Obviously I don’t have the answers, I’m not sure anyone does. But to read about Samantha and Nico, and realize this is going on everywhere everyday, it just puts it into a whole different perspective.

4.5⭐

Cloud Girls by Lisa Harding is heartbreaking, almost unbearably so. Nicoleta “Nico” Zanesti, an innocent child of twelve from Moldova, has no option but to trust her parents, her father in particular when he “marries” her off to a stranger. She believes her father’s promises that she will see the sea, travel and have a wonderful life in London. Little does she know that she is being sold off to a child trafficker. Fifteen-year-old Dubliner, Samantha “Sammy” Harvey, on the other hand, is the child of an alcoholic, emotionally abusive mother and a father who is around but practically ineffectual as far as being an influence on her life is concerned. Refusing to notify the relevant authorities of her situation at home fearing that she would be placed in foster care Sammy chooses life on the streets. She hopes to make some money and start over on her own, but even she is unprepared for the brutality and darkness that ensues. These two girls come from different backgrounds, they are different people but their fates are intertwined when they both end up in the same “house” with several other girls in Ireland. Sammy is shown to be stronger and relatively more mature than Nico. Initially self-absorbed and a tad indifferent to the other trafficked girls around she is deeply affected by their suffering, Nico in particular. Nico finds comfort in memories of her home and family, and the clouds she still enjoys watching – a refuge from the harsh reality of her life. Subject to unimaginable acts of brutality and trapped, with no one but one another to turn to, they attempt to ease one another’s pain while wishing for a sliver of hope in what they begin to realize is a hopeless situation.

With its powerful prose and compelling characters, this novel is an emotionally impactful read. The narrative is shared from the first-person PoVs of Sammy and Nico in alternating chapters. Both Sammy and Nico are very well-fleshed-out characters. The author gives an unflinching, bleak and harsh look into the underbelly of child sex trafficking and the plight of those trapped in a vicious cycle of debt, exploitation and abuse. In the Author’s Note, Lisa Harding shares that both these characters are based on the composites of the testimonials of several children who were victims of sex trafficking. Given the subject matter, it goes without saying that this is not a light read. But it is an important story that needs to be told and one that will stay with you.

Many thanks to author Lisa Harding, HarperVia and NetGalley for the digital review copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. Cloud Girls is due to be released on April 25, 2023.

⚠ Repeated instances of Sexual Abuse of Minors

I didn’t know what this was about when I first added to my shelf. I struggled to get through it with the tough subject matter but found it beautifully written with realistic characters and dialogue.

This harrowing story delivers a dose of sobering reality as it delves into the dark world of sex trafficking. The lives of two young girls become intertwined, despite living worlds apart. *Trigger warning: there are some difficult scenes and sensitive topics in the book, but the reality is that they expose the dark truth that lies behind this narrative.

Sammy and Nico are teen girls, strong and mature beyond their years. Their horrible lives lead them to even worse fates as they try to get through their adolescence. While the characters really found their way into my heart, I felt the writing was boring and slow. It was not a joy to read. Part of that is definitely because of the subject matter. However, it could be done in a much more interesting way. Thank you to NetGalley and HarperVia for this advanced copy. I wish I had liked it more.

This book is tough to review. A vivid novel about two teenage girls, one from middle-class Ireland and the other from a poor village in Moldova, fall prey to traffickers and end up sharing a room in a brothel. It's not a fun read, though it is a fast one, and beautifully written—at times too beautifully. Having Sammy and Nico each muse upon clouds and floating in similar terms, despite their radical differences in education and experience, allowed the symbolism to overrun each character's distinctive voice and viewpoint.

I also felt that too much time was spent on Sammy's wanderings in the beginning. I understand why it was done, for the sake of giving equal weight to how she ended up being trafficked alongside Nico's story, but on occasion it felt like treading water. Maybe the ping-ponging back and forth between Sammy and Nico in the beginning could have been handled more fluidly. Those are just quibbles, though, and I'm bringing them up only to explain why I'm giving this four stars rather than five. Overall, it's a moving book, one that I'm sure will stay with me.

Thank you, NetGalley and HarperVia, for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Cloud Girls is about two girls who do what is expected of them. Nico is fifteen and is sold to a rich man by her father. Sammy is fifteen and wants to earn money by having sex with men. Sammy wanted this lifestyle. She chose to have sex with men in order to get away from home. Nico is a scared girl who had aspirations of becoming a teacher. Nico didn’t choose this lifestyle. Nico was once full of life. Sammy has no regard for her own safety. Sammy’s self destructive abusing her body with cuts and alcohol. The difference between these two girls is one chose this life while the other didn’t. Lisa Harding is here to show the reader how each girl handles this lifestyle.
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I seem to struggle with Lisa Harding’s writing style and voice. I thought it was a one time occurrence so I requested another book from Netgalley and I’m having the same issue as before. I can’t seem to find that hook or connection. I can handle the subject matter, it’s the approach and technique that she uses that loses my interest. I can’t even get off the ground with this one.
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The story alternates between Sammy and Nico’s perspective. Each character is a reflection into the childhood they left behind. Both girls take this opportunity to remember the family and friends they had in another life.
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Cloud Girls takes place in two different areas. The time period is hard to pinpoint. It’s hard to fathom that this continues to take place and people continue to turn a blind eye.
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I know Lisa Harding wrote a thought provoking story about these young girls, but I couldn’t for the life of me find anything interesting about these girls lives. The situation was horrific. The way Lisa Harding described the lifestyle was unimaginable. The writing held a dramatic edge to it. Lisa Harding has an interesting writing voice. I’m not accustomed to the way she pens her words. Very little makes sense. I know it’s because of Sammy’s character being under the influence most of the time. The story is difficult to read with its riddles and metaphors. The language is choppy as if Lisa was trying to write it the way as if they were speaking to her and she dictating each word.
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After 2012 Cloud Girls exploded onto these pages when Lisa Harding could no longer ignore the voices of these girls’ experiences. Lisa created Sammy and Nico’s childhood story using real life circumstances.
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I appreciate the attempt to bring awareness of this global sex trade business. However, the way the story was told regarding these two girls was overbearing. I felt like I was trying to unlock a riddle. Each girls voice was heavily ladled with so much confusion.
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I’m pleased that Lisa Harding chose not to include the nitty gritty details of the types of sex acts performed. This was not about the graphic sex. This was about the bonding between Sammy and Nico and how they held each other up eventhough they were there under different circumstances.

Lisa Harding has done what seems impossible - getting into the minds of two young girls being held as sex slaves. Sammy and Nico come from two different countries but they end up together in a house where there is no escape. They are fed drugs and taken out nightly, where they are raped. We all know about it, but LH gives us a picture of what these girls feel and think.

Reading about the tremendous horrors endured by girls, hardly older than children, is chilling. With global migration on the rise, more girls are lost to predators who promise them money, jobs, and safety in places that seem like paradise. Pedophiles are everywhere in the world, and this novel gives a close-up view of the world of children whose brains cannot fully cope with the torture they endure from their keepers and the men who rape them.

I am grateful that LH spent so much time researching and learning about the tragedy of sex trafficking. Everyone should read this novel. Everyone needs to know what is happening every minute of every day worldwide.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book.

Gut wrenching, heartbreaking, unimaginably difficult to read, Cloud Girls follows two 12 year old girls as they are helplessly thrown into the dark world of sex trafficking. I struggled through this book. It’s too raw, too real, too heartbreaking and too true. It made me want to hug my daughter close. The friendships built are the redeeming factor of their book, but goodness gracious, this is a heavy one. Proceed with extreme caution. Not for sensitive eyes as it comes with about 30 trigger warnings.