Stories like this are sometimes hard to read yet also so worth your time.
The emotion you feel will turn you inside out while reading yet won’t let you put the book down.
Stories that tell a tale of broken trust, unimaginable pain and the inner struggle to get thru it all just like this one are incredibly worth your time.

Thank you so much for allowing me to read and review your titles.
I do appreciate it and continue to review books that I get the chance to read.
Thanks again!

I swapped my kindle back in 2018 and am unable to recover this title. I appreciate the opportunity that was given for review but sadly can't complete it for this title. Many thanks.

Such an important book to be written. On such a hard subject. Was more YA than I thought it was going to be. But I tackled it perfectly

Rating: 3 This is such an important topic to talk about and I am glad this book exists. However, I feel like this was more of an idealized take on the issue. It was like the Disney version of events. I think the message is clear and important but the overall way it was delivered was lacking.
I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

CW: Rape

Unfortunately, I didn't find this book as nuanced as I was expecting. However, that doesn't mean I don't think it has merit. I think it might be more suited to the younger side of YA, though put in the hands of those who are okay to handle it.

TW: rape 🚨

I finished this powerful novel last night and whew, chile! In SOMEONE I USED TO KNOW, author Patty Blount follows the aftermath of Ashley Lawrence’s rape. As if rape isn’t a heavy enough conversation, 14-year-old Ashley Lawrence was raped by her brother’s football teammate. Then her brother defended her rapist during the trial 🙃🙃🙃
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This book is HEAVY. Lots of family tension as they handle Ashley’s rape, as she copes with PTSD and finds her footing after the incident. A few great things about this book:

- it’s very educational; even adults would benefit from the way consent is explored and understanding the position of rape and sexual assault survivors.
- realistic portrayal of how difficult forgiveness can be and why it’s important to create space for people grow out of old thought patterns.
- positive depiction of what real masculinity entails in Sebastian’s character.

This is by no means a perfect book*. I wish Sebastian’s character was more explored and the book does get a bit preachy, but all those flaws are understandable considering the focus/main themes. So, still a 5⭐️ read in my book. 10/10 would recommend.

*There is some unnecessary strong language in this book.

This book was really hard for me to read, but it has such a good message I persevered. Ashley, the survivor of sexual assault, is struggling to take back her life. In a time when so many men get away with sexual assault and victims are afraid to speak up, this is a timely book. It’s very well written.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I feel like there have been a lot of books out about rape and the awful effects of it. However, the society has a boys will be boys mentality (that never seems to change sadly)
Ashley who is raped by a boy she has a crush on, is a survivor although at times it doesn't seem that way especially to her.
This story shows the effect that rape has not only on the victim but on the victims family and friends. These victims often feel alone.
Just a great story with a very intense story.

Someone I Used to Know by Patty Blount.
#someoneiusedtoknow #Netgalley #PattyBlout
Truthfully...the first few chapters felt forced and way overly dramatic. I stuck with it because of the great reviews. I was not disappointed. I would put this up there with the few other books I would say that everyone should read, guys and girls alike. Especially in this time of the #metoo movement, Blount gives voice to not only a rape victim, but also her family who is affected by the rape...not in the same way Ashley is, but still affected and almost destroyed. We see Ashley and her family as they are before and after the rape and trial. The heartache, panic attacks, the distrust, the fear is all too real, and it wasn’t just Ashley who experiences this destruction.
In a culture where people stand by as women endure sexist remarks, are sometimes groped without consent, sexual jokes are often made at other people’s expense, sexual favors are often expected as payment for spending money on a date, authority figures often turning a blind eye or handing little slaps on the wrists when these pervs are caught, it’s no wonder men (and some women) feel they have the right to do whatever they want to another person’s body with little or no consequences. This books is a raw eye-opener for us all.

Patty Blount is an autobuy for my library. We all love her books. The section they are in is very often empty until the end of the school year.

As twisted as it sounds, I had been reading too many “end of the world, there’s a plague, we gotta survive” books and wanted a palate cleanser of sorts. Something to put me back into my feels.

Holy . . . ! I got much more than I bargained for. <b>My feels</b>. They hurt.

It’s really hard writing reviews for books with such sensitive subject matter. Let me just say that this was well crafted, raw and real. A topic that needs a voice, a topic that needs discussion. We need to let go of that “boys will be boys” mentality.

The emotion flowing through Ashley — Derek, too — had me in tears. An event that tore them apart as siblings and they couldn’t, or wouldn’t, find a way to mend that bridge. I loved seeing it from Derek’s point of view, and that added an extra depth to the story.

Please read this book, but do so with caution.

This is by far the best book centered around rape that I have read. This book shows one girls rape story. It shows how people react when you say that you've been raped. It shows how family and friends will be torn apart. But most importantly, it shows how one girl makes a huge difference after her rape.

A great psychological suspense story. A page turner. I couldn't predict what was gonna happen and I also couldn't put it down. Book some time for this. Highly recommend!

This book wrecked me. It is brutally honest in a way that I haven't seen in a long time. It is a must read for every woman in this day in age when the MeToo Movement is still so fresh and bringing to light all of the sexual harassment females have had to put up with.
Once thing I liked about this to was that it brings up that men can be raped as well, it also talked about getting therapy and help to help you cope with the days after.
There is so much I loved about this book, it is not for the faint of heart because it doesn't sugar coat things. And I think that is needed to wake some people up about how life can be.

I loved that the chapters were alternating between the past and the present. The fact that it’s told in both Ashley’s and Derek’s points of views really helped you understand what was going through each of the characters thought processes’ during both the present and when the incident actually took place. A lot of the time while reading multiple points of view I like one more than the others, but this one made me look forward to both of them equally.

You could really feel the guilt coming off of each of the characters in the book, Ashley, Derek, the rest of her family and friends. It really went in depth with the brother and sister relationships considering one brother was personally involved and her other brother wasn’t. I loved how you could actually see these character’s coming to their own realizations on the events and how they handled and are handling everything that’s going on. This was book full of very strong characters, who were each their own person.

I thought it portrayed rape culture so well, there were so many examples of sayings of why girls “get” raped. It was so moving and made me cry at many points. The world is a scary place for a rape survivor and this book really shows how and why. This was an absolutely moving book that has been published at the perfect time.

Someone I Used to Know is a difficult and emotional novel about a teenage girl named Ashley being raped and the lingering aftermath years later, not only for Ashley but her entire family - especially her brother Derek. I immediately was drawn into this story because of not only the details about Ashley's rape but how the author focused on not only Ashley but several broken lives and relationships because of the event. Not an easy read at all, this novel paints a picture of just how many different ways emotions can look. Not everyone's guilt looks the same. Not everyone's fear looks the same.

Having an older brother myself, I wondered so many times throughout this book if he would react as Derek did and if I would react as Ashley did. Would his guilt destroy our relationship and basically his life? And there were their parents, also torn apart not only by Ashley's rape but the destruction of Ashely and Derek's relationship after the fact. Tough questions crossed my mind repeatedly, along with a roller-coaster of emotions ranging from anger to hope to joy.

I did struggle a bot with Derek's seemingly sudden change of heart about the culture of rape, as well as, the times when facts and information seemed to be reported to the reader, rather than included in the natural flow of the novel. Nevertheless, this was a relevant and interesting read. This was my first time reading Patty Blount and I was certainly impressed by the detail and raw emotion in her writing.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for providing this review copy in exchange for my honest review.

Over and over as I read this book I wanted to stop. It was a hard read.

"Someone I Used to Know" details the aftermath of the rape of out main character, Ashley Lawrence, and her family--specifically on her middle, older brother, Derek Lawrence. As it jumps between the two siblings perspectives of the past and two years later you, the reader, are dragged through feelings of disgust, triumph and sadness. You get to feel all of the things because as the characters are processing their emotions you walk along side of them.

Ashley is raped as a part of scavenger hunt list for her high school's foot ball team "team building" exercises. The guy she likes gets "sex with a virgin" on his list and she becomes his target. Derek Lawrence, her brother, has spent the last few years trying to escape his younger sister but he never could have imagined what would happen to her at the hands of his team mate. As a result, and what Ashley is blamed with, foot ball is canceled for the school. Ashley thinks that Derek hates her but she doesn't care anymore--he told the judge that her attacker shouldn't be punished so harshly. Derek doesn't feel the magnitude of his words to his sister until it is too late to take it back--but he learns the truth about rape culture during his first few months of University.

Things change for all of them. And it is good--you just have to wade through the hard to get there first.

This book was so hard, but also informative... and a really clear eye opener for me.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.

This book was a gripping image of what could be! Hooked from page 1! Thank you netgalley for the free arc in exchange for an honest review!

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Veronica – ☆☆☆☆☆
Someone I Used to Know is a story about Ashley and her brother Derek. Two years ago, Ashley was raped by a member of Derek’s football team as part of a team scavenger hunt. In the now, Ashley is burdened with anxiety, flashbacks, and coming to the realisation that the justice system didn’t really provide any justice. Her once close relationship with Derek is in tatters and her family is falling apart. Derek has now moved interstate to attend college and is struggling as he starts to realise how his own behaviour contributed to the rape culture in his world.

This story is a confronting depiction of rape culture and how this horrific crime effects the victim, her family and friends, and the wider community. At the beginning of each chapter we get an excerpt from Ashley’s Victim Impact Statement and they send a strong and clear message of the horrible time Ashley is going through and you can only wonder how anyone could blame her rather than her rapist for the crime and the fallout from it.

We get the point of view of both Ashley and Derek, told in the now and in the past. We learn about the year that the rape happened, the events leading up to it. We also get snippets about Ashley and Derek’s past that show us that the tension between them now is not just about the rape.

I went through many emotions reading this story from sad, upset, helpless, furious. In the end, I was proud of Ashley and Derek and I was left with a feeling that there is something we can all do to change the culture we live in. The issues raised in this book had me thinking about my own experiences in a different light and if it can do that for a 40-something woman who considers herself a feminist, imagine the impact it could have on the teenagers who are the target audience. 5 stars.


Erica – ☆☆☆☆☆
5 Riveting Stars

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure how to review Someone I Used to Know. The novel is a journey showcasing rape culture, done so with intelligence and maturity, yet written in an age-appropriate manner befitting the narrators. The author left no stone unturned, revealing every facet from just about every angle.

Multilayered, told far in the past, two years ago, one year ago, and in the present. The author needs to be applauded for revealing the after-effects rape have on an entire community, the school, and a family, not just the victim, all wrapped up in an easy to digest package.

On the surface, Ashley and Derek appear to be working on themselves, but it's a forward momentum to repair the damage to their strained relationship as brother and sister, something that was harmed initially by how their parents felt it easier for the big brother to entertain the sister vs raising and entertaining her themselves.

When the hero not only lets his sister down, but leaves her open and vulnerable to harm. The brother and sister were compelling, proving perception is reality. How they view the situation is tainted by their experiences and not anything how others around them view it. I believe it's important to imprint this into memory and remember it when interacting with others in our everyday lives. While we may feel right from our stance, they don't view the world as we do, and they are also right from their own stance.

The events that happened didn't feel sensationalized or exploitative – organic, easily seen as something that could unfold, especially when dealing with the mob-mentality of a team in a high school, a community that is sports-minded, and a society that believes sex sells. Truly, the author hit every note, the psychology of every viewpoint.

The author explores the dynamic of how rape and rape culture affects not only the victim, but her family, the community, and the strain this places on all the individual relationships and on a whole. The guilt, the shame, the powerlessness isn't only held by the victim, but everyone involved. Their lives have been knocked off their axis, each and every one of them. Everyone rallies to comfort and help the victim, not realizing they too need help processing and moving forward with this new reality.

Do I believe this is a novel for everyone? Yes and no.

Yes, I believe it's something everyone should read.

The reason I also say no is simply due to the fact that while I found it riveting and poignant, and I'll truly never forget it, the entertainment value is not that of a fictional read and it may not suit everyone. I don't want someone to pick this up and assume it's a linear novel, slowly telling a fictionalized story.

We all learn differently. While some are adept at picking up subtle suggestion, others may not enjoy being hammered in the face page after page with no reprieve. This novel is very present and forward, the sole focus the subject matter. That's why I say yes and no, as it involves the individual and what may or may not trigger them.

With that being said, I highly recommend and will be checking out the author's backlist, applauding the maturity and insight within the writing.

Young Adult age-range: 14+ plus due to content.