I just want to thank the publisher and Netgalley for considering me and allowing me to receive a copy of this book.

As much as I wanted to love this I couldn’t really get through it. It definitely triggered me and I found myself not being able to get through some of the parts of this book for personal reasons. I definitely commend the author for handling the sexual abuse component so delicately and very gracefully. I just personally couldn’t get through it.

This book is about a girl just trying to deal with the after effects of being sexually abused by someone she thought she could trust and be a normal teenager when she discovers that her abuser has a new target. Coupled with the developing crush she has on the schools jock.

OK. This book was so emotional and beautiful and inspiring and so many other adjectives.

Maggie is a 17 year old girl healing as best she can from sexual abuse she endured as a young child at the hands of her mother's boyfriend. Maggie had no closure from this experience but is living each day the best she can. She meets this super sweet guy named Matt who does everything he can to help her heal. It's beautiful to see how their relationship has its ups and downs and the learning they both experience throughout. It's truly a story of growth and recovery.

This story is an incredible journey of the triumphs and tribulations of abuse victims. How support systems can fail and unlikely heroes emerge. I really, really love how the author did her homework when it came to therapy techniques used for abuse victims. As a clinical social worker in training, this was amazing. Say Something was a quick read but so immersive. I read it in approximately 5 hours..it was that good. I absolutely recommend this book for all groups of readers, if for nothing else than to further open their eyes to what is happening so very frequently in society.

Triggers-sexual abuse. The abuse is not explained in graphic detail or really much detail. You are given just enough information to draw your own conclusions and to keep the story flowing appropriately.

Say Something is a heart wrenching read. I only put it down to get more tissues. It was a very real look at abuse, it wasn't sugar coated and was an amazing read.

This story about sexual abuse started off strongly. Maggie was the sole focus of the story, but we learn during one of her high school classes that Maggie could pick out others who showed signs of a history of sexual abuse. Unfortunately, their stories were never told or even hinted at. Instead, a sweet romance starts to blossom between Maggie and Matt, who is a much admired football jock. Maggie runs hot and cold with Matt, She worries about telling Matt that she had been sexually abused. I won't drop any spoilers as to how he reacts to her disclosure of sexual abuse. There are no graphic descriptions of the sexual abuse. I felt that the story line and the love relationship were a tad predictable but I suspect many will enjoy the lighter tone of this very serious subject matter.

I received an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Netgalley and Cold Fires Publishing for the chance to read and review it.

In this story Maggie is struggling to deal with the abuse she suffered at the hand of her mother's ex-fiance, Warren. He was a well connected, powerful man who used that power to intimidate and silence his victims. Ten years after the first time she told someone, she becomes interested in a boy at school. Her first date triggers night terrors of the abuse when all she wants is to feel like a normal teenager, but is anyone truly normal? Then one night she's on a date when Warren walks in with his new girlfriend and her little girl. Instantly she knows and it's time for her to say something. She has to protect the little girl even if it means she will never be that normal teenager she so desperately wants to be.

This book pleasantly surprised me. The topic of abuse is a difficult one due to the sheer number of individuals that can be triggered by it, but I think Cathy did a great job at relaying what happened without going into great detail. She definitely did her research when it comes to surviving this type of abuse. The PTSD is real, the feeling of being alone is real, and the fear in definitely real, and all of it can be suffocating. I felt for Maggie and was crying as she was gaining her voice. Being brave isn't always the easiest choice, but sometimes it's the only choice. I applaud this author and the story she wrote.

I liked that Maggie wasn't portrayed as a strong rebel fighter after dealing with her ordeal. Her insecurities and her low self confidence are very clear and it helps to identify with the character as a victim in a realistic way. She became a strong warrior with the support of friends and family and I think this book will be an incredible teaching resource to help teens and parents and to 'say something'.

This book is devastating to read. The prologue was enough to destroy me. If you are a victim of sexual abuse, please proceed with caution. Maggie has a very rough life and it’s not at all easy to read, but I know this is an important topic.

This book had such a positive, empowering feel which was surprising since it is about child molestation. I loved watching Maggie find her inner strength and take control of her own life. I couldn’t put this down once I started and finished it in one sitting.

Maggie endured sexual abuse as a young girl. At only age eight, her mother’s boyfriend would creep into her room and touch her in private areas that he had no business touching.

It took courage to speak the truth, but unfortunately, Maggie’s mother convinced her it was better to recant and change her initial statement.

Now, even without her abuser in the picture, Maggie still thinks of those late nights and what she went through. As a teenager, Maggie needs to decide should she make a statement again to potentially help children who could cross this monster’s path again? Would her mother support her this time?

This was a young adult book that could definitely help shine light on a very upsetting topic for young teenagers. It is important to note no sexual abuse or excessively upsetting situations are described.

The young love story was very sweet, and everything wrapped up (perhaps a little too...) perfectly in the end.

I think this book was pretty good and definitely believable. The character of Maggie seems really true. And I appreciate that she finally found a supportive group of friends and adults since her own mother couldn't be there for her.

The only plot point that needs to be fixed is that Matt meets her mother when he stays over because she's alone, but later in the book she sends him home because she doesn't want him to meet her mother yet.

"I think by nature I'm an optimist,but life has tried to paint me otherwise. Sometimes I have glimpses of me as a young girl. Before Warren. Everyday was full of possibilities. I'd meet a prince. I'd slay a dragon. I'd fall in love.
Girls who haven't been abused are so innocent
-Maggie's journal "

This book is about a 17 years old girl,Maggie who has been abused by her mothers then boyfriend, Warren. They moved into a big beautiful house and her mother thought their life would be better,perfect, Warren would change everything. Warren did change everything. When 8 years old Maggie was afraid of darkness Warren would sneak into her room with candies and told her to keep things secret from her mother or else mommy will get hurt. Little Maggie didn't know anything until one day at class, teacher told if someone touches where the swimsuit goes than to tell a trustworthy adult. She knew it then. She knew this isn't some joke,this isn't some game.

We all see child abuse, even rapes of young girls in todays life. God knows there must a girl or a boy who got abused today but cannot tell because they are afraid. Afraid of the pedophile. Afraid that he might hurt them. When he has money, power,fame he can do anything. 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys will be sexually abused by the age of 18. Who knows, there might be some in this group?
But the worst part is they can't say anything, they can't speak up because nobody will listen. Powerful people like Warren hunts them every where they go. And pretends nothing ever happened. Maggie complained once but had to recant. Why? Cuase bastard Warren hurt her mother. Will make them suffer.

But time has changed. We need to stand up and SAY SOMETHING! It might save some other 8 years old. Justice shall come.

What I loved about this book was how Maggie's friends stood beside her. Specially Matt. Every boyfriend has to be like Matt! I just fell in love with Matt!
And what I didn't like about this book was how Maggie kept blocking everyone from helping her.
Other than that It's a good book. Everyone should check it out.
Highly recommended! ❤

"Once innocence is lost,you can never get it back"

I don’t even know what to say about this book. I read the last page, but I’m still reeling from the story. Praise to the author for a well written book on such a taboo topic!

This book is a quick read about a deep subject that doesn’t go deep enough for me. It skimmed the surface of what abuse victims really go through—internally and externally. Even in telling, there’s not always a nice neat happy ending. Also the mom met Matt before and then it said she hadn’t. Just a sloppy mix of storytelling without real heart or emotion.

Really enjoyed this book. I wish all victims were like the main character and stood up for themselves even though I know it can be hard to do.

This book is not graphic in nature to the abuse that Maggie experienced as a young girl, but if you are triggered, just be aware of the subject matter. I felt the writer was very sensitive to the issue of child molestation and abuse. It was well researched. Maggie is a brave girl, even though she doesn't feel like she is in the beginning. Her relationship with Matt made my heart warm. It's hard to forget they are teenagers and dealing with heavy subjects. It is a well written story and my heart goes out to anyone who has survived abuse. It took a lot of courage to come forward. I would read Morrison's books in the future.

Received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this book & was hooked from the first page. I was instantly taken with Maggie's character; she was so brave & courageous to tell her story of sexual abuse that she experienced as a child.

I think this is a book that, as upsetting as it is, should be read by everyone. It really shows that you don't know everyone's stories or background. So think before you speak or presume something about someone.

Content warnings include sexual abuse, physical abuse and alcoholism.

I’ve read every review that’s been written about this book so far and they’re pretty much overwhelmingly positive so I’ll start by alerting you to those and encouraging you to read some of them to balance out what I have to say. I really hope this book will help readers, those who will be validated by seeing themselves in Maggie’s story and those whose eyes will be opened and their sensitivity engaged by what they find in its pages.

I’m always on the lookout for good books about sexual assault and I applaud anyone who tackles this horrendous topic at all so it breaks my heart that I couldn’t five star this book and tell you all that you absolutely have to read it immediately.

There’s something about this book that didn’t quite feel authentic to me but even a day after finishing reading I can’t put my finger on exactly what it is. The author spoke to survivors, counsellors and members of law enforcement and I think it’s wonderful they took the time to do that, yet it reads at times like they were spending so much time trying to tick all the boxes on a list they’d collated from their research that there wasn’t much time left to truly bring Maggie’s experience to life.

For example, Maggie feels angry because her mother forced her to recant what she’d told a friend about the man who sexually abused her. Of course she’s angry but that doesn’t even begin to explain what that feels like. Show me the abandonment Maggie experienced when the one person in this world she should have been able to rely on to protect her above anyone else instead took the side of the man who’d abused her. Show me how Maggie felt when her mother told her that the perpetrator was only being affectionate and how the denial of something that Maggie knew without a shadow of a doubt to be the truth then led her to question her very reality; if something she knew for sure could be so easily dismissed then how she ever really be sure about anything again?! Please don’t just tell me she was angry.

I don’t know. Maybe because of my own experiences I’m pulling this to bits too much. This book does get a lot right about the long term effects of sexual abuse and it does tick a lot of the boxes. Maybe it’s wrong of me to expect this book to take a deep dive on what Maggie’s experience would really feel like but even some aspects of the abuse itself didn’t sit right with me, like the fact that Maggie’s abuser [SPOILER - immediately stopped abusing her when her mother asked him about it. While some perpetrators would stop their abuse once confronted there is no way this specific man would have - SPOILER].

The insta romance annoyed me so much! Part of this will no doubt be a byproduct of my romantiphobia. Other readers have loved this romance but it drove me crazy. After only four dates she told this boy her most painful secret, the first time she’s spoken about it in almost ten years (with the exception of a counsellor she sees sometimes). Really? And she calls him “my boy”. 🤢

“My boy” takes it upon himself to decide what Maggie needs and goes into full blown action mode without even consulting her. This is a young woman whose life was turned upside down as a direct result of loss of control so, while I was never going to think a boy taking it upon himself to make critical decisions for a girl without her input was romantic, it was even less so in Maggie’s situation. And “my boy” takes control of Maggie’s decisions after he’s already decided that if he ever meets the perpetrator he’s going to beat him up. Hello, toxic masculinity!

The only character I really liked in this book was Kelvin. Maggie irritated me, “my boy” spent much of the book practising his own weird blend of sensitivity and the toxic masculinity thing and Maggie’s mother drove me crazy, but at least she was realistic. I hated her mother’s responses to Maggie’s abuse and I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I did understand where she was coming from (I still think that almost any response other than the one she had would have been a better choice).

While it’s great that Maggie was able to report her abuse to authorities it bugged me that other options weren’t explored. Not everyone reports sexual abuse and not everyone who does report it gets a result that could be even accidentally mistaken for justice. I’m all for reporting if a survivor chooses to do so but there’s an unfair expectation that if you’ve been victimised in this way then it’s your responsibility to protect potential future victims by reporting this crime. This puts a huge burden on people and if they do report and the perpetrator gets away with it then it can be even more devastating for the survivor in the long run. They can feel like it was their fault the perpetrator is still free to potentially assault other people, when the sole responsibility for past, present and potential future abuse lies with the abuser.

The Hallmark ending sets up unrealistic expectations for anyone considering reporting sexual abuse. Had Maggie reported her abuse to the police in my state she would’ve been told flat out that because she had no physical evidence of the abuse there was almost no chance the perpetrator would be able to be charged, let alone make it to trial. Sure, [SPOILER - the introduction of other victims would have helped the case but I’ve known of rapes where the perpetrator wasn’t even interviewed because the crime wasn’t reported immediately - SPOILER].

Regardless of my feelings about the specifics of this book I really do hope it finds its way into the hands of those who would benefit from reading it. Once again, please read other reviews before deciding if this book is for you or not. I’m just one opinion and I’m an outlier.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Cold Fire Publishing, LLC for the opportunity to read this book.

It's not an easy read but a necessary one. There isn't much that I can say about this book without giving spoilers and I don't do that but I can say that you should absolutely pick up this book and find out how awesome it is for yourself. Happy reading!

Although Cathy Morrisons, Say Something, has parts that are difficult to read, I found it really highlights the subject of sexual abuse.
There should be more books like this to show that anyone can be abused but also anyone can be the abuser.

it's the second day of first grade tommorow and Maggie wonders what to wear .Warren is spending the night with her mom again.Flash forward Maggie looks into the mirror trying to figure out who she is.Maggie is not a part of the popular crowd and isolates herself.Maggie plays volleyball and is a great athlete.Maggie doesn't want to get too close to someone in case the truth comes out. The last time she told the truth it cost a best friend .Maggie is invited to a bonfire by a cute guy and agrees to go despite her concerns.Maggie isn't sure if this counts as a date.I liked Maggie but I wasn't sure I cared for her mom in the beginning.Maggie trys to understand her feelings and if she wants a boyfriend. I was rooting for her to go out with Matt.She turns in her abuser after fears he is after another girl.Her mom made her recant when she was younger in fear of retailiation. I started to see her mom means well and is trying to save her from a powerful man