I have read many many domestic mystery thrillers and this was definitely a different take on a very repetitive genre. I really liked this one and the social commentary

This was a new genre for me, as I don't usually read adult contemporary/realistic fiction. However, it was a good book to ease me in to the genre as a whole. It had a bit of a slow start, but I still was fully invested by the end. I can't wait to read future works from this author!

This book tackles a very sensitive subject from an angle that is rarely seen. Nick, a young gay man, suffers a very violent sexual attack. His brother, Tony, is desperate to see justice done, no matter what.

The story is very well put together, seen from several angles. Either on the side of the investigation and the wheels of justice and the more personal side. It plunges us into the heart of this bottomless turmoil that this attack has on the victim, his family and even on the investigator.

The author has masterfully navigated all aspects of this story while developing her characters well. This story will haunt you long after you read the last page. I hope it will open up the conversation even more on this topic. I received an ARC from the author and this is my honest opinion.

The Damage is Caitlin Wahrer's very impressive debut novel which examines the consequences of a sexual assault and the effect on the victim and his family. The book is refreshing in the sense that the victim of the assault is male and Wahrer explores this in a sensitive and compassionate manner. I happen to have a male family member who was the victim of sexual assault and I found that Caitlin Wahrer was spot on.
The impact of the assault is devastating for Nick and his family and lead them down a path to the unthinkable.
The Damage is a psychological thriller and was a very enthralling read. I did have to put it down from time to time because it is emotional at times. Wahrer conveys the grief, pain, and guilt that go hand in hand with sexual assault. I found the book to be a very solid debut and am interested to see what Caitlin Wahrer comes up with in her next book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy of this title, all opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this family saga. It felt very atmospheric and relevant to the issues today, and the fact that so often men are subject to sexual assault as often as women. This was very hard to read at parts, and it makes you think about what you would do for your family. Highly recommend!! I gave this 4 stars!

Intense. Raw. Unputdownable.

The Damage is a story about a male character being brutually sexually assaulted. While the topic is heavy the author does a superb job bringing light to a topic not often discussed in relation to males. This book brought out so many feelings of anguish, sympathy and rage in me. The characters were so real they jumped off the page. All of this from a debut book has me highly anticipating what else we will see from author Caitlin Wahrer.

This is a fantastic debut novel. The topic is serious and important.
I was expecting a mystery thriller, but this is more than that. My opinion, this should put into contemporary literature.
This will be a perfect book for book club. 4 stars for me.

Thank you for the advanced copy. As a debut novel it was good, however I would consider more a soft thriller. It’s about when a traumatic event happens to a family member and how we react

This is a solid debut and i can’t wait for more by Caitlin Wahrer!
The twists, turns, discoveries all kept me reading well past my bedtime. 😂
I couldn’t stop reading.
More please!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for my honest review.

The Damage is a debut novel that deserves to be read in a single sitting. The subject matter is heavy and engrossing. This family drama and mystery is centered around a sexual assault and its ensuing effects on the main character and his family. Nick, the victim, and Tony, his older brother by 17 years, have a supportive relationship with one another after Tony essentially raised Nick after rescuing him from their parents’ turbulent household. After Nick is sexually assaulted after a night out with friends, the family dynamic cracks as Nick, Tony, and Julia, Tony’s wife, become embroiled in a legal battle against Nick’s rapist. Wahrer’s writing is compelling and I have been recommending it to all of the readers in my life.

This book started off slow but once I became invested I could not put this book down. Solid pacing, and character development. This is a book that hit heavy topics and was well constructed. Solid debut and a 4 star read for me!

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book. I apologize that it took me so long to get to it. This book is timely., With the Me Too movement, its not only women and children that have had this done to them, but men as well. Rape is a horrible thing to do to anyone. And although the body may heal, the mind, well takes much much longer.
When a young man comes forth, he has been brutally raped and beaten, by another man.. The police take his statement and quickly find his rapist. When his family finds out, they will do anything to protect him. ANYTHING!
This book was so well written. I felt empathy for Nick, Tony and Julia. Nick was broken, and Tony, his brother, wanted to fix him. He wanted revenge for what was done to his brother. And Julia loved her husband and brother-in-law.. She wanted to help in any way she could.

This is a beautiful yet heartbreaking story of how a family adapts after a traumatic event happens to one of them. The characters are rich: Nick, Julia, Tony and Detective Rice and each of them add to the story. It was a difficult story to read as a bright young man gets taken advantage of by an older man and assaulted in a way that would change Nick’s life forever. As the story unfolded and subtle clues were dropped about what really happened to Ray Walker I could see the length that family members would go to in order to spare Nick more heartache & distress. I especially loved the end of the story when the author paints a picture of what really happened to Ray Walker but left so much to the imagination. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book.

I couldn’t get the file to work so unfortunately I can’t review this one if I can’t even read it but I appreciate the opportunity

I really enjoyed THE DAMAGE! The mystery part is in my norm for reading, but the heaviness is not. The story felt so real to me; my heart was breaking for Nick and his family.

The dual perspectives and timelines is really what sucked me in. I’m like oh no I need to know what happened before- now after! Highly recommend picking this one up but make sure you are ready for a heavy and heartbreaking story with a good mystery!

This was super hyped up and so I decided to give it a go, but I was slightly disappointed to say the least. I wanted more from the story. It just didn’t hit the mark for me.

I knew I had two HF books that I needed to read this month and I really don’t like to read same genre back to back so I knew I needed something in between that was quick and held my attention.

This book did both.

A new take on what I believe is the common assault case that we see in novels, this one follows a gay male who is victim to an assault that made my heart race and tears flow. I think that it probably happens quite often and yet there aren’t many novels that take this event from a new perspective and show the affects of the “after”.

Another bookstgram friend told me to request it, that it was a debut that I would love because of the writing. And she wasn’t wrong. Seriously, how was this a debut? Wow.

Major themes: societies views of masculinity; mental health; aftermath of such a traumatic event; the helplessness when you feel with the opinions of the “after”; and the biggest (bang on) take was the social media part…. It was just really well written.

Quick fact: obvious triggers are sexual assault but I also enjoyed the author laying it out at the start of the novel. I’m sure it helps any reader that has been a victim themselves.

Read it

Nick is young, good-looking, and unable to hook up with the guy he is crushing on. Out for a night of fun with his roommates, Nick connects with a random man he meets at a bar. The next thing he remembers is waking up in a hotel room, beaten bloody and sexually assaulted.

When his older brother, Tony, is called to the hospital and sees Nick lying helpless and broken, he is devastated and can barely contain his rage. Vengeance fires through his veins
​
When Nick decides to lay charges against his assaulter, an intense investigation develops with Detective Rice leading the case. When Nick’s attacker goes public with his version of what happened, he turns the tables, and Nick and his family are plunged into a vicious media spotlight.

At the family’s core is Julia; Tony’s wife and Nick’s sister-in-law. Julia’s experience in law propels her to take unprecedented steps to keep her husband from committing murder and her brother-in-law from losing his life.

A powerful, intense read, Wahrer impels the completely riveted reader headfirst into a must-read, point-of-no-return, in The Damage.

One of this year’s must-read, sensational debuts.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada, Doubleday Canada, for the read of Caitlin Wahrer’s, The Damage.

Opinions expressed are my own.

What a compelling, interesting debut that kept me engaged from start to finish! “The Damage” is unlike anything I’ve read this year and though it dealt with difficult subject matter, I still really enjoyed it. Definitely unputdownable!

Wow, this book was intense. The plot was gripping the entire way through. So many thrillers focus on the law enforcement aspect of a case, but I enjoyed hearing from the family's point of view. There were several twists throughout the story, and I flipped through the pages quickly so I could figure out the ending.