Love is the Answer, God is the Cure
by Aimee Cabo Nikolov
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Pub Date Aug 01 2018 | Archive Date Nov 10 2018
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Description
"Love is the Answer, God is the Cure" is the story of Aimee Cabo, who was in the Miami news for almost five years from 1989 to 1994 in a case the media named "The Case from Hell." This sexual abuse case pitted her and her sister against her parents who denied all culpability.
As she fought court battles, poverty, abuse, and addiction, Aimee always turned to love and to God. Another near tragedy struck when her daughter was almost murdered by a tenant she found in Craig's list. This is the story of a woman who had all the odds against her and how she persevered to find true love and form a family that could withstand anything.
Advance Praise
There are certain events that change the course of a life irrevocably. After enduring terrible sexual abuse as a child, Aimee Cabo Nikolov had to overcome homelessness, substance abuse, and years of custody battles to create a better future for her first daughter. In her debut memoir, “Love is the Answer, God is the Cure” Nikolov tells her story with honesty and vulnerability. What in the beginning reBads as a tragedy transforms into a story about falling in love—with the right man and with life itself—showing the reader that no tragedy is too great to overcome and how hope and faith can guide us through even the darkest of times. Arlene Gokee, book reviewer
I truly admire Aimee’s strength and bravery. She has endured unimaginable pain and devastation but maintains a strong sense of faith and optimism. This is a well-written and well-organized book. Aimee’s story is a thrilling, yet in many ways romantic, page-turner. Jessica Wheeler, book reviewer
A heartrending memoir that brings to light the terminal effects of child sexual abuse. It captures Aimee Cabo Nikolov difficult journey to finding her place in a cruel world. Emunah Anne, book reviewer
Aimee writes with clarity, faith, and an openness that is hard to find. You will enjoy this true story with all of its beauty and positive spirit. Strong recommendation.
Amazon review
As she battled court battles, poverty, abuse, and addiction, Aimee always turned to love and to God. This is the story of a woman who had all the odds against her and how she persevered to find true love and form a family that could withstand anything.
Online review
Nikolov has a good ear for capturing the interpersonal dynamics of families under all kinds of stress. And the story swings back to an uplifting arc that will work on readers who’ve themselves seen some dark days and wondered if the future could be a little brighter.
Kirkus Review
Available Editions
| ISBN | 9780692159583 |
| PRICE | $3.99 (USD) |
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Featured Reviews
Peter D, Reviewer
Love is the Answer, God is the Cure is a story of how a young girl, Aimee Nogues, from age seven until her marriage to Bobbie in 2000, suffered physical, sexual and psychological abuse from those closest to her. It is a story of immense pain, deep despair, and emotional turmoil, but how holding onto a spiritual belief can provide hope and strength.
Aimee and her older sister Michelle, are two of nine children to Lisette and Andres Nogues that have lived in the Dominican Republic and returned to Miami. Andres is a stepfather to Aimee and starts to abuse her from seven years old until at fifteen she and her elder sister, Michelle, leave their home on 23 September 1989, and call in the police and welfare to investigate child abuse. All remaining children are taken into welfare. This resulted in a criminal investigation, child welfare relocation and assessment, and a court-room trial that became a media frenzy, reported not only nationally across the US but internationally. It became known as the Case from Hell, where Lisette, the mother, claimed
“I am a leading Miami neurologist and my husband is a respected pediatrician. This whole abuse of the child welfare services where they come in on the word of two malicious sisters who are rebelling against a responsibly disciplined family life and convince the welfare services that my husband and I are abusive.”
The judge found Andres guilty of child sexual abuse and then followed a 5-year battle where Andres and Lisette sought to have the original judgement revoked. The case was eventually dropped when Aimee recanted her statement in an effort to keep her family together and have the children returned to their parents. During this period Aimee became pregnant to a boyfriend Brent and returned to the family home to give her child, Danielle, a home, hoping the sexual abuse at this stage will have stopped. It didn’t!
Aimee leaves home again and falls into various relationships, drug abuse, escorting and stripping, the constant movement of places to live, and continued sexual abuse. Brent and his wife Candy, sue for custody of Danielle, and this becomes a continuous weary and costly battle over many years as they keep filing for custody. Aimee’s daughter is the one thing in this life she can’t lose.
“I had already lost all of my original family, my home, my credibility, not to mention my innocence, and now I faced losing the only thing I had left in my life, my daughter who had become my world.”
As a reader, our emotions are taken on a twisted path of frustration, sympathy, outrage, concern, disgust and pity. As a story, the book is well structured, and giving it two time periods helps break up what risked becoming a sequence of recited diary events. The two focal points of her life, are the abused child from age seven growing up, and the woman that meets her husband and establishes a new life. The converging of the story to take forward into a new fulfilling world is very well expressed. As a personal preference, I don’t think the title works because it gives an impression of a doctrine focused book designed to deliver religious messages. It isn’t that. The religious connotations are reasonably subdued for the benefit of the book but it is clearly a source of immense strength for Aimee, so should play a crucial part in her story. She will need every ounce of spiritual, emotional and physical strength to get through the next ordeal concerning her daughter after a brutal attack almost costs Danielle her life, and leaves her in a coma and permanently damaged.
We recognise the essential role a partner plays in our lives, when it’s wrong it’s contested and wretched, when it is right it is supportive and happy. Aimee experiences both extremes in her life and the love of her husband is immeasurable. Her life with her husband isn’t without its challenges but together they manage to get through these difficulties and establish a fulfilling life including other children, financial security and a successful business.
As shocking, as this story is – it is the author's own story. I found it hugely inspiring and reminded that we should never give up, no matter how dark or difficult our problems get, there is always hope and a step forward.
