Meet Mikey, whose sister has just been raped. She claims by Ellie's older brother. If Mikey's any kind of brother he'll avenge the wrong done to his sister and use any means necessary to punish those involved, right?
Except he's met Ellie and somehow, through all the problems and the anger, they begin to see each other as something more. Something more than a boy from the poor end of town or the girl who has everything going for her. There is more to both of them and that makes all the difference.
As Mikey comes to know Ellie he begins to question his sister's statement. He re-thinks events and people as he realizes she may have lied. For Ellie, Mikey becomes a sounding board who she can talk to on a level that she hasn't been able to with anyone else. She also begins to re-examine what happened that night, what she saw and what she knows.
As a reader, don't expect anything to be black and white - that's not to say that one side isn't telling the truth. But which side is something that only comes to the fore after several tension filled pages. As the characters re-think their opinions and what they know - so to will you as a reader.
You Against Me is a very powerful novel. The novel spans only a handful of months, but the impact of events that occur within this period is strong and substantial. For characters in the novel, Ellie and Mikey's story has consequences attached for how they view one another and the difference between wrong, right and in-between.
A brilliant read - highly recommended for everyone who likes their literary characters to be as 3D as possible.
5*s
No comments:
Post a Comment