Publisher: Hot Key Books
Released: 11th of April 2023
Released: 11th of April 2023
Students at Lycroft Phelps are marked for success.
As a straight-A student and girlfriend of the school's star rower, Charlotte believes in what the school has to offer. Meanwhile, scholarship student Max is struggling. Until he's asked to join the rowing team offering him popularity - but at what cost? Then there's Quinn, a sixth-generation legacy student, who should be able to lay claim to the school in a way others can't. Who instead must watch the boy who assaulted her continue to play at the top of the school's food chain. Only in the dead of night does Q realize the solution to her suffering: Colin Pearce must die.
But Lycroft Phelps has more than one dark secret at its heart, and as the three students uncover just how far the school will go to keep those ugly truths hidden, there's a lot more than reputation at stake...
TW: Misogyny, panic attacks/ disorders, rape
What I Have to Say
I will never get tired of reading books about girls bringing down the system and getting revenge on boys for all the shit they put us through. The only downside was how long it took to actually get to the plot of bringing down the system. It felt like there was a lot of set up with the different relationships and the crew team. I don't know if anything could have been taken out, because a huge part of the plot was Max getting caught up in the crew team and that was very necessary, but it just slowed down the book a lot.
I wasn't sure at first about having a male voice in a book about rape, but I really really liked Max's POV. I think it really added a lot to the book. Because it showed how boys, even boys who know better, can be pulled into the toxic masculinity and become part of it. It was good to see one of the "good ones" and how easy it can be to stand by and not stop things like this from happening.
In all, I think this was handled really well. I liked how the emphasis wasn't on the rape. The rape had happened before the book even started and was only shown in flashbacks. The emphasis was on the fall out and how to stop it happening again.
Definitely on my list of best feminist reads of all time.
4 stars
My thanks goes to Netgalley and Hot Key Books for providing me with this copy for review.
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