Karen

Kate Russell's third memoir explores the effects of child abuse. Beginning with her parent's upbringing, chronicling her life, ending in present day, Kate reveals traits, habits and mindsets that developed as the result of early childhood trauma. Long estranged from her abusers, Kate examines choices she made, masks she donned, and the outcome of her efforts through the lens of a survivor in recovery. For anyone who was physically, emotionally, spiritually, intellectually or psychologically abused. Especially those who cope by sweeping their past under the rug.

Avery Kline relocates her entire life from her hometown of East Tawas, Michigan to Las Vegas, Nevada. Despite going through a tumultuous breakup, Avery is open to putting her heart back on the line when she meets the apartment’s pool security guard, Kyle Kingsley. Kyle is no stranger to female attention as all the residents seem to gravitate towards him, but he has a rule against dating girls who live at the complex. This disappoints Avery, but doesn’t discourage her from pursuing him anyway.

Felicia, a single mother and lawyer by day, volunteers at a local crisis center to give back to her tightknit community in a small Wisconsin town. One night, she answers a horrifying call: through tears, a frantic teenage girl tells her that she was a victim of sexual assault at a local house party. Felicia is shocked, and breaking protocol, she begins communicating with the girl on her own, determined to keep her safe and hold her assailants accountable. But as she gets closer and closer to the truth, she can’t shake the feeling that she and the girl are connected by more than the phone call.