Hitting shelves October 1 is Christa Desir's debut, Fault Line. This is a book that, in truth, I don't even know how to talk about without really giving anything away. But I will say, as Christa does, it's not for everyone. If you expect an HEA ending, don't. If you expect to walk away feeling good, well, you probably won't. But if you want to be tested and challenged and want to walk (limp?) away with a different take on an unfortunately overall widely known situation... read this book.
I'll save my full thoughts on this one for another post, but I will say, I went into this one like I did any other book. A work of fiction. A story about characters who, as real as the author might make them, still live within the pages. I had certain expectations, certain things that for me, for any book, make it great versus good versus not for me. I went into it as a reader, but for me, this is a book that I really feel, you have to go into as a person. As someone who gives a crap about those around you. Though I don't usually like books with specific messages, because all too often getting that message across irks me, this one does it perfectly. It made me so, so uncomfortable. I ached for Ben, I ached for Ani. I went through an entire array of emotions, some probably more acceptable than others.
This book. You guys. This wonderful, painful, beautiful book. About a boy who doesn't let something so awful effect how much he loves his girlfriend, but what if that love isn't enough anymore?
So read this one. Preorder it now. Love it like I do. Just know, it really isn't for everyone, but it's so incredibly important, and so potent, I want everyone to read it. (And note, The novel came out of Christa’s work in The Voices and Faces Project, a writing workshop for survivors of sexual violence that promotes speaking out and writing as a therapeutic process. She will be donating 50% of her proceeds from the novel back to the project. For more information on The Voices and Faces Project, go to
voicesandfaces.org.... and how amazing is that? Even more reason to buy this one!)
And to celebrate the release, Christa has an awesome contest going on for a contemporary reads prize pack. I've read all but 2 of these (which I do own!), and have loved each one.
Check out her website for the full list of books and the teaser trailer! This lady has fabulous taste. Or, for international readers, you can win a $20 Amazon gift card.
So enter the contest. Spread the word about this book. And check below the widget, for a note from Christa, on the story behind the story. Because this, alone, will stop you in your tracks, even if just for a moment.
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Story Behind the Story: Fault Line
By C. Desir
About fifteen years ago, I sat in a hospital ER with a young girl who had been raped and badly beaten. Her entire being was shut down, turned inward. My job as the rape victim advocate in the room was to stay with her through the process, to explain what was going to happen, and to empower her as much as I could, even if just offering her a glass of water.
She would not talk to me. Or the doctors. Or the police. I stayed in the room and held her hand because she took mine. I waited with her after everyone left and two teenage boys came in. They were maybe eighteen or nineteen. Her brother and her boyfriend. They kissed the top of her head. Then her brother asked who did it. Nothing else. No comfort or assurances. Just “Who did it?” And she spoke for the first time. One word. A first name. Her boyfriend looked at her brother, a silent communication that I couldn’t interpret. Finally, her boyfriend said, “Don’t say anything to anyone. We got this,” and walked out. Within moments, it was like life poured back into the girl’s body. When she left the ER, still not having disclosed anything to the police or doctors, her boyfriend stood waiting for her.
Fast forward a few years, and I’m participating in a testimonial writing workshop for survivors. We’ve been told to write a scene from the perspective of a different gender. A character came to me. Ben. A boy who wants to fix his girlfriend and take care of it all. A boy who would say, “I got this.”
That was the beginning of Fault Line.
I am a childhood survivor of sexual assault. This is a label I wear on top of all the other ones: mom, wife, writer, Sunday school teacher, activist. It is something that I often don’t think about, yet it has steered the course of much of my life. From mundane things like never wanting to shop at a mall to bigger things like panicking when I get lost. I never tell people this to garner pity, but so they can understand how I see the world and how my lens has been affected.
I didn’t think I would write a book about rape until that day in the workshop. I didn’t think I had it in me. I didn’t think I could do it right. But Ben, my wonderfully flawed Ben, gave me something I needed to say. Rape impacts not only the survivor, but also those around her. And you cannot “fix” a survivor. And the way we treat survivors has a huge effect on how they heal. And sometimes, no matter how hard we try, we lose survivors.
This is not a happy story I’ve given Ben. But it’s an important one. It is a call to action for those around survivors. Stay. Fight. Hope. Believe. After seeing hundreds of survivors over the years, watching them interact with loved ones, I am astounded by the human capacity for compassion. And I hope that people see that in Fault Line. Maybe Ben’s story will help them respond in a way survivors desperately need.
About Fault Line:
Who do you blame?
When Ben meets Ani, the sarcastic and free-spirited new girl in town, he falls for her – hard. Luckily for him, the feeling is mutual. Just when their relationship is getting serious, the unthinkable happens to Ani at a party that Ben decided not to attend. Ben watches as his once-vivacious girlfriend becomes a shadow of her former self; he must try to be supportive while wrestling with his own emotions about Ani’s ordeal and the lingering question in his mind: who is to blame?
C. Desir delivers a gritty, devastating, brilliant debut novel with Fault Line. Fans of Ellen Hopkins, Jason Myers, and Hannah Moskowitz will enjoy this author’s edgy realism. However, Fault Line stands out from other novels about teen sexual violence with a fresh point of view – the story is told not through the eyes of the victim, but from her boyfriend’s perspective. Unfortunately, far too many teens will recognize his feelings of frustration, anger, and helplessness in the wake of his girlfriend’s attack; readers with similar experiences will relate to and perhaps learn from Ben’s journey.
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