JanB's Reviews > Valentine

Odessa, Texas. It’s 1976 and a young fourteen-year-old Mexican girl, Gloria, is beaten and raped by a white oilfield worker. She shows up on Mary Grace’s porch, bloodied and battered. This attack divides the town and pits neighbor against neighbor. Readers learn what happens next through the eyes of the women in the town.

There are multiple points of view but these three had my heart:

- Mary Grace, a young mother who opens the door to the battered Gloria. She keeps Gloria safe but the repercussions affects her life forever.
- Corrinne, a new widow mourning her husband Potter. My heart ached for her and I loved hearing her backstory. She and Mary Grace become a support system for each other
- Debra Ann, a spunky ten-year-old girl who is dealing with being abandoned by her mother

It’s a man’s world in Odessa and life is hard for the women. Odessa is as much of a character in this novel as the characters themselves.

“…mercy is hard in a place like this”. But so is justice. Who will stand up for Gloria?

I love a novel that gives me a glimpse into the inner lives of the characters, their hopes, dreams, struggles, and regrets, and this novel does just that. Each of these women are different ages and each has their own story to tell that resonated deeply. The book doesn’t focus on the details of the rape, but on the aftermath on the women in the town. This is not a pretty story that is tied up in a neat bow at the end, but it’s an amazing debut with characters that have left a lasting impression.

Recommended for fans of emotional, slow-burn, atmospheric character-driven stories. This is 100% my wheelhouse and I loved it.