Bry Ann

When Axel was a teenager, he lost his best friend Sarah because she killed herself. Already having anger issues, that just pushed him even further, and he ended up spending time in juvie. When he got out, he just wanted to count the minutes until he turned 18 and was able to get out of the small town he was from. When he was able to get out, he turned to boxing.

Aly has always lived in the shadow of her parents. They started becoming very ultra-religious when she was a child, and she has always had to be careful and live under their very strict rules. When she turned 18, she wanted to get away and find herself. She manages to get away from her family and on the train to Seattle, she meets Axel, now going by X who is now a professional boxer. Their paths cross for just a moment, but then nothing else happens for another 2 years.

X and Aly are both very interesting characters and I'm glad to have seen the story go the way that it did in the end. However, I think that the story got a little too convoluted at points. Maybe one fewer twist in the story would've made it a tighter story, in my opinion. Overall, though, it was an enjoyable story.… (mais)

Heartbreaking

The fact that this story happens to real people makes my heart hurt. My biggest issue wasn't in the content but rather on a certain aspect of how it was written. Knowing that Sage was shutting down in regards to what was happening to her was more than plausible but when she talked about herself as someone who needed Sage kept away it became disjointed. It made it seem like they were split personalities instead of the same woman. I could totally see writing the character as lethargic or catatonic but having her talk like this didn't offer it the fluidity I was looking for. I'd have rather had someone else discuss how she was doing as she struggled through the horrors she endured and came out the other side.

Just my preference. I'm still heartbroken reading the acknowledgment and knowing that a real person endured this.… (mais)