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‘A soul-shattering novel that will leave your emotions raw. This story will haunt me forever. Everyone should read it’ Guardian

In a small town where everyone knows everyone, Emma O’Donovan is different. She is the special one – beautiful, popular, powerful. And she works hard to keep it that way.

Until that night . . .

Now, she’s an embarrassment. Now, she’s just a slut. Now, she is nothing.

And those pictures – those pictures that everyone has seen – mean she can never forget.

BOOK OF THE YEAR AT THE IRISH BOOK AWARDS 2015. The award-winning, bestselling novel about the life-shattering impact of sexual assault, rape and how victims are treated.

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Reviews

Stylist
A brutal and shocking novel that strikes to the heart of the current debates around consent
Irish Independent
'Establishes Louise O'Neill as a literary tour de force'
Elle
A difficult, confronting and vital read
Heat
Heartbreakingly accurate . . . handled with both sensitivity and unflinching honesty. A compelling and brave story that deserves to be read by all
Observer
Brilliant, harrowing
Irish Examiner
A stunning portrait of a girl, a family and a town in trouble
Red Magazine
A brutal, unflinching look at the culture of slut-shaming and trial by social media. It broke my heart.
Telegraph
A brave and important book about rape culture, sexism and victim-blaming in modern society.
Bookseller
Bold, brave . . . and brutal
Glasgow Herald
A razor-sharp look at gender issues - Glasgow Herald
Independent
O'Neill has a keen ear for the catty argot of teenage girls and her writing is razor sharp . . . unsparing and unsentimental
Western Mail
Riveting . . . a timely, gripping and vital novel.
Irish Mail on Sunday
A nuanced and insightful commentary on the intricacies of teenage female friendship and the internal and external pressures that young women face as they reach adulthood
New York Times
'Riveting and essential'
Anna James
Blistering, unapologetic and vitally important
Anita Sethi, Observer
This unflinching, timely novel asks important questions about rape culture, sexism and social media abuse, tackling taboo themes with subtlety and sensitivity