Book Review: All the Rage by Courtney Summers

All the Rage
by Courtney Summers
Series: Standalone
Publication: St. Martin's Griffin on April 14, 2015
Format: Hardcover, 321 pages
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Mystery, Realistic Fiction, Abuse

The sheriff's son, Kellan Turner, is not the golden boy everyone thinks he is, and Romy Grey knows that for a fact.  Because no one wants to believe a girl from the wrong side of town, the truth about him has cost her everything - friends, family, and her community.  After she's been branded a liar and bullied relentlessly by a group of kids she used to hang out with, Romy's only refuge is the diner where she works outside of town.  No one knows her name of her past there; she can finally be anonymous.  But when a girl with ties to both Romy and Kellan goes missing after a party, and news of him assaulting another girl in a town close by gets out, Romy must decide whether she wants to fight or carry the burden of knowing more girls could get hurt if she doesn't speak up.  Nobody believed her the first time - and they certainly won't now - but the cost of her silence might be more than she can bear.

With a shocking conclusion and writing that will absolutely knock you out, All the Rage examines the shame and silence inflicted upon young women in a culture that refuses to protect them.

All the Rage will knock you out.  A heavy, highly emotional read, this well-written 2015 standalone by author Courtney Summers manages to tackle and put out in the open what's often left unsaid.

• + The tough subject.  Not everyone is willing or able to take on a topic like rape.  Courtney Summers did an exceptional job.
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• + The emotions.  If anything, this book knows how to stir up emotions in you.  You'll feel angry, enraged.  ALL THE RAGE.  Sad.  Upset.  You'll feel for Romy, and feel absolutely disgusted at the way society treats her.
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• + The mystery.  There was a bit of a mystery thrown in the book.  Romy wakes up discarded on the side of the road without a recollection of the previous night.  It turns out Penny Young, Romy's former best friend, also went missing the same night.  The mystery added an exciting aspect to the storyline.
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• + You don't actually meet Kellan Turner.  I know other readers may feel this is a fault of the novel, but personally, I feel the opposite.  Kellan Turner, the sheriff's son who raped Romy, isn't actually present throughout most of the story.  The reader doesn't formally meet him or get to know him.  Yet in a different sense, Kellan Turner is very much present.  Romy lives her life day-in and day-out haunted by the memory of her assaulter.  There are some scars that never fade, and there are some scars that you can't see from the outside.
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• + A powerful message.  Read the book and you'll understand.

• - Romy (at times).  She's a broken character, and she's been through a lot.  I understand.  But Romy could honestly be frustrating at times, pushing people away, unintentionally hurting them, lying, refusing to confide in her supporters.  It just goes to show how damaged Romy is . . . she lost her voice when people first refused to believe her truths.
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• - Unanswered questions.  Unexplored thoughts.  There was quite a lot that went unsaid.  As a reader, I wished to learn more about Penny and the girls' friendship.  I wished to learn more about Kellan Turner and the incident.  I wished to learn more about the mystery, and how it all went down that night.
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• - Lacked resolution.  The ending was a bit . . . abrupt for me (and a bit anticlimactic).  It's not that I expect a "high-thriller" from each book I pick up, but I'm not sure if I turned the final page feeling satisfied.