The Girls I've Been, by Tess Sharpe

Oooooh, I'm glad I impulse bought this one!

Ever since she was old enough to say her name, Nora has been given a new one by her mother. She created a new person for Nora to become five times throughout the first sixteen years of her life. First, there was Rebecca. Then Samantha. And then Haley. Katie. And finally Ashley.

Her mother took on new names too. Why? Because she was a con artist. She targeted dangerous men, forced her way into their hearts, made her child do her bidding, and when they just started to get comfortable, her mother stole their mark's fortune and ran off into the night, dragging along whichever daughter she had created that day... month... year...

But that's all in the past. Her mother is in prison, Nora chose this name herself, and she's safe with her sister. Well, almost. But what are the odds of being held at gun point at a bank robbery with your new girlfriend and ex-boyfriend?

Surely zero, right?

Wrong.

This is a gripping read. I love when a narrative plays with timelines, and we get multiples of stories progressing side-by-side, building just the right amount of tension and suspense. Each of Nora's past selves builds a deeper and more desperate picture of who she is, and to see her in so much danger in the present tense, even when she's away from a life of swindling and deception, feels tragic. I felt a distinct urge to protect her, and to hurt any person who threatened her safety.

Our narrator is a criminal, but a reluctant one. A manipulated one. But not naïve. Oh, no. Nora knows her way around a man with a gun. We get to see how Nora uses her dangerous past; her different identities to get through this harrowing experience. And it's dark to see someone who has experienced so much pain, utilise the skills that she never should have learned in the first place. 

Just a fabulous and innovative story. Incredible characters with nuanced and beautiful connections. A true testament to the strength that comes with trauma, and that you shouldn't mess with savvy teenagers!

- Sian

CW: abuse, violence, manipulation, CPTSD, anxiety