I felt angry, frustrated. I felt I didn’t belong, not in my church, not in my home, not in my skin.
Pattyn Von Stratten, sixteen, is the oldest of seven girls. Raised in an abusive home by an alcoholic father and passive mother, Pattyn begins to question everything she’d always taken at face value: God, love, sex, her role as a woman in their Mormon faith.
Her protests fall on deaf ears as she is whisked away to spend the summer with an aunt she doesn’t know. But it is here that she finds acceptance and that she is worthy of being loved. It is here she blossoms into womanhood. It is here she finds ‘forever love’.
But summer can’t last forever . . .
A gripping coming-of-age tale, Burned is written in poetic form and, surprisingly, at 532 pages, a quick read. Hopkins weaves a tight-knit, engaging storyline that will keep readers in their seats; their eyes, glued to the page. (I read it in less than twenty-four hours.)
There aren’t any chapters in this book, only titles, which are actually the first line of a particular entry. Each separate entry takes a different form and must be read accordingly. I found the page titled Fireworks difficult to decipher. I’m certain there’s an order, though, in which to read the words, to make a coherent thought!
Run, don’t walk, to purchase this book. And while you’re at it, pick up copies of Crank, Impulse, Glass, Identical and any other books with this author’s name.