
Title: Ever Since
Author: Alena Bruzas
Genre: YA Contemporary
Publication Date: May 23rd, 2023
Publisher: Rocky Pond Books
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for a complimentary earc to review! All opinions are my own.

“Seventeen-year-old Virginia makes bad choices. In fact, she’s That Kind of Girl, according to the whispers. But as long as she has her tight group of best friends by her side, she’s able to ignore the gossipers. Until she finds herself spending time with Rumi, Poppy’s boyfriend. Breaking with tradition, she doesn’t hook up with Rumi. Worse, she falls in love with him.
While Virginia and Rumi’s relationship grows in secret, she discovers that his little sister, Lyra, is being groomed for abuse. The soon-to-be-abuser is a respected member of the community, and only Virginia knows who he is and what he does. If she stays quiet, Lyra will become a victim. But coming forward feels equally impossible.” (Goodreads)

I was very curious about this one due to the blurb. I knew going into the book there would be content warnings which I was fine with since I had time to get in the right head space. The author does a good job of dealing with a story about abuse, but I just had a hard time connecting with the story.
The book is told from one point of view and it comes from Virginia. She is in high school and hangs out with a group of friends that are always around. Some are more nice than others. I feel like the whole teen life was done quite well from boys to parties. Virginia is a strong character because of her story detailing abuse. It wasn’t easy for her to recognize the signs and it helped that she had people close to her explaining the red flags.
My biggest problem with the book was the writing. It felt very dry and sometimes and the way it was structured felt sporadic. It was really hard for me to fully connect with the characters and because of the content I wish I could have.
Overall, this was an okay/good read.
