Damaged: The Heartbreaking True Story of a Forgotten Child

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PS. Once again I listened to the audiobook while reading the book. It was narrated by Soneela Nankani. I wasn’t a fan of the audio. I found her narration extremely slow and boring. At the end I increased the speed to 2.0x. The novel is populated by boringly correct English types who seem almost parodically perfect, civil and discreet. Their world is slowly and quietly devastated by the entrance into it of an almost blameless femme fatale, a damaged girl harboring a terrible secret so corrosive that it seems to destroy all she touches, though the recipients of her attentions fail to see -- or do see and ignore -- the inevitably painful consequences. The story is told from the perspective of a genteel middle-aged Englishman, Dr. Stephen Fleming, a physician and member of Parliament, who willingly constructs an alternate reality to justify his obsessive affair with her. As she happens to be the fiancee of his own son, the deception takes on particularly disturbing aspects.

Cio’ che disarma e’ il modo in cui e’ scritto il libro, e'come se il lettore seguisse due storie, quella dei fatti che si susseguono e un’altra piu’ profonda, quella interiore, introspettiva scritta con uno stile graffiante che ti coinvolge fin dall’inizio, con una capacita’ di scavare negli abissi piu’ profondi dell’animo umano che ti tiene incollato li’, con il fiato sospeso, a tratti sei gia’ consapevole di cosa succedera’ ma non puoi non sorprenderti di come l’inevitabile ti arrivi addosso in maniera inaspettata. Many will be familiar with the wonderful film of the same name, starring Jeremy Irons and Juliette Binoche, directed by Louis Malle, in which we witness more of the sexual nature of the affair. In her book, Hart does not describe sex at length, and yet we are left in no doubt that the acts are intense. All that ends when his son brings home a new girlfriend. The narrators falls madly in love with her, actually madly in obsession with her I should say, a triggering a tragic turn of events for all concerned.This not a light hearted book, it was hard hitting, and thought provoking, if a little slow at times. But it also had surprising twists and a satisfying ending. The story of 'Damage' centres around a politician (we never know his name) who is married to a lovely woman and whose playboy son Martyn brings home a mysterious woman named Anna one day who no one can really work out or understand. This is unlike Martyn who usually has a different girl on his arm every week, but this time he is serious about her, and begins to drop hints to his family and sister that he is going to propose to her. The narrator's wife doesn't like her, but the narrator falls head over heels in love with her at first sight, and it's almost immediate that they both begin an affair which takes them as far as Paris. The affair is brief, passionate and everything they could both want, however until a dreadful tragedy hits a member of the family. The unexpected conclusion was clever, but not one that I can applaud, even understanding the reasons. Three ordainary people getting on with they’re ordainary lives, until an earth shattering event changes the dynamics of all of their lives. By the time the narrator of this story is fifty he has lived his life almost as if by accident. An unexceptional childhood followed by an impassionate marriage and successful but unfulfilling careers, first as a G.P and subsequently as an upstanding but unremarkable Member of Parliament. A life lived without strong emotions of any kind. A life which, had it ended in the narrator’s fiftieth year, would have been widely respected and totally unremarkable.

The book is not just about a rape though….it’s about the criminal justice system…and what those you love might be willing to do for you to help you get any kind of “justice.” For awhile I worried about the direction the book was going and feared we would not get a satisfying ending…but hang in there. Wahrer delivers. His affair with Anna is both an awakening and a dream-state, a loss of self to the intoxication of desire, and a finding of the self. I don't think I've ever read a book like this, an unflinching look at male sexual assault and the fallout. It's an amazing look at the desire for justice for the victim and the complicated system for getting there. This one is a great character study with a bit of a mystery element too. Nos lo venden como un todo en uno, lo más de lo más: un thriller, una novela de suspense, un drama psicológico, un drama judicial, que si un reflejo de los nuevos problemas y estereotipos a los que se enfrenta el concepto de masculinidad........y realmente lo que me he encontrado es un libro con una trama totalmente previsible, más simple que el mecanismo de un chupete, con unos diálogos por momentos pueriles, que no deja de dar vueltas sobre si misma, sin avanzar lo más mínimo, cuando en todo momento sabemos donde quiere llegar. The Damage is a mystery/family drama that examines the consequences of a sexual assault. Wahrer explores the impact on not only the victim but also on his family. Their experiences lead them to an emotional precipice stoking the desire for revenge.A beautiful couple, Roger and Ingrid had it all. A successful marriage and careers, beautiful grown children, and plenty of money. The author did an excellent job with the subject matter and it can make for difficult reading at times. I will say that it wrapped up in a surprising and satisfying way. I can't wait to read what this author comes out with next. Brava to you Caitlin Wahrer! Lui, esempio preclaro di homo politically correct, de repente si trova i lombi arsi dal fuoco della passione, è pronto a gettare alle ortiche carriera politica, matrimonio, prole, incurante del fatto che il suo figghiolo - bellissimo e intelligentissimo comme il faut - voglia sposare la conturbante donzella. However, when Roger’s eyes met Anna’s for the first time, sparks flew.. In each other, they instantly feel sexual attraction, in the form of extreme weakness and need for each other, due to a mutual brokenness they recognize in each other, a pain they carry from from childhood. All of our upcoming public events and our St Pancras building tours are going ahead. Read our latest blog post about planned events for more information.

This would make a great book for a reading group discussion since it brings some interesting questions to mind.The story is fast-paced, with short chapters that heighten its intensity and suspense. It mainly took place in 2015, but its timeline shifts to 2019 when Julia and Detective Rice meet. The dying Rice carries guilt over something he failed to do in his role as a police officer. There are so many twists, lies and betrayals counteracting each character's flaws and past. This left me distraught for everyone involved. So many times we are dealt one side, so we automatically assume we know the story....not this time. Lives are changed and critically scarred forever.