I can't really give "These Violent Delights" anything less than 5* because it was a compassionate and insightful look at a very real problem that does get swept under random carpets again and again.

Using journalism and reality as a basis the novel explores what can happen when women come forward with tales of abuse from their formative years. In this we have a well known, well loved private school professor who is also a predator - involving many of his teenage pupils in sexual acts, preying on their emotions and then discarding them for the next. When a former student writes an essay at the paper she is interning for, it opens the floodgates. The novel follows the investigation, the profound effect this time in their lives has had on these women and explores the possible outcomes.

It was absolutely compelling. The different levels and layers of how victims can react is cleverly intertwined into their stories. The attempts to lessen the impact on the establishment, the way the system works, it is all in here, feeling very realistic and inducing an emotional reaction. The author writes in a beautifully impacting style with multiple viewpoints and reactions that builds to an incredibly tear inducing finale.

Overall this was an excellent read, one that will hopefully help continue the conversation that started way too late in our society - thought provoking and really brilliantly done.

Highly Recommended.

"These Violent Delights" is a well written novel with a serious subject matter and interesting protagonists. I thought that the novel was really well researched and treated the subject with the necessary respect, but at times it seemed somewhat clumsy how the information about real-life sexual assault was conveyed. Still, it was interesting to read and the novel dealt with the subject without seeming overly preachy. The characters were interesting and distinct but I felt that there could have been more character development.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this novel.

"Don't you find it interesting that these types of crimes against women- whether it's violence, sexual assault, rape- are the only kinds we force the victim to make a case about their own innocence before even investigating?"

This short book packs a powerful punch. These Violent Delights focuses on three girls (Caryn, Eva, Sasha) who come forward years later about the inappropriate relationship they had with their English teacher in high school, all in different years. Jane, a reporter who Caryn interns for, champions their case, writing investigative pieces and being their for these women.

All three women came from such different backgrounds and yet their tragic events bonded them. I like that Namkung showed that sexual assault crimes don't only happen to the poor and destitute or those without support; it could happen to anyone you know and by anyone you know.

Copeland, their English teacher, is much beloved by parents, students, and the community. Windemere is an elite private school for girls who seems at times to care more about their image than their girls. When news breaks of these allegations and the evidence supporting them, many are shocked, some unbelieving.

"They want a perfect victim and a perfect perpetrator. Someone who jumps out of the bushes in a park in the middle of the night and drags you to the ground by your hair. They want witnesses and screams and blood. Anything short of that is considered murky or he-said, she-said, even when there's proof."

These Violent Delights takes a hard look at sexual assault culture and victim blaming and there were many times I was infuriating by how these women were being treated and talked about by people they didn't even know.

"These men don't know the first thing about the violent truths of being born female."

I will add a side-note here that this is not a "men are evil" book. On the contrary there are some amazing male side character in this book that show men can be compassionate, understanding, and respectful.

I'll end with a quote from the author's statement which I found apropos: "Abuse is rarely committed in a dark alley by a stranger, and to perpetuate that myth is irresponsible."

Thank you to Netgalley, Victoria Namkung and Griffith Moon for my arc of These Violent Delights.

The novel’s premise is that a young woman interning for a newspaper in Los Angeles decides to write an essay to publish in the paper about a teacher at her elite, private, all girls school made innapropriate advances towards her when she was a 15 year old student.



Following her article, other victims come forward and a full scale investigation is opened.

This novel doesn’t read as a novel, now that’s not a criticism, it was still very enjoyable but the way it was presented, and I think this may be to do with the fact the author is a journalist first and foremost, was like reading a non fiction ‘true life’ book or a feature in a magazine or newspaper. Nothing was forced if that makes sense, there was no real world building, there was one relationship created and that was it. The rest was a collection of articles, statements and conversations which reinstated the fact. But in all honesty I think this was the perfect way to put this story across. People need to be aware that the issues raised in this novel are real and take action. I wish this book had been around when I was a teenage girl.

A pretty powerful book on a subject every parent needs to be aware of. Super interesting.

This book provides a look inside the world of pricey prep schools, Windemere School for Girls in this story. Not surprisingly, there is a professor who likes the girls a little too much. He continues his dalliances under the radar as the rest of the staff ignores the warning signs. It’s not until a former student comes forward with the truth, that Gregory Copeland comes under the microscope. When two other former students step forward, the women. they along with the first student and a journalist take aim at Copeland and Windemere, exposing all of their dark and dirty secrets. This story is all to familiar, as it plays out in real life across the United States everyday. This was not an easy read, because of the subject matter, but Namkung handled it adeptly and with great sympathy for the story’s victims