3.5⭐️

Wade Harrell is a mess. At 16, he knocked up his friend, Jessa, moved into his mom’s basement with Jessa to raise their baby, and still has to deal with the normal teenage angst inherent in that liminal space between child and adulthood and trying to figure himself out. As of late, Wade has only more questions because for the past two months, he’s been meeting up with his dentist, Dr. Emmett; at first it was to talk, and now not so much. Wade knows it’s wrong, knows he should be going straight home to his baby daughter, Lydie, but he needs what Dr. Emmett gives him—someone to talk to, someone who cares, someone who sees him and not a worthless disappointment. But for Wade, nothing good ever lasts, and when an act of angry desperation leads to blood, pain, and terror, the impact the event has will leave many lives changed in its wake.

"Impacted "is a coming-of-age story that highlights the fact that coming of age never really stops; no matter how old you get, you can still learn something about yourself—and it won’t necessarily be pretty. I feel like "Impacted" is best experienced without knowing much going in so the reader can ride the ripples and be surprised with who or what they hit next. The writing style is simple, precise, and fits the characters and theme well. Told in third person omniscient, the story begins with Wade on the day of impact and follows other characters caught in its wake, an interesting choice that allows the characters to convey how they see themselves and others, as well as the differences in how others perceive them. For most of the characters, even bit players, this works; however, there is one character where the shifting perspective doesn’t work well. Some of their moods/actions/motivations are wildly different from scene to scene and makes them feel inconsistent. However, there is enough substance to the character to keep them from slipping into caricature and remain compelling.

As a main character, Wade is remarkably unremarkable; a rudderless late teen who’s added the complication of unplanned parenthood to an already tumultuous period in his life.

“Wade [sees] himself as a mess of a human being, a pinball that hit every bumper, causing noise and disaster until it inevitably crashed.”

He’s content to go along and bow to a more assertive personality, only to be befuddled and angered by the consequences; yet when forced to make choices on his own, he tends to be rash, fitful, and dissatisfied with everything about himself. He wants definitive answers about who is he, how to adult, and how to be a good person; unfortunately, none of the adults is his life seem to have any answers, and the two people he used to talk to (his mom and Jessa) are the people he’s failed the most. He’s stuck in an endless loop of confusion, self-hatred, self-pity, and anger; he’s stuck in his mind as a failure who can’t do anything right so why try; and he’s simply stuck in the reality of being a kid without a clue dealing with adult responsibilities.

Wade’s his own worst enemy, and he perceives disappointment and dislike at every turn. He’s also achingly vulnerable…perfect prey for a practiced child sexual predator, an ephebophile who considers himself a do-gooder for preparing teenage boys for life and giving them experience. He shows interest, offers a sympathetic ear, and gives Wade a male in his life that he talks to like his dad. “Dr. Emmet [is] so persuasive in the beginning, when Wade was so confused.” Emmett’s sympathetic ear turns into a sympathy blow-job, and soon Wade is living for those stolen moments of freedom in his car, but freedom is rarely ever free and as Carr says, “Trauma echoes.” And the waves of the aftermath touch people in various ways. For Wade, it strips him of any place to hide from his choices and fractured life; for others, like his mom and even another teenage boy Wade doesn’t even know, it shifts the perspective of those it touches, even tangentially.

"Impacted" is an interesting look into the mundane, joyous, traumatic, and unexpected rollercoaster that is life. It shows one young man’s struggle with his identity, his morality, and being a frustrating mix of man and child. It conveys how simply and casually people love, harm, or are cruel to one another, and how each impact, no matter how large or small, can uncover parts of oneself, connections, or even the will to survive.

Wade is 17, has a girlfriend and a new baby, and is in love with his much older dentist. Wade is trying to figure out who he is amidst all this mess of his life while figuring out his sexual identity, the fact that he doesn't love his girlfriend, and the idea that he was abused by the dentist. A lot of the reviews call this darkly comic, but I didn't really find it funny. 3.5 stars rounded to 3.

IMPACTED is a little bit noir and a little bit literary. Benji has this uncanny ability to shatter the darkness with an incredibly powerful light. He is a clever writer. You must pay attention to every word. One minute you'll laugh. The next you'll cry. But, in the end, you will feel a great reward from spending your time in his pages. I really love this book. Highly recommended!

I hope you enjoy this. I wrote it. I'm very proud of it. And it's cool to see it out in the world.

I'm so grateful to my publisher at The Story Plant for believing in it.

Wow this book! This was certainly not what I was expecting from this book, but I am glad I read it. It made me think about what a parent would do for a child. Also how one person's perception could be different from another person's reality. I will be thiking about this book for a long time.

Trigger warning: molestation, teen pregnancy

I wanted to love this book but the writing style just didn't work for me. This wasn't a bad book, though, and I'm sure another reader will enjoy it:)

"A dentist’s office is intended for pain. We can numb ourselves to it, cover it in a shiny veneer, but all the pretending is a lie."

Contains triggering scenes such as sexual abuse, pedophilia, murder, blood, teenage pregnancy and death.

This is the first time I read a book with a dentist as of its characters. As a dentistry student, I have been trying to find a book with a dentist on it and this seals it.

Impacted is a dark contemporary adult book which I didn't expect at first. The synopsis was kinda sketchy though when I first read it. This follows Wade who fell in love with his dentist. Honestly I was kinda hoping for a cute, romance contemporary but I got a dark one instead.

The writing style is good but I find myself lost at the first part because of the multiple POVs. It is like random characters are popping out explaining their points and at first I don't know which is which.

Chaotic as heck. That is how the story was for me. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the plot of the story. I didn't get why most reviews would laugh while reading this. I didn't see myself laughing at most parts but there are definitely those parts where I need to read them over again to confirm if I read it right. Dark humour is not really a hit for me.

Characters are well written. I just hate one with all my heart. If it wasn't for her manipulating self, I think things would be fine for Wade.

Overall I would only give it a 4/5 rating because of how I tend to get lost with the multiple POVs popping out of nowhere.

Thank you for Netgalley and The Story Plant for providing me an eARC in exchange for a honest review.

I struggled through the beginning of this book. Not sure if it was pacing, or generally feeling like I couldn’t connect with the narration. I feel going into it running was not the best way to handle it, and it made me immediately feel lost.

A baby, a girlfriend, and a secret lover. Wade’s life is a mess at seventeen. And then something happens to the man he’s in love with ...

This book is not the right fit for me. I struggled to get through and picked up other books instead. In the end, I decided to read, and read (luckily it’s a very short one!). I finished it almost in one sitting, so I could finally stop thinking about it.

I didn’t want to DNF because I saw raving reviews of people who laughed out loud while reading this dark story. I hoped I’d started to love it somewhere on my journey to the finish. I didn’t. When I requested this book, I didn’t know Wade just turned seventeen, and I couldn’t think about anything else while reading. He’s seventeen. He’s only seventeen! He just turned seventeen!! OMG!!!

This is dark humor, and I found out I don’t like it. At least not when the MC is so young. It deals with heavy themes such as abuse, and I think I might have liked it if it was written in another style. The writing is not bad, it just isn’t my cup of tea. If you love dark humor, please check out other reviews. Most of those reviewers adore this book.

Strong voice, heavy themes, impactful writing—Benji Carr manages to make it look easy. Impacted has a unique premise with memorable characters, and I loved the complexity of the relationships within the story. Wade and his supporting characters made this reader swing from laughing to cringing, but aptly so. This book was a fun ride, and I hope to read more from Benji Carr.

Benji Carr combines a thriller with a coming-of-age story and overlays it all with a dark sense of humor. The characters and the storyline captivated me and kept me reading way into the night.

I had a good time reading this one! Pick up this book as soon as it comes out because you will be laughing once you start reading this one!

A dentist place. The other characters happening to meet here. And they are quite interesting!

You can just count how many times Dr. Emmet has been mentioned in the entire story. And you would not even notice it unless you're told. Wade and the other characters, the subtle and the nit so subtle ones , who makes the other character so fun. Damn. It's almost a scandal!!!

The writing is so good! It's refreshing!

The book is just too short. Maybe I enjoyed it too much more than I should. And you know if things are really good, they end soon.

Plotwise, it's just fun for the first half. The second half made me love the book more. The story gets more real there.

That ending. I want another book please.

Thank you, author and the publisher, for the advance reader copy.

That cover is quite relevant though!

The book has some life-changing lines. Once this book comes out, I might update them.