The Sharp Edge of Silence

February 20, 2023
A teenage sexual assault survivor seeks justice in this heart-stopping volume by Rosenblum (The Stepping Off Place), which explores the pervasiveness of—and the structures that uphold—toxic masculinity. Gifted artist Quinn Walsh was a freshman at the prestigious boarding school Lycroft Phelps Academy when varsity crew athlete Colin Pearce assaulted her and faced no repercussions. Now a sophomore, Q, who has PTSD, has one goal in mind: make Colin pay. Q’s piercing first-person narration alternates with strait-laced Charlotte Foresley, a dancer who struggles with internalized misogyny and who is the girlfriend of Colin’s popular best friend; and insecure scholarship student Max Hannigan-Loeffler, who faces a moral dilemma when he’s recruited to Colin’s alpha male crew team. As the trio’s paths converge, dark secrets from Lycroft Phelps’s past come to light, and Q must decide if she’s willing to risk expulsion—or worse—to see justice served. A captivating start gives way to a rushed denouement, leading to more questions than answers. Nevertheless, Rosenblum’s immersive and poetic prose tackles difficult themes with precision and care, delivering a profound account of overcoming trauma in a system designed to protect abusers. Major characters cue as white. Ages 14–up. Agent: Alexandra Levick, Writers House.

September 8, 2023
Grades 9-12 Three personalized acceptance letters to the Lycroft Phelps School, a boarding school that prides itself on the caliber of student it produces, open this novel. The first is addressed to Charlotte Forsely, a talented dancer; the second to Max Hannigan-Loeffler, attending on scholarship due to his achievements in STEM. The third letter, sent to legacy student Quinn Walsh, has been burned. All three become entangled with Lycroft Phelps' elite crew team: Charlotte dates a rowing star, but he's hiding something; Max gets recruited as a coxswain, and his life changes overnight; and Quinn, now withdrawn, can't talk about how one member of the crew team assaulted her the previous semester, instilling her with a desire to make him hurt as badly as she does. Rosenblum delivers both pain and retribution in a caustic narrative that challenges toxic masculinity while also mourning how impossible it can feel to overcome such a culturally pervasive environment. Texts between teachers add a multigenerational layer that drives home the ultimate message of pain and resilience.

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February 1, 2023
A young woman returns to her prestigious New Hampshire boarding school the fall after she was raped by a fellow student. Told in first-person perspective by three different students, the narration alternates among Quinn, who goes by Q, a promising artist who is the assault survivor; Charlotte, a talented dancer whose relationship with a popular guy is making her second-guess herself at every turn; and Max, a high-achieving student on a full-ride scholarship who has acutely felt his outsider status during his time at Lycroft Phelps. In a winding tale that incorporates the traumatic experience of sexual assault, the failure of people to take a stand against campus cultures that encourage sexual violence, an all-male secret society, and an exploration of the magnetic appeal of team loyalty and camaraderie, this novel takes its time building its characters' stories. While the proliferation of misogyny in insular privileged schools is not a new tale, this telling is expansive in its examination of the subject and offers an auspicious, realistically imperfect resolution for patient readers who stick with it to the end. The three main characters reflect a White default; there is ethnic diversity in secondary characters as well as some passing critique of the superficial claims of valuing diversity on display at their school. An unflinching, necessarily emotionally difficult read with plenty to say. (author's note) (Fiction. 14-18)

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from May 1, 2023

Gr 9 Up-Quinn (artist, musician, and legacy student), Charlotte (dancer and high achiever), and Max (scholarship student and math genius turned varsity crew coxswain) all attend the elite boarding school Lycroft Phelps. When Quinn is raped after their spring formal, she returns to school the next fall changed. Her roommate, Alex, can tell and even her "Big Sister" Charlotte from the year before can see something is wrong, but Q doesn't want to tell anyone. Told from the multiple perspectives of Quinn, Charlotte, and Max, this novel examines elite athletics, secret societies, male toxicity, and a culture of silence. Once Quinn's secret is exposed, who will rise to help her and who will choose to support the status quo? Rosenblum's thoughtfully crafted, moving narrative allows for the time and space needed to address the complexities of how sexual assault is dealt with on a high school campus. She deftly weaves the stories of three very different students whose lives are intertwined and who must all find the person they want to be. VERDICT A beautifully written novel that tells a powerful story of survival, support, and finding voice.-Rebekah J. Buchanan

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