Utterly amazing!
Nick is a college student who arranges to meet up with a guy called Chris in a bar. However , when Chris hasn’t arrived by the agreed time and another man, Josh, approaches Nick at the bar, Nick agrees to leave with him.
The following morning, Nick wakes in a motel room in pain and bleeding, with no memory of what has happened and Josh gone.
I found this to be a fast paced, well plotted and written book.
The relationships between Nick, his older brother Tony and Tony’s wife Julia were well thought through, detailed and well explained. The character of Detective Rice kept the plot moving and I thought the whole book pulled together really well. I look forward to reading more by this author.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book.

Caitlin Wahrer’s Damage is about the trauma of sexual assault and its cascading impact, not only on the life of the victim, but also the lives of those who love them. At the beginning of the novel, college student Nick is raped by an attractive older man he meets in a bar. The rest of the story follows the exploring the impact and the “untold damage” of the event on Nick and his family, in particular his brother Tony and sister-in-law Julia. I appreciated how the novel doesn’t dwell on any gratuitous details of the assault itself, focussing instead on the aftermath; on Nick’s struggle to process his complex feelings of guilt and anger, and the work he has to do to allow him to own his story without letting it define him.

My favourite element of this book is the relationship between Tony and Nick; as his much older brother, the intensely protective affection that Tony feels for Nick is almost fatherly. When Nick is hurt, Tony struggles to find a way to channel his anger and feelings of failure in a way that can help Nick.
The book also explores the horrible dangerous fallouts of toxic masculinity. Tony’s aggressive ways of coping end up hurting others and himself, and even at the risk of perjuring his court case, Nick covers up details because men are “supposed to win fights, be strong”. All the characters end up suffering because of the men’s determination to be strong, to hide their vulnerabilities, and not let their weaknesses show.

But for all that, the story is not victim-blamey. There is no suggestion in the novel (even while it is suggested by some of the other characters) that the assault is Nick’s fault, but his belief in his need to be strong addresses an important factor in the severe underreporting of sexual assaults when the victim is male. This is not the only subtle social commentary that Wahrer makes; the relative lack of sympathy and outrage felt when a victim is male is met by the common undertones of homophobia when the assault involves gay men as both perpetrator and victim. When news of the trial reaches the general public, the responses include assumptions that sexual relationships between men are inherently violent, and that Nick should therefore have expected nothing less. The novel also explores the murky waters of consent, as the trial turns into a battle of he says-he says, and media publications and vocal townsfolk alike argue that since Nick went willingly to his assaulter’s hotel room, he must have been complicit in everything that else that followed too.

Ultimately this novel leaves you wondering whether the concepts of “moral and immoral” still apply when it comes to protecting the people you love, and whether there can even be any right choice when every option feels wrong.

A great plot in this, at times, difficult read. Offences of this sort will also affect those who are nearest and dearest to the victim, shown here as the tension builds when Tony becomes more and more obsessed with what has happened to his younger brother, Nick, but does he know when to stop? This is a really good story which leaves you wondering how you would react if an act of extreme sexual violence were to be carried out on someone you love. The characters are developed well as the story unfolds, with little twists along the way. A recommended read. Many thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for the read.

An effective plot sprinkled with deception and surprises along the way. Maybe a little more introspection than I prefer in a book. For a debut novel, I think this author deserves some noteworthy praise and recognition for a solid page turner. I’ll be looking for her next book to see if she can top this one.

A dark subject and a hard read. This emotional story tells of abuse we rarely hear about but exists - male victims of sexual abuse. The story cover family and relationships and is extremely well told.

What a thrilling read. I could hardly bare to put this book down. Issues of male rape and abuse formed the backdrop to the crime and were handled deftly. However, it was the recovery, the underlying threat of revenge, the role of social media and law enforcement that formed the mainstay of the story. It was pacy,empathetic and very well written.

This is a very different story, the characters are complex and interesting. The story does get a little confusing with the legal system in the USA. Not quite what we know in UK.
I enjoyed the book.

I enjoyed this book, thank you to Netgalley and Michael Joseph Penguin Random House for my review copy.

The most striking aspect of this book is the plot itself. This is the first time I have ever read a book that is based on male sexual assault and its evident that the author has well researched the incredibly sensitive subject matter. Reading the early scenes in the Damage reminded me of key chapters from Know My Name by Channel Miller which is of course a memoir that details the legal and medical processes following a serious sexual assault.

Overall it took me a little while to read the book, I suspect this is due to the fact that I had quite a few books on the go and not because the book did not capture my attention. It is a gripping thriller, good plot twist and deals with traumatic and complicated family relationships.

I would happily recommend this book to others and would read more from this author.

This book deals with sexual assault on a male well and explores how it affects people physically and mentally. It had me gripped from the beginning, and I liked the alternating viewpoints in each chapter. The characters were well developed and thought out, and the ending surprised me but did make sense. Some parts felt a little slower but overall a good read.

This is the first book I’ve read featuring sexual assault on a male. I thought the subject was sensitively tackled and I liked the way the victim’s family were a great source of support to him.

When Nick leaves the bar with handsome, Josh, he has no idea how the night’s events will impact his life. As well as Nick’s story, we are told how his family, Tony and Julia try to help him recover and how Detective Rice and his team work through their investigation.

I liked how the story was resolved, but for me, the pace was too slow and I didn’t feel Invested in the character’s journey.

Thanks indeed to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Dealing with a trauma that affects not just the body but the soul.

Nick Hall, twenty years old goes out drinking with his flatmates. He’s hoping that the guy he fancies will turn up, but he doesn’t. Nick is annoyed and when another man approaches him, he throws caution to the wind and goes home with him. His life will never be the same again because this stranger rapes him. The man, who’d introduced himself to Nick as “Josh” turns out to be Ray Walker. He hires one of the leading defence attorneys and starts harassing Nick by writing letters to the paper claiming that the sex was consensual, and that Nick begged for it to be rough.

Detective John Rice is given the case. He not only has great sympathy for Nick and desperately wants to catch the man responsible but becomes involved with Nick’s brother Tony and sister-in-law Julia. He is deeply worried that Tony, who has always been protective about his younger brother Nick, will take matters into his own hands to get justice.

This is a deeply disturbing novel on rape and the effect it has not just on the victim but the victim’s family, friends and the police who must solve the case. Caitlin Wahner is a very sympathetic author who tells the story with empathy and leaves the reader wondering how they would react. I came away from the book with far more understanding and realise that it’s not just females who suffer at the hands of rapists but males as well. It left me shaken and once again questioning humankind’s inhumanity to humankind.

Rony

Elite Reviewing Group received a copy of the book to review.

This book covers the story of a young man being raped and violently sexually assaulted. It is a gripping thought provoking read, with many unexpected twists and was a very emotional read as all the way through
it made me think how would I react?
It was easy to feel hat the characters were real as they were so well described and I felt that I knew them very early on and although I may not have bought that there behaviour was right I could understand why they did what they did.
Highly recommend this book.

This is a very fine debut novel from the promising Caitlyn Wahrer. Centred around a male rape, we see the consequences on three main characters, the victim himself, his brother and sister-in-law. Well-written and with superb characterisation, this novel excites and appals in equal measure. I will follow this writer's career with interest.

Tony has always taken care of his brother Nick and his anger soon rises after Nick is assaulted and claims he was raped after blacking out. As the plot develops, Tony's wife Julia becomes concerned about Tony's obsession with the court case.

Wahrer gives a good insight into how a family can be affected following a traumatic event. The plot is very dark but I felt that Wahrer sensitively handled the difficult topics which included sexual abuse, violence and self harm which made the story more realistic. I did feel that not much happened in the plot but I still managed to read it quickly. I also didn't really connect to the characters and felt the ending was quite predictable but liked how chapters were told from multiple characters points of view.

I recommend this to anyone who enjoys a domestic thriller that focusses on real life issues.

A huge thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest and unedited feedback.

Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC copy.

Tony has always been the father figure to his little brother Nick. Both survived an alcoholic father and come out the other side. Tony is now happily married to Julia with three little boys and Nick is excelling at college until one fateful evening. Nick is brutally sexually assaulted and nothing is the same again.

A tale of revenge, anguish and pain ensues. Emotions run wild and plans are put in place that cannot be taken back. With a suspicious cop trying to make a case against a rapist will the family destroy everything or exact the perfect revenge?

An excellent book and especially good as a debut from this author.
The crime was hard to read about but that is really not what this story relies on. Instead it takes us into a clever understanding of relationships between various family members and even acquaintances and what enormous impact those relationships can bring.
Such a clever ending that I never even came close to guessing. Great book and I hope for more from Caitlin Wahrer.
I don’t give five stars lightly but this is well deserved if for originality alone.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. This was a fantastic read. Great characters, good storyline with suspense building through the book. Flipped between past and present in a clear way, hinting at the outcome but then twisting the end. I really enjoyed this one and could not put it down. Highly recommend it!

Everyone is raving about this book on goodreads, and the reviews are all great - so i was super excited to read this one.

The plot line wasn't anything new. I have read books that follow a similar format. However, it was the ending that was really interesting. The ending of this book stayed with me for a while and it really got me thinking.
The ending certainly won me over, as at times while reading the book I wasn't overly intrigued. The pacing felt a little slow sometimes.

Overall I enjoyed the book, but I enjoyed the ending more than the actual reading experience.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book

I liked the style of storytelling going between the events of what happened and the later discussion between Rice and Julia. I would have liked the Elisa part I have been a little less ambiguous though.

What they say: Sometimes, the true story is the hardest to believe. TONY has always looked out for his younger brother, Nick. So when Nick is badly hurt and it looks like he was the victim of sexual assault, Tony's anger flares. JULIA is alarmed by her husband Tony's obsession with Nick's case. She's always known Tony has a temper. But does she really know what he's capable of? NICK went out for a drink. After that, everything's a blank. When he woke up he found himself in a world of confusion and pain, and the man who hurt him doesn't deny doing it. But he says the whole thing was consensual. Three ordinary people; one life-shattering event. When the police get involved with this family in crisis, all the cracks will start to show . . .

My thoughts: A very compelling, well-written novel about the effects on a whole family of an assault on one member. The repercussions and fallout of that one night are laid bare, this tale is told sensitively whilst also being quite hard-hitting. It's a remarkable debut. A difficult subject matter, powerfully told in both the present time and in flashback. A very satisfactory ending, well dealt with. I would recommend.