Matt McAvoy Book Review

If I’m honest, the first half of this book was tremendous, and I had really high hopes for where it was going, already starting to prepare an outstanding review in my mind.  In the sometimes disturbing story of a young girl, the daughter of a teenage rape victim, who is abandoned as a child and left to fend for herself, Tina shows immense character and resilience in her determination to overcome all adversity and support herself without the involvement of child social services.   She lives a life of hard work, high standards and decent morals, as well as an ambitious and positive outlook, creating her world with her fingernails and her courage.  For long periods, this book is poignant, heartbreaking and utterly inspiring, sprinkled with moments of shocking, matter-of-fact brutality.  It was therefore, sadly, something of a disappointment the direction it then went in after the midway point, effectively changing genre, from a harrowing family drama, with a real-life feel, to a tense suspense thriller.

When Tina’s friend is murdered, there is room for more soul-searching and reflection by the lead character as well as the authors; greater poignancy and another opportunity for her to face another severe challenge to her sheer determination not to be defeated by external factors.  Unfortunately, it doesn’t go that way; rather, it starts to go down the crime drama avenue, with several of the stereotypes which go with it, and a preference for formula: the dirty cops; the possible serial killer; a love triangle which devalues all the best qualities of the first half, and even a character returning with a dark tale of organized sex slavery.  I’m sorry to be so blunt, but I didn’t feel like this was the same book, with the same narrative or values.  I would have much preferred to see it continue along the vein of emotive melodrama, carried by Tina’s pure grit.

Alas, it did not, and the book we’re left with is still a pretty good read, don’t get me wrong, and one which I would recommend – it just perhaps doesn’t really stand out as it could and should have done.  I don’t know how much of this book was based on real events experienced in the lives of the authors and/or people they know, or even just inspired by anecdotes they’ve heard, but I would bet those are the best bits – the heartfelt and inspirational moments.  There is real talent between these two authors, but like English screenwriter Shane Meadows, they are at their best when taking the characters on an emotional journey rather than a formulaic one, where life can change in an instant, drastically setting them back emotionally.  Tina’s someone who could definitely overcome rock bottom, and call me a sadist, but I’d really like to see her doing just that.