INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
“[An] exceedingly complex, inventive, resourceful examination of harm and power.” —The New York Times Book Review, Editors’ Choice
“A lightning rod . . . brilliantly crafted.”—The Washington Post
A most anticipated book by The New York Times • USA Today • Entertainment Weekly • Marie Claire • Elle • Harper’s Bazaar • Bustle • Newsweek • New York Post • … anticipated book by The New York Times • USA Today • Entertainment Weekly • Marie Claire • Elle • Harper’s Bazaar • Bustle • Newsweek • New York Post • Esquire • Real Simple • The Sunday Times • The Guardian
Exploring the psychological dynamics of the relationship between a precocious yet naïve teenage girl and her magnetic and manipulative teacher, a brilliant, all-consuming read that marks the explosive debut of an extraordinary new writer.
2000. Bright, ambitious, and yearning for adulthood, fifteen-year-old Vanessa Wye becomes entangled in an affair with Jacob Strane, her magnetic and guileful forty-two-year-old English teacher.
2017. Amid the rising wave of allegations against powerful men, a reckoning is coming due. Strane has been accused of sexual abuse by a former student, who reaches out to Vanessa, and now Vanessa suddenly finds herself facing an impossible choice: remain silent, firm in the belief that her teenage self willingly engaged in this relationship, or redefine herself and the events of her past. But how can Vanessa reject her first love, the man who fundamentally transformed her and has been a persistent presence in her life? Is it possible that the man she loved as a teenager—and who professed to worship only her—may be far different from what she has always believed?
Alternating between Vanessa’s present and her past, My Dark Vanessa juxtaposes memory and trauma with the breathless excitement of a teenage girl discovering the power her own body can wield. Thought-provoking and impossible to put down, this is a masterful portrayal of troubled adolescence and its repercussions that raises vital questions about agency, consent, complicity, and victimhood. Written with the haunting intimacy of The Girls and the creeping intensity of Room, My Dark Vanessa is an era-defining novel that brilliantly captures and reflects the shifting cultural mores transforming our relationships and society itself.
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A truly remarkable debut, deeply thoughtful, deeply emotional, compelling, and disturbing in equal measure. I raced to the ending and then found the book lingered with me long after that last page. It is lingering still.
Let me start by saying: I am incapable of writing a review that could possibly do this deeply disturbing novel any kind of justice. I don’t know that a book has ever caused me to feel such strong emotions as My Dark Vanessa did. I had to pace through virtually the whole thing just to work off my rage. I went from rage, to sadness, to pity and back to rage sometimes in a matter of minutes. My point being: this is not an easy read and nor should it be. This book shines a light on some of the darkest shadows of our cultural habits. We objectify and over sexualize young women-girls who are too developed, both mentally and physically, to be called children, yet are too naive and vulnerable to be called women. We act shocked when after accepting this view, some adults in positions of power take advantage of young women. We blame, don’t believe, and slut shame these same young women when they are brave enough to come forward with their stories. Yet, we act shocked and/or don’t believe them when they don’t come forward immediately… and oh, so much more.
Vanessa Wye is a vulnerable, lonely fifteen year old girl who catches the attention of her forty two year old teacher, Jacob Strane, like a baby seal catches the attention of a great white shark. He is a pro at finding her every weakness and using them against her. The novel bounces back and forth between Vanessa at the age of fifteen, when the abuse begins, and seventeen years later when she is 32 and still dealing with the consequences. We see how this young girl was failed by most of the adults in her life, from the abuser himself (and I refuse to call him anything but that, as it’s the nicest term for him), to the school board— who is so afraid of the stigma having a predatory teacher involves, that they blame and humiliate her in front of her peers and don’t report ‘the incident’—to her mother who acts like it never happened, telling herself she’s protecting Vanessa by not making her suffer through it again which instead hurts her all the more, making her feel shame, unloved and unheard.
Going back and forth between the past and present lets us see the lingering effects victims often suffer and how they are victimized over and over again…by a broken system, by the public demonizing and slut shaming and by the lies of their abusers. You really see how especially damaging it is on a young person who is still trying to figure out who she is and ends up labeling herself the same way her abuser did, with words like ‘dark’, ‘damaged’ and ‘bad’. The adeptness of her abuser’s manipulation causes severe damage to her psyche even seventeen years later. In other words, just because the actual abuse isn’t ongoing doesn’t mean that it’s over for the one who suffered it.
I won a copy of the audiobook version of My Dark Vanessa in a giveaway. Grace Gummer narrates and it was my first time listening to her. She does a wonderful job of capturing the nuances between 15 year old and 32 year old Vanessa. I also enjoyed the interview at the end of the book between the author, narrator and editor. I was shocked to learn Kate Elizabeth Russell began writing this when she was a teenager (because the writing is absolutely incredible) explaining how 15 year old Vanessa’s thinking was so authentic to a teenage girl’s. The interview is filled with fascinating tidbits like that!
This book is totally a discussion starter. It saddens me that some are so horrified by the storyline because it brings up so many points that we should be discussing and things we should be fixing. Yes, it is absolutely dark and disturbing but the truth often is and this novel is so relevant. Vanessa Wye and Jacob Strane may be fictitious characters but the storyline is not! And sticking our heads in the sand as a society, refusing to acknowledge the dirty underbelly of it, is not going to fix it. So yes, this is a dark and difficult read but it is also a germane and significant one and SO worth EVERY. SINGLE. PAGE. I’m grateful to have won a copy!
Every now and then we (as readers) come across a book whose topic is so polarizing and so uncomfortable that you can’t help but find yourself gravitating toward it, if only to watch the story unfold – just for a moment. My Dark Vanessa is that book and it will be the must-read novel of 2020 – mark my words. Five freaking phenomenal stars.
I will warn you that this book is not for the faint of heart. It’s a dark story about desire, manipulation and the long-lasting affects of trauma in the wake of the #metoo movement. It’s a profound look at abusive relationships, the ways in which we justify those relationships, and how we ignore the signs of one – even when it’s right in front of us.
At 15, Vanessa Wye falls for her 42-year old English teacher Jacob Strane. Strane woos Vanessa, slowly grooming her whilst convincing her that she is one in control of their situation, that “It’s just my luck that when I finally find my soulmate, she’s fifteen years old.” 17 years later, Vanessa is confronted with her past and her relationship with Strane when another former student accuses Strane of sexual abuse. As the media grabs hold of the story, a journalist reaches out to Vanessa urging her to come forward and Vanessa’s tightly crafted world begins to crumble as she struggles to determine whether her greatest love story is real or if it was her greatest tragedy.
This is a gut-wrenching debut that had me often yelling out loud at the injustice of it all. The level of manipulation that Strane inflicts upon Vanessa is astounding. His hold on her is so strong that after almost a decade since the ending of their sexual relationship, Vanessa still finds herself taking the blame. “This, I think, is probably what I’ll do for the rest of my life: chase after him and what he gave me. It’s my own fault. I was supposed to have grown out of it by now. He never promised to love me forever.”
Vanessa refuses to accept that she is a victim because it is the only way that she can protect herself from what was done to her. Russell’s writing is so raw and well done that it was hard for me to believe this was not based on a true story. A stunning debut novel. Thank you to the publisher for my review copy. This book hits shelves in January. Add it to your TBR list!
This tale of a girl’s affair with her teacher and the impact it has on her life in the backdrop of the #MeToo movement is complex, nuanced, challenging and I found it impossible to put down.
Vanessa Wye was a student at a prestigious boarding school. When she was fifteen, she became romantically involved with her forty-two-year-old English teacher, Jacob Strane. She formed a deep connection with Jacob who gave her extra attention and books to read, including the aptly titled ”Lolita”. Vanessa was vulnerable and lonely after fighting with her best friend and the timing was perfect for someone to step into the void.
Throughout the years Vanessa has maintained contact with Jacob as she fondly considers him her first love. At age thirty-two, her world unravels when a former student of Strane’s, goes public about a series of abuses. A journalist researching these events reaches out to Vanessa for her own story. She is forced to reevaluate her own past and to consider whether her relationship with Jacob was based on love or something more sinister.
”My Dark Vanessa” is a debut novel by Kate Elizabeth Russell that is superbly written considering the storyline. It is a compelling, distressing, and haunting story that will stick with you for days.