Make the wrong choice, and you won’t live to make another…Gem Golding only has two choices. A stranger holds a knife to her skin, his demands terrifying in the deserted parking garage. Should she surrender? Or should she fight back? This attacker is no ordinary criminal. This night, like so many of them, is all a game to him. He makes the rules, the rules that determine whether his victims live … determine whether his victims live or die. Rules that will set Gem’s fate in motion. He’s waiting for her to decide.
But how can you win the game when you don’t know how to play? What if surrendering is the worst thing you can do? What if fighting back will kill you?
Two choices. Two outcomes. And only one way for Gem to survive.
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I zoomed through this book in one snowy day.
Anyone who fondly remembers Sliding Doors, starring Gwyneth Paltrow, will love the premise of this page-turner. Gem Golding is the victim of a car-jacking; at this point she has to decide, will she fight her assailant or give in.
Decision made, the book splinters into two parallel universes in alternating chapters. In one story we get to learn what happens to the Gem who fights back and how it affects her going forward and in alternating chapters we follow the Gem who chose not to fight.
I loved what the author did and wasn’t confused by it in the way others have reported but I recognized the device immediately as the one in the movie I love so much.
This book was unique, interesting and very thought-provoking. I didn’t even mind being in snowed in today to read it!
This is a great book. I love they way Max writes and just keeps you so busy, but not so busy that you can’t keep track of the characters. They say to watch out for Karma and there was a few in this book that Karma got her revenge on LOL. Thanks for a great story Max!!
One carjacking, two possible scenarios – Fight or flight. That’s where the story splits off into two different directions, one with Gem the warrior and one with Gem the victim. It’s an interesting concept, and it did make for an intriguing storyline. That said, some things worked and some, well, not so much. The contrast between the two Gem’s worked, but did get somewhat confusing as the story progressed, so I was flipping back and forth to keep track which Gem said or did what thing. I think part of that was due to a handful of other characters thrown in and of course, there actions and conversations were also different, depending on which timeline they were in. The chapters are labeled with the appropriate Surrender/Fight reality, but it’s still a lot to keep up with. In the end, The Victim is an interesting story, a strange one at times, but interesting nonetheless. So, for me, it comes out somewhere in the middle. Parts were terrific, but others fell a little flat.
Max Manning took a huge artistic risk with The Victim. The dual-plot/timeline concept is fascinating, both from a story perspective and a psychological one. It’s also hard to pull off. I’m not certain the end result here was entirely successful. But I commend Manning for being willing to take that risk.
Whether or not you think the two parallel stories “work” is probably personal. It might also help to read a print version, as flipping back and forth on my phone Kindle app wasn’t ideal. I took notes, highlighted in either pink (for the Surrender chapters) or yellow (for the Fight chapters), which helped a bit. Even so, I became confused by what had happened and when for each section.
There were multiple times when I thought some action had already occurred (for example, Gem’s conversation with her boss about returning to work) and wondered why the characters acted as though it hadn’t. Then I realized that, yes, that action had occurred–in the other scenario.
Two things contributed to my confusion:
1. Multiple point of view characters
We got the viewpoints of Gem (the victim), Norton (her attacker), Elliot Day (the police investigator), Drew Bentley (Gem’s boyfriend), and Matt Revell (a tabloid journalist exploiting the story). Their individual sections are labelled with their names. Even so, it’s confusing to switch both scenario and point of view between chapters.
For example, one chapter came from Gem’s point of view in her victim/surrender scenario, and the next chapter came from Day’s point of view, but in the Gem-the-Warrior scenario. I had to flip back to the chapter before last to remember what just happened and what Day and his sergeant are discussing.
2. Short chapters
Not all the chapters were extremely short, but some were. This fed into the issue I described. Personally, I would have preferred longer sections from each scenario.
On the positive side . . .
There were definitely intriguing moments. The idea of the two outcomes running parallel to each other gives the opportunity for different reactions to the same plot point.
For example, in Gem’s conversation with Melanie, her boss, there are two scenarios. (No spoilers.) In one, Gem wants to return to work and Melanie is reluctant to allow this. In the other, Gem dreads returning to work and Melanie is angry. Why? Each Gem (Warrior and Victim) reacted differently to the attack. As a result, the two Gems have different attitudes toward her (their?) work and the two Melanies react based on their attitudes toward that Gem’s response.
Let’s face it: we tend to cheer for people who fight their attacker. (But only if they win. And by “win,” we mean “stay alive.”) People tend to judge those who “freeze” and seem to acquiesce to their attacker. Even though studies have shown that it’s very, very common to freeze rather than fight or flee, people still judge. They shouldn’t. As one character points out, no one should be shamed for an action based on instinct.
Manning’s insightful as he explores this dynamic. Gem feels others judge her based on her actions during the carjacking. And guess what? She’s right. One of the positive aspects of the multiple viewpoints is that we see how various people interpret her actions.
The police investigators try not to judge–but do.
The reporter is only interested in her when she’s the aggressive warrior, not the passive victim. (It makes for a better story, right?)
The attacker interprets her actions in his own delusional, twisted way. (And it’s very twisted!)
What makes it worse for her is that there is not ONE right choice. There’s a lot of contradictory advice on how to respond during an attack. What’s a good choice in one situation may not be a good choice in another. What should someone do if he/she’s attacked? It depends. Manning explores this, too, with great effect.
These insights into the psychology of the attack and response are the highlight of the book. While the plot is suspenseful, I think it’s a mistake to try to read The Victim as a straight-forward suspense/thriller novel. It’s not. It’s an exploration of what it means to be a survivor and how one choice can change our lives.
For those who are interested in the book, I recommend reading it twice: once straight through, and a second time, reading all the “Fight” sections and then all the “Surrender” sections. Or try reading in this order: the Fight sections, the Surrender sections, and the entire novel cover to cover.
Thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.