All the ugly and wonderful things

This book is one of the most irresponsible books I've ever read and should never have been published.

"a shocking love story between two unlikely people"?

No. This is a 20-something man meeting an eight year old and grooming and sexually abusing her.

"Oh but he made sure she went to school and helped out at her house and made sure she wasn't neglected. She loved him because of that"

No. She was a minor. An older man shows more interest in her than anyone else in her life and takes advantage of her resulting attachment to him to have sexual encounters with her when she's 12/13. That is not a good man helping her out. That is sexually abusing a child. She could not consent. She was made to believe this was what love was, so of course she came back to him in the end.

Her aunt was the only adult that saw this for what it was and was painted as controlling and overreacting because she tried to protect her niece.

Absolutely absurd. I don't think I've ever been this physically angry over a book. Usually I'm okay with books I didn't enjoy staying on my shelves, but I actually might throw this away. I can't even donate it because I don't want someone else to end up reading it.

This book was simply brilliant, and no, it is not about a pedophile. It begins when Wavy is just 5 years old and ends when she is 21.What can I say about Wavy. She was a beautiful, broken, fragile yet incredibly strong child. Born into neglect and abuse in the back seat of a strangers car. Her mother, a mentally unstable junkie, was in and out of her life. Her on again off again father operates a meth lab. It was their parenting skills that taught Wavy it was best to never speak, and made her unable to tolerate being touched. People tend to think something is wrong with her, that she is mentally challenged, but there is a mind as sharp as a tack behind that wall of silence. There is also a fierce love for her baby brother who she does her best to protect and take care of.
She is still only a child when she meets Kellen after witnessing his motorcycle accident. Kellen is a young man with a hot temper, a criminal history, and a heart of gold. When he sees the conditions Wavy is living in, he makes it his mission to help her as best he can. As others begin to view their relationship as unnatural, they are beginning to fall in love.
The story is told through the point of view of multiple characters, which helps to see that what is ugly is in the eye of the beholder, and one person's ugly is another person's wonderful.
5 out of 5 stars from me.
I received a complimentary copy for review