I'm sad to admit that I've not read a V.I. book ins quite some time. I've loved the series for decades (and even enjoyed the movie with Kathleen Turner!) but I got sucked into life and there are only so many reading hours in a day. However, I am so glad to be back with Vic!

The story just grabbed me from the start - missing college sports start, drugs, V.I. dealing with trauma, PTSD and the real possibility her relationship is over. Vic is in Kansas - she's out of her comfort zone, her resources are limited and her head really isn't in the right zone but she can't say no to "family" and her heart wins out over her head.

I loved the way V.I was actually seen to struggle with her most recent traumas. She's not superwoman, she has flaws like the rest of us and she feels like the bottom has fallen out of her world. Her PTSD was visceral and I had a tear or two escaping when she's having nightmares - she has always been so self assured and capable in the past.

Small minds are taking up a lot of space in this. The very real fear that Trans persons must deal with every day is heartbreaking. As the aunt of a trans-male this part of the storyline really hit me in the feels. As a very liberal Scot, I felt this was a great way to show the very real threats facing Americans and their politics today - that country is so divided and extremists are trying to drag it back into the stone age and shut down any voice which dares to be different.

Fast paced, engaging and well-rounded characters and a multi-layered plot with twists and turns aplenty.