You Against Me is a YA contemporary novel by Jenny Downham, author of the bestselling Before I Die.Eighteen-year-old Mikey is trying to hold everything together. His sister Karyn has been sexually assaulted by Tom Parker when she partied at his house. She’s become terrified of leaving their home, refuses to go back to school, and only just got the courage up to report what happened the day after. His mom is handling it by drinking more – so Mikey is juggling work, taking care of his little sister, and watching Karyn disintegrate. He needs to be a good brother and seek revenge – right?
Sixteen-year-old Ellie Parker is shaken by the crime her brother has been accused of. She’s being named the only witness and his best chance of getting off. Everyone is telling her what a liar and loser Karyn is – and she tries to agree. Her brother says he didn’t do it, after all. That would make Karyn a liar then… So she needs to be a good sister and defend him – right?
When Mikey and Ellie meet, Mikey’s trying to get at her brother – but he’s disarmed by her virtuousness, her intelligence, and the magnetism that seems to pulsate between them. They both feel like their betraying their siblings, and the ugliness is a heavy weight on them both – yet their feelings seem to grow…
This is the story of their worlds colliding.
You Against Me is a stark, bleak, genuine and sad take on a harrowing crime and how it effects those around the victim and the accused. I immediately believed Karyn’s story, yet when we switch viewpoints to Ellie – you almost wonder. The author paints a portrait of persuasion and denial that is convincing and unsettling. It’s uncomfortable.
I was struck by the psychological repercussions, reaction, and fallout of the Ellie and Mikey, siblings to those involved. How they deal with the pressure, the fear, and the expectations of those around them is hypnotic. It’s awful, disconcerting, frank, and raw. Yet there’s a optimism, inspiration, and fledgling love that feels like a spot of light in the night – though even that is marred by the situation. You as the reader dare to hope for something better, a happy resolution, but know that in the end – someone will be hurt.
You Against Me is poignant, painful, and complicated – just like life.
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