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fandrews8's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
The plot twist at the end was insane omg.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Death, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
katiearcher's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
How unconditional is your love for your child? Saving Noah tests the boundary of human empathy and how far a mother will go for her child, in spite of everything. It made me angry, sad, and confused, as I hurt for Noah and because of Noah. Not a five star because of some of the more graphic descriptions of abuse and illness.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, and Suicide attempt
zarakoconnor's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I tried so hard to read this book without DNFing. The way she has written an unlikeable narrator was very successful, I absolutely hated this woman and what she thought and continuously believed. She makes her son the victim in this situation and this was disgusting to read. HOWEVER!!! The purpose of this book felt like it was intending to address stigma of pedophilia and the way sexual predators are treated by the community, and I absolutely agree that we as a society need to shift our thinking about this toward a harm reduction and mental health model, rather than carceral, as people deserve treatment. But this is not what she did!!!! The ending implies that after all of the commentary about how he isn’t a monster, and all the excuses made for him by his mother and the caring professionals, he actually IS a monster and is irredeemable and will never get better so he should die which absolutely adds to the stigma this author intended to challenge!! The notion that pedophiles are irredeemable is both dehumanising and makes this behaviour seem inevitable, with people being victimised because “that’s just what pedophiles do” rather than attempting to treat them and work on prevention. Also, the chapters from his perspective lend me to believe that we are MEANT to sympathise with him and how poorly he was treated, which is not handled gracefully when the underaged victims in this book are downplayed and treated as dramatic for their trauma, but I’m supposed to be sympathetic of his trauma? This makes me so angry, and I do not understand the positive reviews. This book failed. Lucinda Berry, do more research on pedophilic disorder and treatments because it is clear you skimmed it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Drug use, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Forced institutionalization and Grief
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
paperkindle's review against another edition
challenging
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This is a difficult book to review because of the subject. I felt his mother downplayed a lot of what he did. Saying things like "Noah’s case was the least serious. He was like the kid in treatment for smoking pot a few times surrounded by kids who shot heroin." And "Their (the girls) lives weren’t going to be ruined forever. They just weren’t. But, the world wouldn’t be satisfied until they’d annihilated him. He was more of a victim than those girls" SA has trauma on everyone, whether you're a kid or an adult. The ending explained a lot about Noah, I didn't see it coming.
TW: rape, sexual assault, suicide attempt, suicidal thoughts, suicide, cancer, grief, violence, pedophilia
TW: rape, sexual assault, suicide attempt, suicidal thoughts, suicide, cancer, grief, violence, pedophilia
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Cancer, Child death, Drug use, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Rape and Vomit
rebsuz14's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
nallelyjael's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Such a sad and eye opening insight into child pedophilia, the ultimate sacrifice of a mother, and the family dynamics of dealing with this topic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Vomit, Suicide attempt, and Sexual harassment
kmwllce's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I listened to this on audiobook while traveling, it’s about six and a half hours so if you have a ways to go, you can just about finish the book in your travel day. This combination definitely helped plow through slower parts - I was trapped at the airport or in a plane with nothing better to do but listen, and knew the book was only so long so it kept me listening.
About 75% through this book, I was grasping for something to keep me reading (listening?) but I am really glad that I did because I think the book has been really thought provoking.
I’m a little disappointed in some of the reviews tbh, not only here but online elsewhere, and I feel like people are largely missing the point. Like all of them. Which gets in the way of valid criticism.
The book is written from Adrianne’s view. The disgusting comments she makes early on about Noah “just touching” the girls, how she continues to repeat that it is a non violent crime that won’t happen again, or when she is downplaying the girls’ experience and emphasizing Noah’s achievements, is NOT Lucinda Berry’s personal opinion on pedophiles. She is demonstrating the desperation of a mother trying to rationalize (you can’t) the child sexual assault. Her brain is trying to find someway to believe that the baby she held after she grew it cell, pushed him out of her, and raised him every day as a stay at home mom, is sexually assaulting children. It’s hard to read (more plug for the audiobook), but not an impossible reaction. It’s a grim but entertaining thought experiment (and more horrifying, actually happening throughout society).
AND she has a minor at home (I think Katie is seven, if I picked up on that right and Noah SA’d two six year olds) AND her husband has completely shut down and abandoned their first-born and partner who is obviously being tortured by the whole experience.
I personally did not see the plot twist that Lucas was narrating the earlier chapters coming and I thought this was a delightful additional piece to chew on. I love stories that you will read/watch (listen?) differently after knowing what happens and think about the significance of earlier moments in retrospect. I did see the plot twist of Adrianne helping Noah commit suicide but I thought it was a pretty somber but touching concept.
I totally subscribe to the theory (unfortunately) that Lucas might’ve been assaulting Katie throughout the novel in hindsight. It’s not certain but there are things that would need to be investigated IRL:
- his original offense was a familial crime
- Katie stopped wetting the bed at 4 yrs, started wetting the bed again when Noah and Adrianne moved out, and stopped when Adrianne moved back in
- Katie’s insistence on staying with Noah and Adrianne one night and her horrible diatribe about how she “doesn’t care if Noah touches her privates” and nonchalantness of such for her age
I don’t think Lucas demanded Katie stay with him away from Noah with the intention of assaulting her, but he talks about backsliding in Him (Now) and doesn’t specify how, so it’s possible he lost restraint later on. I think he truly was initially horrified that this type of situation was arising in their lives again and abandoned Noah in attempt for self-preservation.
I love that Adrianne is a tortured, unreliable narrator. Of course what she is saying is insane. She talks through the novel saying she hasn’t slept more than an hour or two a night for months-years, and the magnitude of what has gone on has broken her brain. Mercy-killing Noah is NOT the solution in any way and it’s wild that she got to that point. However, I can totally see how she would be driven to give up and agree with Noah’s hopeless 18-year old logic that this is never going to be a life that is purposeful or worth leading and should end his suffering now.
It is not written great, it’s written pretty well. Not a happy one, but I’ll be chewing on the thoughts of what I would do in Adrianne’s shoes for a couple of days for sure. She was the only one even remotely left in that boy’s corner from early on in the book (other than Katie, who is just as much a victim of everything by the end of the book.)
About 75% through this book, I was grasping for something to keep me reading (listening?) but I am really glad that I did because I think the book has been really thought provoking.
I’m a little disappointed in some of the reviews tbh, not only here but online elsewhere, and I feel like people are largely missing the point. Like all of them. Which gets in the way of valid criticism.
The book is written from Adrianne’s view. The disgusting comments she makes early on about Noah “just touching” the girls, how she continues to repeat that it is a non violent crime that won’t happen again, or when she is downplaying the girls’ experience and emphasizing Noah’s achievements, is NOT Lucinda Berry’s personal opinion on pedophiles. She is demonstrating the desperation of a mother trying to rationalize (you can’t) the child sexual assault. Her brain is trying to find someway to believe that the baby she held after she grew it cell, pushed him out of her, and raised him every day as a stay at home mom, is sexually assaulting children. It’s hard to read (more plug for the audiobook), but not an impossible reaction. It’s a grim but entertaining thought experiment (and more horrifying, actually happening throughout society).
AND she has a minor at home (I think Katie is seven, if I picked up on that right and Noah SA’d two six year olds) AND her husband has completely shut down and abandoned their first-born and partner who is obviously being tortured by the whole experience.
I personally did not see the plot twist that Lucas was narrating the earlier chapters coming and I thought this was a delightful additional piece to chew on. I love stories that you will read/watch (listen?) differently after knowing what happens and think about the significance of earlier moments in retrospect. I did see the plot twist of Adrianne helping Noah commit suicide but I thought it was a pretty somber but touching concept.
I totally subscribe to the theory (unfortunately) that Lucas might’ve been assaulting Katie throughout the novel in hindsight. It’s not certain but there are things that would need to be investigated IRL:
- his original offense was a familial crime
- Katie stopped wetting the bed at 4 yrs, started wetting the bed again when Noah and Adrianne moved out, and stopped when Adrianne moved back in
- Katie’s insistence on staying with Noah and Adrianne one night and her horrible diatribe about how she “doesn’t care if Noah touches her privates” and nonchalantness of such for her age
I don’t think Lucas demanded Katie stay with him away from Noah with the intention of assaulting her, but he talks about backsliding in Him (Now) and doesn’t specify how, so it’s possible he lost restraint later on. I think he truly was initially horrified that this type of situation was arising in their lives again and abandoned Noah in attempt for self-preservation.
I love that Adrianne is a tortured, unreliable narrator. Of course what she is saying is insane. She talks through the novel saying she hasn’t slept more than an hour or two a night for months-years, and the magnitude of what has gone on has broken her brain. Mercy-killing Noah is NOT the solution in any way and it’s wild that she got to that point. However, I can totally see how she would be driven to give up and agree with Noah’s hopeless 18-year old logic that this is never going to be a life that is purposeful or worth leading and should end his suffering now.
It is not written great, it’s written pretty well. Not a happy one, but I’ll be chewing on the thoughts of what I would do in Adrianne’s shoes for a couple of days for sure. She was the only one even remotely left in that boy’s corner from early on in the book (other than Katie, who is just as much a victim of everything by the end of the book.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Sexual harassment
mecmccann's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I’m so torn about how I feel about this book. I’m going to write out all my rambling thoughts, please forgive the messiness that will be this review.
Saving Noah is about a young boy who molested two five year old girls at swim practice which he coached. He was arrested and sent to a juvenile correction facility where he would receive treatment to lower the chances that he would reoffend. We follow his relationship with his mother who loves him endlessly.
The mom comes across as if she thinks he’s a victim. He is indeed a perpetrator, but he is a victim of the justice system and social scrutiny, which I won’t comment on the morality of. I didn’t necessarily appreciate this aspect of the mom’s response to the situation. About 40% into the book, it does become more self aware, the dad calls her out on this and she addresses it. So I guess I can forgive that.
After it became aware of what it was doing, it was just so sad. The portrayal of depression and the horrifying suicide attempts were a lot. It was haunting being in the head of someone witnessing such darkness in their child. I did cry in the last chapter from the mom’s perspective.
I called the twist right at the beginning. I knew the dad was a pedophile the whole time. I thought maybe he was the other POV when they talked about shock therapy, just because that’s supper outdated, but I wasn’t certain. And I’m willing to bet that, even though he didn’t admit it, he was molesting his daughter too, she showed signs of sexual abuse like wetting the bed.
Overall this book did elicit an emotional response, so I think it did its job.
Saving Noah is about a young boy who molested two five year old girls at swim practice which he coached. He was arrested and sent to a juvenile correction facility where he would receive treatment to lower the chances that he would reoffend. We follow his relationship with his mother who loves him endlessly.
The mom comes across as if she thinks he’s a victim. He is indeed a perpetrator, but he is a victim of the justice system and social scrutiny, which I won’t comment on the morality of. I didn’t necessarily appreciate this aspect of the mom’s response to the situation. About 40% into the book, it does become more self aware, the dad calls her out on this and she addresses it. So I guess I can forgive that.
After it became aware of what it was doing, it was just so sad.
Overall this book did elicit an emotional response, so I think it did its job.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Suicide attempt, and Sexual harassment
laufeysvoid's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, and Pedophilia
smileysam's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I have a hard time picking a star rating for the book. I really enjoy Lucinda Berry’s writing and have a hard time putting her books down, and this was no exception. Her books often feel more realistic than a lot of thrillers which makes them all the more gut-wrenching. That being said, I had a lot of conflict with Adrianne as our narrator because I often did not agree with her. The book felt like it wanted to lead the reader to sympathize with her. I know that they say a Mother’s love is unconditional, but I myself could not love a pedophile, no matter the relation. Parts that felt even more lost on me were when it was clear I was supposed to sympathize with Noah. I didn’t. I still don’t. It bothered me that Adrianne couldn’t believe her son, a sexual abuser, could in turn, be sexually abused. The irony here was not lost on me, though. And I found myself wondering if Berry’s goal was for me to sympathize with Adrianne here, or if her goal was to see the juxtaposition of events. Honestly, jumping back to Noah, his understanding of his actions being wrong but himself and other characters in the book viewing that as “just how he was born” and “something he can’t control” felt abhorrent. I also had wondered about Lucas - at first, I fully agreed with him, but the more chapters I read from the unnamed man, I grew suspicious. I expected the twist to be that it wasn’t Noah, especially given the mention of electroshock therapy. All in all, I enjoyed this book but at the same time, I didn’t, if that makes sense. I think it’s a good read and worth the read, though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Vomit, and Sexual harassment