Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

“To be a woman is not easy. It never was and it likely won’t be. It requires more courage than anyone could imagine.”

This was such an eye-opening read for me, yet at the same time, I wasn’t surprised by the things the women in this book are subjected to at the hands of some men. I won’t sugarcoat the fact that it’s a really heavy read, but I also think that it’s a must-read if the content warnings aren’t triggering for you. If you have experienced anything listed, I wouldn’t recommend you pick it up. It’s powerful and heartbreaking, with some alarming statistics. Here is my review for A Woman by Lora Kay!

Content warnings: childhood assault, sexual assault, rape, workplace discrimination.

About the book

‘A Woman’ is a powerful novella which combines three heartbreaking stories, each centred around a female protagonist of diverse ages and nationalities. The characters navigate a world that often challenges and diminishes them, from the burdens of single parenting to the haunting childhood experiences of assault, adulthood sexual assault, and battling workplace discrimination. Yet, despite the trials the stories of Charlotte, Hayley, and Iness, are a testament to their resilience and the triumph of these women rising above suffering and pain to reclaim their lives. ‘A Woman’ is a book of empowerment and celebration of the unbreakable strength of the spirit that defines the essence of womanhood.

My thoughts

It was clear that this novella was going to be a very uncomfortable read as soon as I started. Usually, if I feel this way about a book, it’s something I’ll put aside or I’d even mark it as a DNF. But it’s Lora, and I knew she’d handle these incredibly horrific topics with care. And what’s more is that I really like her beautiful writing! Thankfully I’ve read a couple of Lora’s books already, so I knew she would do this book justice. A Woman is a collection of three different stories with female protagonists of different ages, different backgrounds, and different stages of life. Each story explores how life changes for these women, showing their traumatic abuse, assault and discrimination, and how each of these women overcome their trauma through strength, determination and resilience. Please be aware there are content warnings for this book which I’ve listed above.

The first story in the collection follows eleven-year-old Charlotte and her mother, Chloe. After bringing a new partner into their lives, Chloe has no idea that this man is abusing her daughter. This was probably the most disturbing story out of the three and it’s obviously a difficult read for the majority of it. I can’t say it was enjoyable because of the nature of it, but I did appreciate how this story turned into one of strength and bravery, and how Charlotte, after growing up and working on herself, was able to overcome the painful experiences she had as a child and finally let happiness into her life.

The next story follows Hayley who is in a very happy bubble knowing she’ll soon be marrying the man of her dreams. But when she trusts someone she believes to be a kind stranger, he quickly takes advantage of her, then sexually assaults her. This traumatic experience changes the person she was. She turns into someone she, her friends and her family no longer recognise. And it takes her so long to start to feel comfortable around men again. This story shows how yet another awful experience can change a woman and make her question who she is. Another really upsetting story covering sensitive topics that some people may find triggering.

The third and final story follows Iness who has just graduated high school. She’s excited to finally have her own job alongside starting college, meeting new friends and finally feeling like an important part of society. But she faces gender discrimination at work, and a professor who fails her exam because she refused to be intimate with him. As with the other two stories, I was once again disgusted by what this young woman has had to go through. But her confidence and desire to take action, to get justice for herself and so many other women, results in a positive ending.

Lora’s passion for raising awareness through the lives of these three women shines through in her words, but I found the whole thing incredibly tough to read and it felt really heavy, as was expected. But these stories are so eye-opening, highlighting very real issues that women face daily. If you are a woman, I guarantee that you or someone you know has experienced at least one of these horrific occurrences, and the statistics the author shares in this book are really quite staggering. Although the stories are short, they felt the exact length they needed to be without taking things too far. The women in this book are like us. They never asked for any of these things to happen, yet they did. Something they’d have to live with for a lifetime. But despite the all the darkness, I really liked how the author emphasised that these things don’t have to define a woman. That women are resilient and can always reclaim their lives with the right people and opportunities around them. This book encourages strength and resilience, and highlights the wonder and spirit of womanhood.

You can grab your own copy of A Woman right now on Amazon! Make sure you’re following Lora on Instagram for more updates.

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