In Swati Avasthi's debut novel, Split, Sixteen-year-old Jace Witherspoon just wants to be a normal teenager. He dreams of soccer games, girlfriends, and his love for photography that are not tainted by his past. Growing up with an abusive father, a passive mother and a brother who abandoned him when he needed him the most, Jace is afraid for his future. Finally standing up to his father, he escapes his past that he just can not leave behind and shows up on the doorstep of his estranged brother. New friends, a new school and a new job can not hide his abusive past and the secret he is hoping no one ever finds out. Will Jace escape his horrid past? Will he move on and find the family he always dreamed of? Or will he realize his past has become his future? Read Split by Swati Avasthi to find out for yourself.
For me, Split was a story that no one ever wants to tell. The pain, abuse and heartbreak that Jace experiences pops from the pages of this truthful read. Written in first person, Jace is able to tell the readers what he is feeling and how he sees himself. The flashbacks to what Jace had to endure living in a home constantly at war will make even the strongest reader's heart break. I felt that Split was as honest as a work a fiction could be in feeling the pain of an abused child and now abusing teen. The voice of Jace is real of a teen boy going through what he went through. Never did I feel that this was written by an adult woman. It was true to the teenage male heart and the teenage male mind. Avasthi really got into her character of Jace and felt his heart and found his voice. If you are a victim of abuse or someone who has never experienced anything like what Jace went through in this book, you will relate to Avasthi's characters in some way and you will feel the need to protect them. Swati Avasthi completely succeeded with Split and I know she will continue to write great things in the future.
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