#partner The Leading Edge of Now by Marci Lyn Curtis is an all consuming, incredibly powerful YA novel.

Grace returns to New Harbour, a place she spent the best times in her life, to live with her estranged Uncle Rusty, a notoriously unreliable lay about.  She returns under a dark shadow of the past. When she was last in New Harbour she lost her best friend, her boyfriend, and something else much more precious.  Will Grace be able to reconnect with her friends, and reclaim what she lost?

Marci Lyn Curtis weaves an incredibly dynamic story filled with layer after layer.  Referring to the acknowledgements, The Leading Edge of Now “carries a little bit of [her] heart”.  All of the emotion, the anger, sadness, frustration, and eventually love and forgiveness are all so palpable and raw.  Grace has some truly heartbreaking and challenging experiences. She is a strong, broken, sarcastic, funny, loving, resilient lead character.  You will cheer for her, cry with her, and rejoice with her. You will not want to put this book down as you take her journey of discovery with her.

This story twists and turns in unexpected ways.  Marci Lyn Curtis is a masterful storyteller weaving a plot that will keep you on the edge of your seat.  She delves into some triggering topics such as the loss of a parent, the foster care system, and sexual assault.  While also addressing these complex topics, she also weaves in the dynamics of friendship and first love. It is a book you will want to come back to over and over.  It’s ultimately a story of survival, of acknowledging and speaking one’s truth. Don’t forget to read the acknowledgements and the author’s note at the end for a bit more background into how Grace’s story came to be and some astonishing statistics about sexual assault.  

The Leading Edge of Now will surprise you.  It’s a necessary story for all adults, young and old, to read, to understand the frequency at which women experience sexual assault.  An eye opening book that will spur discussion and debate.