Publisher’s Description
Orange Is the New Black meets Walter Dean Myer’s Monster in this gritty, twisty, and haunting debut by Tiffany D. Jackson about a girl convicted of murder seeking the truth while surviving life in a group home.
Mary B. Addison killed a baby.
Allegedly. She didn’t say much in that first interview with detectives, and the media filled in the only blanks that mattered: a white baby had died while under the care of a churchgoing black woman and her nine-year-old daughter. The public convicted Mary and the jury made it official. But did she do it?
There wasn’t a point to setting the record straight before, but now she’s got Ted–and their unborn child–to think about. When the state threatens to take her baby, Mary’s fate now lies in the hands of the one person she distrusts the most: her Momma. No one knows the real Momma. But does anyone know the real Mary?
Rebecca’s Thoughts
A nine-year-old girl accused of a baby’s death? I was drawn to the tragedy of the story. A life lost. A young girl behind bars. I was also drawn to the intrigue. Did she really do it?
Tiffany Jackson brings raw emotion to her depiction of Mary. Mary struggles with so many aspects of her life–with tough housemates at a home for troubled teens, with her mother, and with the echoes of her past. One bright spot helping Mary make it through an insecure existence is a budding romance. But when she finds out she’s pregnant and the state threatens to take her baby, Mary is ready to fight challenges from her present and from her past to keep her baby. These fights threatens the status quo for everyone around her, leaving Mary with trouble on all sides.
The stakes and emotion were plenty to keep me reading, but a twisty plot adds to the appeal of the book. This is a great read for thriller lovers and for readers who want to delve beneath sensational headlines for a glimpse into the lives of some very vulnerable members of our society. Highly recommended!
Allegedly received 4 starred reviews. The paperback edition was just released on April 10th. You can check it out on Goodreads or order from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or Indiebound.
No advanced reader copy on this one. I heard so much great buzz I had to buy it.
Need more book suggestions? If Allegedly sounds good, you might also like other young adult books discussed on The Winged Pen:
Dear Martin by Nic Stone
The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert
The Takedown by Corrie Wang
Follow Me Back by A.V. Geiger
