Book blurb:

After a fatal tragedy and recent divorce strikes 17 year old Juliana and her family, she didn’t think life could be worse. Then she meets Locke Pierce, the quiet but temperamental boy with strange bruises on his arms. They are drawn to each other’s sadness. But Locke has horrific secrets; secrets that he is determined to keep from everyone, especially Juliana. 

The book review:

This is what I would call a dark read, but it is not without warmth and love.

Smacked evoked powerful emotions in me. Novak’s skilled writing drew me in from the first page & I cared about the characters. It really helps you see through the eyes of a child and the damage severe neglect and physical abuse can do to a person. I enjoyed the dose of reality in Smacked – it showed realistic consequences of abuse, substance use, and bullying. Yes, a gang up on a teenager who’s already depressed and struggling with an addiction CAN set them over the edge. I mourned with the characters when they experienced hard things in life at such young ages. I enjoyed Julianna’s character a lot – she’s an empathetic, kind person and I like her strength and sense of purpose as the story moves along. It’s a great read and I’d certainly recommend this book to anyone. This book spares nothing in the emotions department, which is what I like. Gritty, raw, real.

It looks like this book is no longer available on Amazon and I couldn’t find a link to buy it, but you should check out the author’s Goodreads page here because she has a LOT of books to read. I’ll have to check them out myself.