Hello everyone and welcome to a new edition of Lil Red’s Book Club! Today, we are going to be discussing Anatomy Of A Scandal by Sarah Vaughan and it was very good. As always, no spoilers will be given away but I will be placing a trigger warning on this book as it deals with rape. Now, let’s get to it:

Kate is a successful barrister in London and deals primarily with prosecuting for sex crimes. She is married to her job and doesn’t have much to show for her world outside of work in terms of friendships or significant others. But, she’s okay with this because winning a case is the ultimate high for her and immersing herself in work helps her forget her own trauma.

Sophie is a stay at home mom with two lovely children and a handsome, successful husband named James. Her husband works in the government and is close friends with the prime minister. She has a picture perfect world until it is turned upside down when the news of James having an affair with his younger colleague makes headlines.

Playing much the part of the husband who had a moment of weakness and is so sorry, charming James is able to get back in the public’s good graces. His wife? Not so much. And things get even worse in that regard when he is arrested for the rape of the colleague he had an affair with. Can you guess who’s prosecuting?

Kate is overjoyed when she learns that she will be prosecuting James. Not just for the victim who is testifying but for herself, too. Kate is connected to James and his family even though they might not remember her and she is ready to pull out all of the stops for the “guilty” verdict. Will Kate win her case? Will James finally receive his punishment that is, frankly, long overdue? Read Anatomy Of A Scandal to find out!

I must admit that for the first thirtyish pages of this book, I toyed with the idea of not reading it. Anatomy Of A Scandal started out pretty slow and it is a very wordy book, which made the not so exciting parts quite dull. However, we all know that I have never started reading a book that I don’t finish and I’m glad that I stuck it out because it was a great read.

Once the pieces were all put into place, I went from not really wanting to read it to not being able to put it down. I finished it in one week and still find myself thinking about it after its completion. Of course, I enjoyed how this book went back and forth between Sophie, James, and Kate in both past and present day. I also loved Kate as a main character because of her intelligence, tenacity, and desire for justice in the courtroom.

I am going to rate Anatomy Of A Scandal with a seven out of ten stars. The story line, while upsetting, is incredibly important and I like a read revolving around a court case. There were some parts of it that were insanely boring, though, and I was ready for it to be over when I got to the last fifty or so pages. I don’t recommend this book for people who find the subject matter too difficult because it absolutely is. But, I did like it overall and it is worth a read if you’re up for it.

What are you currently reading? What should I read next? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah