Seeing Pink by Erin O’Rourke

Seeing Pink is about a group of ladies who have followed the rules their whole lives and are at the point of wondering where exactly that has gotten them. What follows this realization is a new world for them and of taking risks that they never would have dreamed of before and that takes them on a dangerous journey to a place that they may not be able to come back from.

The women is this novel: Jo, Tam, Lucy, Nin and Hannah are very likeable characters. I’d grown to really care about their lives throughout the book. These women become very angry over repeated acts of abuse and women just not being treated right by their men. They become so angry, in fact, that they get themselves some pink robes and hoods and step forth into the role of exacting revenge on some of these people. In the beginning, their acts are like a release for them, it makes them feel free and like they’re making an effort to do something in a world that doesn’t make sense to them anymore. However, eventually, they get carried away after their friend Penelope is beaten badly and they accidentally kill a man. I don’t believe they ever intended to do this but the situation escalated to a point where there was no turning back.

Meanwhile, the whole country is going crazy over this ‘pinking’ as it’s being called. Women’s right’s groups are showing up and protests are going on all over. This takes some of the heat off of the women after they kill this man as everyone assumes it must have been someone from these groups. However, the women have left behind clues-important clues-and this is one mistake that they won’t be able to take back and will have to account for in some way.

This novel for me hit a few emotional chords. Abuse is a topic that will always spark a reaction in me for personal reasons and I think that was part of the reason I really liked the book. I don’t believe that violence is the way of solving anything but at the same time it was nice to see women taking a stand for what they believed in, especially women who had always played by the rules and taken things as they were dealt them.

For me this story was about these women trying to change things but not likely in the right way as a man lost his life. You may say he deserved it, but do we really know for sure when we take violent actions, that we are doing the right thing. These women were able to finally take a good look at themselves-into their deepest feelings-and do something about the things that made them angry. They were tired of being quiet and taking things as they came. I only wish they had taken a different route in getting things done as I really did grow to care about these characters and this novel takes a few twists towards the end that will leave you feeling sad and yet hopeful.

This book is described as ‘daring and unique’ on the back cover. I agree. It is a daring novel in it’s story but also one that I think is a good one to tell. It will hit a chord with anyone who has ever experienced abuse or with anyone who has ever thought, ‘why do I take it everyday?’. For me, I really enjoyed the novel and had a hard time putting it down. I won’t say whether I’d recommend it or not because I think this would be a personal choice for each individual. I will however say that I think it’s a good book and brings to light the fact that things like abuse or domestic oppression shouldn’t be ignored-silence doesn’t help anyone, often it only leads to more trouble.

Thanks to J.Kaye over at J. Kaye’s Book Blog for the opportunity to review this novel. It was well worth the read for me.

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