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A review by jaclyn_sixminutesforme
An Act of Defiance by Irene Sabatini
5.0
My heart was in my mouth for the first half of the book, and while this eased up somewhat midway, I found this both an incredibly compelling and anxiety-inducing read. Using short chapters and jumps in time, this is a fast paced read that I couldn’t put down for extended periods, and Gabrielle particularly is a character that was completely brought to life with Sabatini’s words.
AN ACT OF DEFIANCE covers incredibly traumatic content - no spoilers, but it’s set in Zimbabwe in 2000 so the politics and violence of this time will be some indicator - and we follow a newly qualified lawyer, Gabrielle, representing a young girl seeking justice. In parallel timelines in those early chapters of the book, we see Gabrielle as she falls in love with Ben, a charming junior diplomat with the American embassy. Juxtaposed against that, immediately, is an “attack” that splinters the trajectory of their relationship. I’ll say no more to avoid spoilers, but what I think worked for me most was the way it explored the theme of love amidst this tumultuous setting, and particularly towards the end, the reflections on what place can mean in both memory and in forming identity.
This was superbly written and I am keen to now read Sabatini’s backlist. Many thanks to The Indigo Press for a review copy.
AN ACT OF DEFIANCE covers incredibly traumatic content - no spoilers, but it’s set in Zimbabwe in 2000 so the politics and violence of this time will be some indicator - and we follow a newly qualified lawyer, Gabrielle, representing a young girl seeking justice. In parallel timelines in those early chapters of the book, we see Gabrielle as she falls in love with Ben, a charming junior diplomat with the American embassy. Juxtaposed against that, immediately, is an “attack” that splinters the trajectory of their relationship. I’ll say no more to avoid spoilers, but what I think worked for me most was the way it explored the theme of love amidst this tumultuous setting, and particularly towards the end, the reflections on what place can mean in both memory and in forming identity.
This was superbly written and I am keen to now read Sabatini’s backlist. Many thanks to The Indigo Press for a review copy.