The Source By Sarah Sultoon

‘The Source’ is the debut novel by award-winning CNN journalist Sarah Sultoon.

A young TV journalist is forced to revisit her harrowing past when she’s thrust into a sex-trafficking investigation in her hometown.

Written in the past and present tense, this book which is based on true life experience is a intense thriller that makes for unsettling reading at times.

The story is seen through of the narrative of teenager Carly, who lives with her alcoholic mother and baby sister called Kayleigh. She hates the life that she has to lead and blames her mother for everything that has gone wrong. Her brother Jason has joined the army and invites her and her best friend Rachel to come to the barracks and it’s there that both girls get caught in a sex abuse and Carly feels unable to say no incase something happens to her little sister. Now many years later, Marie a journalist is investigating a new sex trafficking ring and is finding it a difficult with new emotions and memories coming back the closer and more involved she gets in the story.

This story is a difficult read, Carly is a strong character with a deep frustration for her alcoholic mother who has let the family go and sits around self-pitying herself. She longs for a better life and the sex is an escape for her. Her primary concern is her little sister and will do everything in her power to keep her safe and from harm. As the story progresses, we see Carly realise that this isn’t the life for her and longs to make a better one and it makes for sad reading when everything blows up and Carly has to deal with the aftermath.

Although the author doesn’t go into much detail of the extent of the sex abuse, there is enough details for the reader to read between the lines, how never to say no and bite the sheets and this does make for disturbing imagery for teenagers as young as 14 and younger.

Deeply dark and troubling. ‘The Source’ shines a light on sex abuse within the army and police, forces that are meant to protect and not to deprive young ones of their innocence. The story is written over a decade, shows how far a person will go for a story as well as confronting their past. Fast paced and powerful writing from the very beginning, ‘The Source’ is a hard hitting and emotional story about survival and resilience.

You can pre-order ‘The Source’ from Amazon and will be available from good bookshops from 15th April 2021.