My Dark Vanessa

A Novel

By: Kate Elizabeth Russell

Narrated by: Grace Gummer

Length: 16 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

Entertainment Weekly's Breakout Author to Watch in 2020

"Brilliant and stunning...an absolute must read." (Gillian Flynn)

"A well-constructed package of dynamite." (Stephen King)

A most anticipated book by The New York Times • USA Today • Entertainment Weekly • Marie Claire • Elle • Harper's Bazaar • Bustle • Newsweek • New York Post • Esquire • Real Simple • The Sunday Times • The Guardian

One of the most buzzed-about debuts in years

An international sensation sold in 24 territories and counting

Exploring the psychological dynamics of the relationship between a precocious yet naïve teenage girl and her magnetic and manipulative teacher, a brilliant, all-consuming listen that marks the explosive debut of an extraordinary new writer.

2000. Bright, ambitious, and yearning for adulthood, 15-year-old Vanessa Wye becomes entangled in an affair with Jacob Strane, her magnetic and guileful 42-year-old English teacher.

2017. Amid the rising wave of allegations against powerful men, a reckoning is coming due. Strane has been accused of sexual abuse by a former student, who reaches out to Vanessa, and now Vanessa suddenly finds herself facing an impossible choice: Remain silent, firm in the belief that her teenage self willingly engaged in this relationship, or redefine herself and the events of her past. But how can Vanessa reject her first love, the man who fundamentally transformed her and has been a persistent presence in her life? Is it possible that the man she loved as a teenager - and who professed to worship only her - may be far different from what she has always believed?

Alternating between Vanessa’s present and her past, My Dark Vanessa juxtaposes memory and trauma with the breathless excitement of a teenage girl discovering the power her own body can wield. Thought-provoking and impossible to put down, this is a masterful portrayal of troubled adolescence and its repercussions that raises vital questions about agency, consent, complicity, and victimhood. Written with the haunting intimacy of The Girls and the creeping intensity of Room, My Dark Vanessa is an era-defining novel that brilliantly captures and reflects the shifting cultural mores transforming our relationships and society itself.

Includes a bonus conversation with Kate Elizabeth Russell, Grace Gummer, and Jessica Williams (editor of My Dark Vanessa).

©2020 Kate Elizabeth Russell (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers

Stunning yes, but also flawed

I basically agree with Ellen's review, titled "Stunning;" I too found My Dark Vanessa to be a love story. It deserves the accolades it has garnered. But I was also disappointed by some deficiencies that reduced my star ratings on Overall and Story (Performance deserves the 5 stars).
Deficiencies, Vanessa: in my view, the thin character development of the two lead figures was a Big Flaw. Both Vanessa and Strane must have had deep "back stories" that contributed to their life choices, but the characters are presented to us in the context of their original affair and, later, its aftermath across subsequent years. Why was Vanessa so very prone to not just fall for Strane, but go after him so aggressively? Never let him go? Mess with him over the years? Although a child, I saw her showing predatory inclinations - first toward Strane, and later toward a different college teacher. Her few interactions/flirtations with men her own age, and those somewhat older, were rather cruel, manipulative, and ultimately dismissive of the men even when she had encouraged their interest in her and toyed with them. I wondered if there was some Daddy issue that tended to drive her behavior? Yet her relationship with her Dad seemed kind of normal and unremarkable. Her relationship with her Mom was more fraught but, the Mom was no monster. Vanessa consistently lied to her parents and basically didn't acknowledge their humanity or their labored support for her. The best she did was put up with them.
Then, there's the issue of, who is Vanessa? We learn she has talent in writing and literature, loves sex, relates to dogs, is extremely messy, and that she has red hair. But what else? Beyond these basic facts, I have no idea what was her substance. I found her unfocused and vacuous.
Strane: Although it was criminal to have sex with a 15 year old, I otherwise found Strane a rather sympathetic character - manipulative, yes, but also gentle, thoughtful, sometimes philosophical, dabbling in occasional existential questioning, and sexually accomplished. He doesn't fully fit the profile of a predator. He remains loving toward Vanessa over the years and vulnerable to her charms. (Why he loved her is another question for me, because of her vacuity.) But why the vasectomy, the absence of relationships with women his own age, the return to attractions toward under-18 year old girls? That backstory too is missing. There's a vague reference, at one point, to asking Vanessa to call him "Daddy." The hint here is that perhaps his own father abused him, but the author gives no further information about how Strane developed into the character we encounter.
"Context-free" characters, e.g. those lacking a fuller exploration of how they came to be who they were, was not essential to telling this fascinating and complex story. I'm sorry the author didn't do the job necessary to bring the story and its lead figures into full relief.

It's a love hate relationship..

Oh my...I hated the premise of the story..a pedifile and abuser and his lover/victim??!! I hated what he was and what he did.... sometimes I hated his victim and sometimes I pitied her.. good luck with this one!

Incredible

It’s a shame I can’t give it more stars- well written and the narrator delivers!!

Awesome Narrator, great story!

First off, tremendous narrator. She changed her voice according to her age in the story and left out he said, she said, etc. gave it a more stream of conscious read experience…

The sex scenes and all I did not find difficult to listen too. To me, the author was very clever how she revealed it and at times your confused about the relationship. Does she really love him, etc….

At any rate, 1st class novel a true modern day Lolita, maybe even better… Could have gone without the subtle little jab about “Trump” but what do expect with academic liberals chocking on the own false superiority.

Gets a Little Long

This book was riveting to listen to. You will find yourself, if like me, getting frustrated that the main character didn't seek help earlier but more angry at the creep of the old man. I do think it got rather drawn out and kept thinking "it has to end soon."

Amazing amazing

This was such an incredible novel. So sad and beautiful. The narrator embodied Vanessa so perfectly. Recommend this over and over

Excellent!

I’m deeply moved by this book, and the narrator is perfect.

As someone who was sexually abused as a child, I found this book to be spot on and extremely enlightening.

Thank you so much for capturing so much of my experience and helping me make connections that I’ve not made before. It is so validating.

Thought provoking read

I read that Kate Russell was influenced by Lolita by Nabokov so I listened to it first. Glad I did, because it features prominently in My Dark Vanessa. The character of Vanessa is so compelling, I really cared about her and her fate as the story unrolls. I was surprised how I could see the situation from so many perspectives- the teacher, the student, the school, the parents. The narrator captured the subtle changes as the character matured from a teenager to a young woman.

Couldn't Stop Listening!

I never thought I would be writing a review for a book about an extremely inappropriate, illegal, immoral, relationship between a middle-aged teacher and a teenager but here I am! I hope my review helps you decide to use that credit! This is not my typical go-to genre so I really went out on limb and purchased this audiobook based on the reviews. Not only did I immediately get sucked into the novel but I was searching for things to do that would allow me to listen at every possible chance. "Oh we need milk? I'll run to the store!" (driving the actual speed limit while listening to it in the car then switching to an earbud in the store and back to the car again on the way home).

Yes, it is a difficult subject and some sections were a bit uncomfortable to listen to. But at the same time, the narrator did such an amazing job that it felt real, raw, and as if it could have happened to me or someone I know! You are a fly on the wall of the main character's brain and you get to see firsthand how Vanessa was groomed, how the relationship formed, and how it affected not only her but many many others years down the road. You assume that once the "abuse" is over that would be the end of the story. What else is there to say? In this novel... A LOT. One of my favorite parts occurs at the very end!

I am thankful I used my credit and took a chance on this book. I will listen to it more than once, and that rarely happens.

Great story & great narration.

Grace Gummer does an excellent job at narrating this story. Really happy I chose to listen to it, it made me excited for my 40 minute commute to work. You’ll hate the characters but in a good way lol