We Are the Ashes, We Are the Fire by Joy McCullough

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CW: rape, bullying, intentional misgendering

Many novels have tackled the trauma inflicted upon victims of sexual assault, but this is the first I’ve read that focuses on how the family members deal with that trauma. When a rapist’s guilty verdict lands him no jail time, the Morales family finds their hopes for justice for Nor completely devastated. After an already excruciating public trial, the public backlash against them for “disrupting” the beloved local college team is overwhelming for the entire family. While Nor tries to find some sense of peace and stability at college, Em finds herself obsessed with seeking justice online for her sister. As Em discovers that the wide online support she and her family received during the trial has waned for other victims of crimes, her ability to cope with the trauma becomes more than she can bear. As she spirals out of control with unauthorized columns in the school paper, onlines posts that create an unsafe environment for her sister, and a new found obsession with a legendary French noblewoman turned warrior, Em will push everyone who loves her away. It is only at her very lowest point that Em will find the strength and focus to help her family heal and move forward.

The Morales family felt incredibly real and relatable. Nor and Em’s relationship becomes increasingly strained as Em’s reactions to Nor’s silence make life harder for Nor, triggering a vicious cycle of Nor becoming angry and hurt and pushing Em away. Em parents are at a complete loss over how to handle any of it, both frustrated that they can’t get justice for their daughter and long to move on and go back to being a happy family. They’re an incredibly close family with strong bonds over food cooking. It’s that bond that slowly brings them back together when Em’s new friend Jess begins to spend more and more time at the Morales home. Jess has their own struggles with their family. Parents who are divorcing and possibly moving far apart, coming into their own sense of self and identity, and losing their best friend for the summer to a performance camp. As Em and Jess try to find the balance in their friendship, Em begins to find the way toward mending her relationship with her sister and parents. 

As Em struggles to find a way for her family to heal, which is a burden she has taken on herself, Jess introduces her to a fascinating historical figure and triggers an obsession. Em writes the life story of a fifteenth-century French noblewoman, Marguerite de Bressieux as Jess illuminates the pages. Marguerite’s story is written in verse and the back and forth between the prose and verse was beautiful to read. Em holds nothing back in describing the pain and hardship of Marguerite’s journey, just as McCullough holds nothing back in describing the pain and anguish of the Morales family.
We Are the Ashes, We Are the Fire is an incredible story of revenge, trauma, and the bonds of family. It is an unflinching look at how women are treated within the legal system and how misogyny infiltrates our everyday lives. 

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Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own. This post also contains affiliate links and I earn from qualifying purchases.