The House on Sunset
By Lindsay Fischer
Genre: Memoir
ISBN 0692278281 (ISBN13: 9780692278284)
Book Description
Sarafina Bianco was once a high school English teacher with dreams stretching far outside the classroom. When her boyfriend of a year-and-a-half cheated on her, Lindsay found herself alone, looking online for a replacement. His name was Mike.
That’s where the nightmare started.
The House on Sunset is a memoir, a collection of reminiscences, scattering the ashes of two broken homes and putting them to rest. Each chapter offers a different glimpse inside the cycle of intimate partner violence, where honeymoon phases and traumas coexist.
Everyone could fall victim to abusers. This book bravely displays the reasons a quirky, twenty-something teacher would, and did.
Author Bio
Lindsay Fischer graduated from Missouri State University with a Bachelor of Science in secondary education, English. An avid reader and learner, Lindsay took her passion for words into a classroom before starting a writing career. Life pulled her from the classroom, providing an opportunity to use her voice against domestic violence, blogging under the pseudonym, Sarafina Bianco, since 2009.
You can find her words at survivorswillbeheard.com and speak directly to her when she hosts #domesticviolencechat on Twitter. Lindsay hopes to be an advocate for women, men and children who still live inside the nightmare of their abuse.
She currently lives with her husband and three dogs, including Watson, in St. Louis, Missouri.
Connect on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Get it on Amazon
[rating=4]
It’s a story I’ve heard all too often. A woman looking for love, finds her happily-ever-after man (or so she thinks) and is ready to give up everything for love. Sadly, she is asked by this man to do just that as he first subtly and then overtly begins to control her,make her always second-guess herself and then abuse her both verbally and physically. Soon she begins to lose all sense of self and becomes a pawn in this man’s evil game.
I am blessed that I dodged that bullet – I almost fell for it.
Lindsay chose to tell her story – to share a testimony that it’s possible to go to hell and come back, and live to tell the tale. And she tells it vividly, not sparing us horrible details, sharing her journey from thinking that she’s found perfect love to finding that it was all a sham – and becoming the victim of domestic abuse. Mike began to control her and abuse her until she didn’t know herself anymore. As she says, “Survivors are brainwashed. Then we have to try everything over. We don’t know if we like strawberry or grape jelly. The lines blur between the abuser and victim. Are these beliefs his or mine? Maybe they’re a mixture of both now. Any answer isn’t real anyway, even if they were our own, we probably don’t believe the same things anymore…”
I have nothing but admiration for women like Lindsay, who dare to take their life back, albeit piece by piece. But that just what she did.
I’m glad we know that Lindsay survived the horror of domestic abuse. There are millions of women who don’t. Even if the book is hard to read at times, I’d recommend it to every woman – to avoid falling into a similar situation or to understand another woman who has. And to be there for that woman.
I received this book from Sage Blog Tours in exchange for an honest review.
There are countless sad stories of domestic abuse and so many of them end tragically, It’s encouraging to know about the women who triumphed.
Yes, far too many stories that end badly, Debbie. Sarafina is a good role model!
I can imagine this is hard book to read – but as you said it a book every woman should read! Indeed domestic abuse is the most difficult of them all – its not easy to break free from its shackles
Yes, we all need a dose of reality now and then, Meena. If this makes us a little more sensitive to women who are abused, then it will be worth a read.
Abuse is something we never talk about and always happens behind closed doors.This book seems very interesting will add it to my to read list.
The sad part is the taboo associated with it, Verushka. Let me know how you enjoy the book.
Thanks for this review – always on the lookout for new books so appreciate posts like this. Must be horrendous to be in a relationship like the one in the book. Like you – I had a near miss. Married at 19 but divorced him pretty sharpish by 21 – lesson learnt!
I can’t begin to imagine what many women go through, Gilly. I’m glad you got out of that relationship safe.
Domestic Violence is so subtle sometimes that you are not even aware of it. It’s a brave soul who can write about it. But writing can heal too 🙂
That’s the thing, Suzy. I’m glad that Sarafina got out and dared to share her story too.
Thanks for this review. This is going on my to read in 2015 list. When I first started reading your review I was expecting a chick lit type of book, Gosh, that’s so not what this is. I think tissues will be needed.
Gosh that sounds like a tough book to read. Not sure I’ll manage it but how courageous of women to tell their stories and hopefully help others avoid such atrocities.
It was, Nicole. But I always try to push through to get the message out of it.
That is great she wrote it out. I also suffered domestic abuse, I have physical scars I will carry for the rest of my life, my thank goodness I got out of it before anything worst happened.
I’m so sorry to hear of your experience, Paola. I’m glad you got of the situation.
While this sounds like a difficult book to read, I think it is something many of us, both male and female need to read! Abuse is real; verbal and emotional abuse are silent and not often seen but happens more often than we know! Thanks for the great review!!
You said it, Robyn!