What if we never get the apology we deserve?

Anxiety was not part of Ember’s plan. She has everything she’s ever wanted: a home, a successful career, and a loving partner she can’t wait to marry. When her past unexpectedly sets off a series of panic attacks, she is desperate to keep it from ruining the life she’s built, and resorts to the one thing she never imagined she’d need—therapy.

Sana is stuck in a nowhere place with no memory of who she is or how she got there. She’s told she is a mystical guardian with time-bending magic, assigned to help a little girl in need. It doesn’t take Sana long to realize that Amelia’s story is anything but magical. But what choice does she have? If anybody knows how it feels to be unseen, it’s Sana.

Stay out of trouble. It’s a rule. Amelia tries very hard to follow the rules. She knows bad things happen when rules are broken. So, when she notices a stranger sitting across from her at the kitchen table—the one nobody else seems to see—she also knows better than to say anything. A ghost at the dinner table most definitely spells T-R-O-U-B-L-E.

As each woman fights for the future, knotted threads of the past will force Sana, Amelia, and Ember to face the painful choice that binds them together: stop waiting for an apology and take back their power, or stay trapped by inherited wounds they didn’t deserve to begin with.

TRIGGER WARNING!

Raised is a work of fiction loosely adapted from true events. This is our story—mine, hers, and theirs; maybe even yours.

The purpose of this story is to shine a light on unconscious patterns; how they develop, why they stay, the detrimental impact they carry, and the quiet courage it takes to deconstruct them. As such these roads are tumultuous, unpredictable, and may be difficult to witness. Raised is not a light or easy read. This book contains strong language and subject matters, including:

Abuse: verbal, emotional, and sexual (chapters indicated with an *),
Bullying
Violence
Mental health disorders
and Self-harm


Some scenes are explicit (particularly chapter 28 and chapter 83). I’ve tried to share these instances as gently as possible. Some subject matters may bring up an emotional response—it is meant to. I understand if you pass them over, however, I do hope that you’ll stay. Knots unravel the more you work at them; they loosen with patience and persistence. Healing is a through process—and ultimately, this is a hopeful tale.

Please proceed with caution, take breaks if you need. You are not a machine; you are a garden. Some sunlight and fresh air will do you wonders.

This book has changed my life. I hope that if it’s found its way to you, it will give you something as well.

You deserve light.