Angie
Written on Aug 20, 2015
Let's start with a lesson: No means? NO! It means no. No means no. Welcome to Sugartown would have you believe that no means yes if the person you're in love with is the person you're saying no to. This is extremely problematic! You can be sexually assaulted and raped by someone you love or are in a relationship with. No still means no! It's especially problematic here, because Ana and Elijah have been broken up for a month and she has made it clear that she doesn't want to get back together. He shoves his hand up her skirt, she says stop, and he actually pushes harder! She says no, has an orgasm, he tells her that he loves her, she punches him, tells him she loves him, and then he apologizes....for having sex with another woman while they were broken up! Are you freaking kidding me?! He should be apologizing for what he just did her, especially since he watched her nearly get raped which is why they broke up!
Along those same lines, nearer to the end, Ana accidentally walks in on him in the shower. They're still not together, but he asks her to get naked so he can handle his business at the sight of her. She removes her shirt. He asks her to remove her pants, she says no. He asks her to step closer, she says no. He asks her to touch herself, she says no. He says, "Why is it always no with you? (pg 256)" It's no because she doesn't want to! No means no! No means no! What part of that is so hard to understand?! After that he tells her to stop pretending that she doesn't want him, because he knows she does, even after he hears her having nightmares of her rape! Maybe she's not ready to be with someone! Did you ever think about that?!
Now, here's where Welcome to Sugartown gets even more problematic. Ana is brutally raped. Then she runs to Elijah instead of getting help or going to her best friend. The author used this traumatic event to get her back into this asshole's arms! That was 100% unnecessary! At first, I gave her the benefit of the doubt. Maybe she was going to use this as a way to speak out against rape rather than simply using it as a catalyst to get the lovers back together. Well, no. Ana doesn't want to go to the police. That's fine. I 100% understand that from personal experience. But then, Elijah goes out, mutilates the man who did it, and the police come to arrest him. At that point Ana suddenly wants to file a report...to help her kind of boyfriend! Because he needs a legit, honorable reason to have taken a knife to someone's face! No! She should be doing what's best for her! Not what's best for him!
Oh, and Ana's father encourages her to get back with Elijah after he goes to prison, because he defended her honor. Of course, he doesn't know about him assaulting Ana in a parking lot where she repeated said no, but he does know that the guy is completely unhinged because of what he did to even get into prison! It wasn't some romantic gesture! That is not a normal response! He is dangerous and needs help!
Welcome to Sugartown literally gave me a headache because I was so mad at what I was reading. Rape is not a plot device to be used to get a couple together, even if one of them isn't an abusive prick. The message that "no means yes" if you're in love or in a relationship is entirely problematic and needs to stop. This is why people think that rape in marriage is not really rape. It is. This books is just entirely garbage.
Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.
