Ever since she escaped her family’s gruesome murder, Emily Calby has done whatever it takes to survive. In TARGET: The Girl, she finds herself in her most perilous situation yet—law school! As Emily adjusts to life as a student, she finds herself in danger from an unidentified stalker. If she wants to make it through her first semester, she’ll have to find ways to protect herself without resorting to the violence that’s kept her safe in the past.
As written by Dorian Box, Emily Calby is a rich and complex protagonist. She has a clever mind and an enduring spirit, but she’s also riddled with flaws. She’s smart enough to receive full-ride scholarship offers, but she can’t always keep her “PTSD train” on its tracks. She can’t stop herself from enacting her own brand of justice, even if she knows she’ll face consequences later. She has a habit of sticking her nose into other people’s business, and she never runs from trouble. She’s a strong young woman who has also mastered the ability to cry in silence. Despite being a remarkable character, the problems Emily faces are incredibly relatable, including her struggle to make friends and fit into her new environment. Throughout TARGET: The Girl, Emily must also confront her own personal flaws. She is determined to become a champion for justice but leaving her past behind is a challenge. It’s hard to change who you are as a person, and Emily’s process of growth and her ongoing recovery from her childhood trauma will be familiar to many readers, as will other real-world issues addressed in the book. Emily’s mental health problems are a consistent topic in the series. Emily also faces sexism, both in the classroom and outside of it—including an almost fatal run-in with members of the “manosphere” movement. She encounters a severe case of elder abuse and must come face-to-face with the failings of the legal system. There’s also a section in TARGET: The Girl that directly addresses the topic of American gun violence.
Dorian Box does an exceptional job of telling an entrancing story filled with conflict and action, while also shining a light on some of our society’s most pressing social issues in TARGET: The Girl, book three in the Emily Calby series.
~Stephani Hren for IndieReader