Review: Exposure

Exposure by Therese Fowler
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Literary Fiction
Pages: 366 (Hardback)
Source: Publisher (Ballentine Books)
Author's Site | Discussion: When Books Meet Life
Available May 3, 2011

Book Flap:

Amelia Wilkes's strict father does not allow her to date, but that doesn't stop the talented, winsome high school senior from carrying on a secret romance with her classmate Anthony Winter.  Desperately in love, the two envision a life together and plan to tell Amelia's parents only after she turns eighteen and is legally an adult.  Anthony's mother, Kim, who teaches at their school, knows--and keeps--their secret.  But the couple's passion is exposed sooner than planned: Amelia's father, Harlan, is shocked and infuriated to find naked pictures of Anthony on his daughter's computer.  Just hours later, Anthony is arrested.
Despite Amelia's frantic protests, Harlan uses his wealth and influence with local law enforcement and the media to label Anthony a deviant who preyed on his innocent daughter.  Spearheaded by a zealous prosecutor anxious to turn the case into a public crusade against "sexting," the investigation soon takes an even more disturbing and destructive turn.
As events spiral wildly out of control and the scandalous story makes national news, Amelia and Anthony risk everything in a bold and dangerous attempt to clear their names and end the madness once and for all.

My Rating:

My Review:

Introduction: Sexting--When Life Meets Books

Coming May 2011

I absolutely love when books (especially fiction) meets life and great conversations can be had about real life issues.   This has recently happened when I received a book for review called Exposure by Therese Fowler.  A short exerpt from Goodreads describes the book in a nutshell.

In Exposure, Therese Fowler has written her most gripping novel to date—a ripped-from-the-headlines story of ardent young love and a nightmarish legal maelstrom that threatens to destroy two families.

So how does this affect real life you might ask?  Well this book centers around "sexting" which is a relatively new issue that is coming to play with today's technology.  This is a HUGE problem when people are underage.  The consequences are pretty big.  Someone breaks up and the pictures are let loose unto the world-wide-web...this is VERY VERY BAD.  In this day and age, those pictures are just simply out there forever.  Everyone has access to everything and if you make a bad decision the consequences are perhaps last a little longer than most.

Many of you have heard a bit about the real me--former teacher, law student, and newlywed (I think). I also intern at the Texas State Capitol and I'm in the know about potential and future legislation.   A common topic recently is this idea of "sexting."  Many people think the answer is to criminalize this behavior.  Well this book certainly opens up the discussion about whether this would be a good idea.


It would really suck if your significant other sent it to other people, but what if they didn't?  What if someone else found it?  Who should be punished?  The person who received the image or the person who sent it?

Therese Fowler not only weighs in on the debate in her book, but she has personal experiences with the situation as this happened to her son. Check-in to the conversation with Therese Fowler below...