Three Rules by Marie Drake Review

This is for the Three Rules blog tour for May 18th :)

Rating: 4 stars or 80%
      Marie Drake tackled such a complicated and sensitive topic in the best way possible. Through this book, she conveyed the emotions of Hope Wellman perfectly, as well as her state of mind. Drake's style of writing was very eloquent at times, and sometimes it even sounded poetic. There are mysteries, doubts, fears, and even romance in Three Rules, all of which were composed with the utmost sense of elegance. 
      Hope was a very realistic character, so I could connect with her very well even though I had basically nothing in common. She went through very realistic character development, and it was extremely interesting to see her change over the course of the book. In the beginning, she was nervous and erratic, completely normal for having been subjected to sexual abuse by her very own uncle (Lucas) since a young age. Now that Lucas is dead (or is he? The grave is empty, and Hope feels like she's still being followed), she doesn't know how to deal with all the pent-up emotions and conflicts that have been plaguing her. Drake does a wonderful job to portray her behavior without telling the reader completely what is happening. Her writing is very continuous and smooth, going from one subject matter to another without any awkward filler sentences or unneeded conversations. Everything is there for a meaning, which I finally realized later on after a huge plot twist.
      Apart from that, I also loved the relationship between Joey and Hope. There was so much chemistry, and midst all the chaos that was in her head and all the mysteries surrounding Lucas's death, it was something I could rely on to convey a sense of calm in the book. Joey was an adorable character, always caring for Hope even though he didn't know what was going on inside her. He dealt with her inner turmoil in a very accepting way, and a big part of Hope's development as a character was due to him.
      Marie Drake created realistic characters with problems that encouraged the plot, even if they weren't the main focus of the novel. The book started off as a simple book about a girl with realistic issues and problems, and turned into a complicated story about betrayal, mystery, and strong emotions. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes to read.

This review can also be found on my Goodreads~