The Source by Sarah Sultoon

Happy Thursday, readers! Today I’m a stop on the Random Things Tours for Sarah Sultoon’s The Source!

1996: Carly’s mother hasn’t been right for some time. Most days, she’s too drunk to take care of herself, much less Carly and her infant sister. So it’s up to Carly to do whatever it takes to keep them in food and clothing. 

2006: Marie is part of team of journalists who’ve worked to land a massive story on England’s trafficking industry. But just as they’re about to go live, a much delayed update on Operation Andromeda—the army sex scandal—is about to happen. 

Carly’s desperation and Marie’s determination are on a collision course as the story plays out, but just how they’re connected only becomes clear in the end. 

Carly is just thirteen in 1996. She and her baby sister live at home with their mother while their older brother has enlisted in the Army and lives on the nearby base. There's no father—he was killed in the line of duty—and there's no money thanks to their mother's most recent affair. 

Carly is tough. She spends her day in school and comes home to care for her sister, knowing that her mother hasn't been capable of doing so for quite some time. Carly is the reason they get by. 

Marie is an assistant producer in 2006 and has worked hard on the a story about trafficking. The book begins with the culmination of all of those efforts as she and another journalist record a secret meeting with actual traffickers. And she's not going to let their story get sidelined—not when it means the people behind these kinds of deals will get off without being brought to justice. 

This was a hard one for me. It’s the latest in a string of books I’ve read about human trafficking, but Carly’s storyline made this one even harder to read. Sultoon definitely adds a human element to the desperation that is involved in this kind of tale and it is an absolutely heartbreaking read. And it’s not one for the fainthearted by any means.  

Sultoon is incredibly talented and I can only assume that elements of this story come from things she herself learned about and possibly covered in her time as a journalist herself. Her acknowledgements imply as much. I think she's done a very good job with, as mentioned, the human element. I can't imagine anyone walking away from this book without being deeply affected. 

Note: The Source is available now in the UK and will be available in the States in November!