The Girls I've Been
- Downloads：4234
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-04-22 13:51:08
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Tess Sharpe
- ISBN：0593353803
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
A slick， twisty YA page-turner about the daughter of a con artist who is taken hostage in a bank heist。
Nora O’Malley’s been a lot of girls。 As the daughter of a con-artist who targets criminal men， she grew up as her mother’s protégé。 But when mom fell for the mark instead of conning him， Nora pulled the ultimate con: escape。
For five years Nora’s been playing at normal。 But she needs to dust off the skills she ditched because she has three problems:
#1: Her ex walked in on her with her girlfriend。 Even though they’re all friends， Wes didn’t know about her and Iris。
#2: The morning after Wes finds them kissing， they all have to meet to deposit the fundraiser money they raised at the bank。 It’s a nightmare that goes from awkward to deadly， because:
#3: Right after they enter bank， two guys start robbing it。
The bank robbers may be trouble， but Nora’s something else entirely。 They have no idea who they’re really holding hostage…
Nora O’Malley’s been a lot of girls。 As the daughter of a con-artist who targets criminal men， she grew up as her mother’s protégé。 But when mom fell for the mark instead of conning him， Nora pulled the ultimate con: escape。
For five years Nora’s been playing at normal。 But she needs to dust off the skills she ditched because she has three problems:
#1: Her ex walked in on her with her girlfriend。 Even though they’re all friends， Wes didn’t know about her and Iris。
#2: The morning after Wes finds them kissing， they all have to meet to deposit the fundraiser money they raised at the bank。 It’s a nightmare that goes from awkward to deadly， because:
#3: Right after they enter bank， two guys start robbing it。
The bank robbers may be trouble， but Nora’s something else entirely。 They have no idea who they’re really holding hostage…
Reviews
Freedz
，
So so SO good。 One of my favorite's this year。 It's one of those books that is set within one day （like The Sun is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon） and it's really fast paced。 There are also tons of flashbacks to get to know the protangonist and her friends。 So so SO good。 One of my favorite's this year。 It's one of those books that is set within one day （like The Sun is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon） and it's really fast paced。 There are also tons of flashbacks to get to know the protangonist and her friends。 。。。more
Lora
，
My YA son and I both liked this novel。 It was a page-turner， especially in the first half。 It was an interesting story about a teenage girl who was raised to think like a con artist and also suffered abuse。 But she escaped that life and made true connections only to wind up in a very dangerous situation。 It was nice that the book included a list of abuse hotlines in the afterword， along with information on endometriosis （which one of the characters had）。 My only complaint was that a pot-smoking My YA son and I both liked this novel。 It was a page-turner， especially in the first half。 It was an interesting story about a teenage girl who was raised to think like a con artist and also suffered abuse。 But she escaped that life and made true connections only to wind up in a very dangerous situation。 It was nice that the book included a list of abuse hotlines in the afterword， along with information on endometriosis （which one of the characters had）。 My only complaint was that a pot-smoking friend and another minor characters were mentioned only by name many， many chapters ahead without any clues to help the readers remember who they were。 。。。more
Heather
，
Nora O'Malley is a survivor。 So is Rebecca， Katie， and Ashley。。。 just some of the girls she's been。 Life has been semi-normal since she escaped from her con-artist mother and criminal boyfriend。。。 or as normal as things can be when your past is full of trauma and you don't really know who you are。 Her ex-boyfriend Wes has been her rock and new girlfriend Iris could be her future if she can ever truly rid herself that other life， or lives， she's lived。 But when things go wrong for Nora， they real Nora O'Malley is a survivor。 So is Rebecca， Katie， and Ashley。。。 just some of the girls she's been。 Life has been semi-normal since she escaped from her con-artist mother and criminal boyfriend。。。 or as normal as things can be when your past is full of trauma and you don't really know who you are。 Her ex-boyfriend Wes has been her rock and new girlfriend Iris could be her future if she can ever truly rid herself that other life， or lives， she's lived。 But when things go wrong for Nora， they really go wrong。 Somehow the 3 friends find themselves caught up in the middle of a bank heist and it's not just dangerous。。。 it's life or death。 The only thing is， these bank robbers don't know exactly who they're dealing with and neither does Nora。This book was so easy to get into and had me hooked from page one。 Some parts may seem a little contrived at times， but it's easy to suspend your disbelief when every part is so thrilling。 The story is told in alternating timelines: from the present day bank heist to flashbacks of Nora's past life as a con artist。 The flashbacks help unravel the mystery that is Nora（Warning of some heavy themes: emotional abuse， sexual assault） 。。。more
Helen Rix
，
The story is powerful; I like how it was presented。 Good job writer！ If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on Novel Star， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top
Nicolas Hall
，
Really surprising story。 I loved dicovering the twists about each “girl” the main character has been in her life along the way and uncovering the reason she had to do so。 Only gave it four stars because a few of the MC’s heroics seemed a little unbelievable to me but I enjoyed the story and the plot too much to let it slow me down。 :）
Christy Johns
，
It’s a fun read。 Nora is a little to smart for it to be believable。 But I read it fast and enjoyed the storyline。 I wouldn’t call it a thriller but it is pretty fast paced and hops back and forth with Nora’s backstory。
Jennifer
，
This book is full of twists and turns， and it was a thrilling read。 Trigger warnings: physical， mental， and sexual abuse。
Cyndi
，
This YA novel is intense and unpredictable。 I didn’t want to put it down。 Intriguing story and suspenseful narrative structure。 I loved it。
Stina Pinsky
，
tw for sexual assault first of all， bi main character， hell yes。 things i liked: how we start out knowing that nora has a wild past but not knowing what exactly she’s done and slowly getting the backstory together。 the format of the book with the time stamps and the lists of assets/plans and the text/phone transcripts。 iris’ vintage clothing。 the twists。 lee being an awesome sister。 nora’s strength。 the only thing i didn’t love is that it was a little too overdramatically written at points BUT i tw for sexual assault first of all， bi main character， hell yes。 things i liked: how we start out knowing that nora has a wild past but not knowing what exactly she’s done and slowly getting the backstory together。 the format of the book with the time stamps and the lists of assets/plans and the text/phone transcripts。 iris’ vintage clothing。 the twists。 lee being an awesome sister。 nora’s strength。 the only thing i didn’t love is that it was a little too overdramatically written at points BUT i’m a little older than the target audience and it was from the perspective of a teenager so it was understandable 。。。more
Aylis Coulson
，
From the first word to the last， I adored this book。 The way that there are multiple storylines happening at once with no confusion or blurred lines between them was a show stopper。 The horror， humour， romance， wit， and everything else within these pages gripped me right from the start， and I could NOT put this book down。 Even when I did， I was thinking about it。
Shay H。
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Ok， so I am not a fan of books like this per se but it was our choice for book club。 I do like that I am forced to step out of my normal reading genre as it helps me to find books that I may not have considered before。On to the book itself。 I do like that she is confident in her skills she has learned from her mother grooming her to be apart of her cons。 Alas， that is a problem for me， I am a mother and I would never groom my child to be a target for predators。 It dragged a little for me， I do l Ok， so I am not a fan of books like this per se but it was our choice for book club。 I do like that I am forced to step out of my normal reading genre as it helps me to find books that I may not have considered before。On to the book itself。 I do like that she is confident in her skills she has learned from her mother grooming her to be apart of her cons。 Alas， that is a problem for me， I am a mother and I would never groom my child to be a target for predators。 It dragged a little for me， I do love Iris and Wes。 They were awesome and I loved their relationships with the main character。 It jumping back and forth from past to present was Eh for me。。 I think the author could have explained the majority of her backstory in the beginning of the novel， then moved on to the bank robbery。 Her threatening her mother and stepfather at the end was kind of a moot point， but I see why she thought it was needed。Overall， I didn't hate the story， the execution for me was ok。 I would have changed some things but it isn't a horrible book。 I didn't hate it but surely didn't love it either。 3 stars for me。 。。。more
Lilies
，
I liked how this book was written。 I think the protagonist had an incredible character development and we could really understand her inner struggles。 I found it a bit hard at times to keep up since it was a slow read but in general I do think it’s a good book。
sara ❀
，
no thoughts， head empty; i believe in something called 'tess sharpe supremacy。' no thoughts， head empty; i believe in something called 'tess sharpe supremacy。' 。。。more
Rania
，
i really really liked this and im excited to see it on screen。 lee is the best（but also all the neil josten parallels broo。。。。 crazy dad as butcher， leaving family on a beach， nathaniel/neil-natalie/nora， runaway with a fucked up mom and a dozen different names， lolol）
Robyn Skye
，
So yeah I know， I am totally late to this party。 May I introduce you Nora， or is her name Ashley or Haley。 Like the mother so the daughter – Nora's Mum is a con artist。 She trained her all her tricks。 She wants to leave her past behind。 With her ex-boyfriend and her love Iris she got into a bank robbery。 But are the robbers clever enough to beat Nora。 Of course not。 Nora knows a lot from her mother， so she knows how to play with the gangster。 This is a deep story， and you immediately feel connec So yeah I know， I am totally late to this party。 May I introduce you Nora， or is her name Ashley or Haley。 Like the mother so the daughter – Nora's Mum is a con artist。 She trained her all her tricks。 She wants to leave her past behind。 With her ex-boyfriend and her love Iris she got into a bank robbery。 But are the robbers clever enough to beat Nora。 Of course not。 Nora knows a lot from her mother， so she knows how to play with the gangster。 This is a deep story， and you immediately feel connected to Nora。 The story is also like a rush， you know that feeling， when you start a book and it's so good that you can’t do something else till the last page。 There was a lot of pain in these pages。 So many characters has to deal with their trauma。 They have to deal with love。 I love the writing style of Tess Sharpe。 Her characters aren’t weak。 Sounds weird， but this book felt so real。 Its like you are in the middle of the action。 You are in the story。 You are next to our characters。 I can’t wait to see this in a film adaption with Millie Bobby Brown。 So and now can we please talk about this representation。 Menstruation was here a topic。 Iris has endometriosis， we have a bisexual main character who is also an abuse survivor。 This story has everything we need in books。 Suspense， Deep relationships， a good pacing， strong characters。 Damn please more of books like this。 。。。more
Stephanie Laurenza
，
3。5 is more accurate。 I really enjoyed this story and the unabashed resilience that reverberates throughout。 I love that these teens found each other and have created this life， but I despise that they're teens。。。the stakes were really high and it took a little of the fun out of it for me （which I really think just means I'm getting old）。 Tons of badassery， tons of intensity， tons of honesty - it was an interesting read for sure。 3。5 is more accurate。 I really enjoyed this story and the unabashed resilience that reverberates throughout。 I love that these teens found each other and have created this life， but I despise that they're teens。。。the stakes were really high and it took a little of the fun out of it for me （which I really think just means I'm getting old）。 Tons of badassery， tons of intensity， tons of honesty - it was an interesting read for sure。 。。。more
Naya X
，
This was everything; forever here for strong angry girls。
Valeria Buitrago
，
↠ 4。5 ★★★★⭑Sometimes what doesn’t kill you is worse。 Sometimes what kills you is preferable。 Sometimes what doesn’t kill you messes you up so bad it’s always a fight to make it through what you’re left with。What didn’t kill me didn’t make me stronger; what didn’t kill me made me a victim。Un libro maravilloso que me hizo experimentar un montón de emociones mientras lo leía， es muy triste ver como los personajes en el pasado han sufrido abusos tanto físicos como psicológicos， como han sido maltr ↠ 4。5 ★★★★⭑Sometimes what doesn’t kill you is worse。 Sometimes what kills you is preferable。 Sometimes what doesn’t kill you messes you up so bad it’s always a fight to make it through what you’re left with。What didn’t kill me didn’t make me stronger; what didn’t kill me made me a victim。Un libro maravilloso que me hizo experimentar un montón de emociones mientras lo leía， es muy triste ver como los personajes en el pasado han sufrido abusos tanto físicos como psicológicos， como han sido maltratados repetidas veces pero fue muy bonito para mi ver como se están recuperando lentamente， como se apoyan los unos a los otros y como aceptaban que no estaban bien pero que algún día esperaban estarlo。 Este libro en serio me llego al corazón， conecte un montón con los personajes y el libro me transmitió de forma increíble todo lo que la protagonista estaba sintiendo。 Llore en un montón de partes y hay muchísimas frases increíbles， que no puedo poner acá porque muchas son spoiler y entre menos sepas del libro mucho mejor。 she never， ever slept without a knife in easy reach， because some traits you can dye away and some names you can forge fresh， but you can’t hide from your true self and the lessons you learned in the dark of nightLa trama más importante para mí fueron los relatos del pasado de Nora， todos los trabajos con su mamá y cómo se comenzó a formar su relación con Wes e Iris。 Al comienzo pense que tal vez los saltos en el tiempo iban a ser un poco tedioso pero para nada， se podría decir que me gusto más el pasado que el presente。 La trama principal aka el robo del banco fue entretenido y entiendo que fue la forma en que la autora unió todo pero para ser lo principal me falto un poco más de drama， si debo admitir que esas partes le agregaron bastante humor al libro， me encantaban las listas al comienzo de los capítulos。 “I love you，” I tell him， and it’s so little， it’s nothing， but he looks at me through red-rimmed eyes like it’s everything。Como ya dije los personajes me encantaron， Nora es la estrella aquí pero no quiero hablar mucho de ella porque entre menos sepas， más te sorprende。 Si debo decir que me gusto más la relación entre Wes y Nora que con Iris porque creo que pudimos verla en más profundidad y es tan fuerte por todo lo que han pasado juntos， como están ahí el uno por el otro， es increíble todo lo que sentía mientras leía sus partes y ver como terminan convirtiéndose en una familia *suspiro*I had no idea what scared meant， when it came to me。 I had no idea what I’d do。But I guess we all learned。Un tema importante de el libro es el abuso， sobretodo por parte de los padres。 Habían partes que me parecieron muy fuertes pero siento que la autora manejo bien el tema， podemos ver reflejada la idea que nada de eso es tu culpa， lo que te hicieron no fue por tu culpa y eso me gusto， ademas el personaje de Nora me pareció muy bien trabajado y ver como a través de terapia y estar con personas que la quieren la ha ayudado a progresar es hermoso， ademas que ella acepte que no esta bien pero que algún día espera estarlo significo mucho para mi。 。。。more
Danielle
，
I am so in love with this book if I could marry a book it would be this one， if the movie doesn’t live up to the book I will scream
Dasani J。
，
Discretionary + Trigger Warning- Book contains detailed instances of the following: domestic abuse; child abuse; mental abuse; rape; pedophilia; PTSDI don't think I even have the words to thouroughly explain how perfectly written this book is。 Especially without spoiling it， but I'll try。 It dives deep into the past of Nora， the daughter of a lifelong con artist。 And with every other chapter dissects how relevant said past is to her current life。 The life where she escaped her mother and the abu Discretionary + Trigger Warning- Book contains detailed instances of the following: domestic abuse; child abuse; mental abuse; rape; pedophilia; PTSDI don't think I even have the words to thouroughly explain how perfectly written this book is。 Especially without spoiling it， but I'll try。 It dives deep into the past of Nora， the daughter of a lifelong con artist。 And with every other chapter dissects how relevant said past is to her current life。 The life where she escaped her mother and the abusive men she attracted。 And is now caught in the crosshairs of a robbery gone awry， with two of the only three people she cares about， her ex boyfriend and current girlfriend。 Initial Thoughts: The story is told from the main character's POV， with chapters alternating between her past and present。 Each chapter of the past describing her role in the con's her mother organized。 What quickly sucked me into the story was how， not once did I feel like I was looking through the eyes of the author trying to voice a tortured teen。 Through even the ugliest details of Nora's past it seemed so organic--lines packed with descriptive analogies made the book feel poetic in a sense。 Books with such heavy traumas tend to dull down just how severe the effects are。 This book definitely does not do that。 Personally as someone who's experienced things mentioned in this book， they're easier to read and much more impactful when they're done realistically， and not forcing a feel good story， which this doesn't。 Progressive Thoughts:Again I love that we see the very realistic effects of mental health with trauma responses。 The story dives deeper into how each con called for Nora to take on a new identity。 And because of that Nora has present day identity crisis'。 She has internalized a lot of guilt for things that happened to her， and we see the roles her mother & the men she conned played in that。 Except now with the middle portion of the book we see more how those trauma responses manifest into her relationships。 Swapping out identities whenever her mother demanded， left Nora with zero sense of self。 She now has these romantic and familial relationships she overthinks about showing up for， because this is the first time where the choice is hers。 The first time her identity doesn't belong to anyone else。 We also begin to divulge the supporting characters， and who they have been in their past。 The group juggles these revelations about how similar their abusive pasts are， while simultaneously trying to utilize them in coming up with a clever escape plan。Ending Thoughts:There is no rushed or forced happy ending！ After covering Nora's past lives， the book still weaves through her intrusive thoughts post-robbery about who she is now。 A wave of emotional epiphany's occur that give us the first full composition of who Nora is--she is every single girl she's been。 Even when they're ugly， dark， and twisted。In conclusion this book provided great mental health rep。 in multiple forms。 It was laced with sarcastic and organic dialogue that personalized the characters。 I'd be cautious about recommending， as the subjects are very detailed， but again for me when trauma and mental health are written realistically， it makes the read more comfortable。 But for people open to seeing these topics， I highly recommend reading because my words truly can't grasp just how amazing the writing is。 。。。more
Kelly Smith
，
Fast-paced， interesting， and exciting tale of broken people and the choices that they make。 Very enjoyable。
lei （pearl）
，
my mind is just JDHAIFBEICBDIRHZJEUFHDH rn i loved every page of this
Megan
，
Our April book club pick。 This story completely sucked me in and I couldn't put it down。 Stories of Nora's past were interspersed over the course of this book which happened mostly over a few hours time during a bank robbery。 The way the story was told worked so well and made you root for/feel for Nora。 Our April book club pick。 This story completely sucked me in and I couldn't put it down。 Stories of Nora's past were interspersed over the course of this book which happened mostly over a few hours time during a bank robbery。 The way the story was told worked so well and made you root for/feel for Nora。 。。。more
Lia is reading
，
solo diré que valió la pena dormirme a las 4am can tal de terminar este libro
Lindsay
，
I was pretty disappointed with this one。 Overall the plot wasn’t bad and it was structured in short chapters which helped make this a quick read。 Despite being a fast paced book it was boring for the most part。I felt like the flashbacks were repetitive and boring at times。 It also was just really underwhelming。I really liked Iris’s character， would say she was my favourite in this book。 She was really refreshing in amongst the chaos。CW: This book is “centred on the journey through surviving abus I was pretty disappointed with this one。 Overall the plot wasn’t bad and it was structured in short chapters which helped make this a quick read。 Despite being a fast paced book it was boring for the most part。I felt like the flashbacks were repetitive and boring at times。 It also was just really underwhelming。I really liked Iris’s character， would say she was my favourite in this book。 She was really refreshing in amongst the chaos。CW: This book is “centred on the journey through surviving abuse。” So there is lots of mentions of abuse （physical abuse， emotional abuse/manipulation， child abuse， sexual abuse） so please don’t read this if you think it could be triggering。 There is also lots of violence。 。。。more
Johanna
，
My mistake with this book was that I thought this was about bank heist & hostages。 I mean I thought I would get a thriller。 This wasn't a thriller or if this should have been， it poorly did it's job。I love fast-paced thrillers， but this concentrated more on MC's past & identity crisis than people being hostages。 And I would have enjoyed this more knowing that！ Because this was otherwise good book about abusive parents and I got even nightmares for it。 At the same time I felt that this issue was My mistake with this book was that I thought this was about bank heist & hostages。 I mean I thought I would get a thriller。 This wasn't a thriller or if this should have been， it poorly did it's job。I love fast-paced thrillers， but this concentrated more on MC's past & identity crisis than people being hostages。 And I would have enjoyed this more knowing that！ Because this was otherwise good book about abusive parents and I got even nightmares for it。 At the same time I felt that this issue was overly dramatized。 If I counted right there were three marriages where men abused their wives。 I felt it was a bit too much in the same book。 I know that these things happen and I feel it's important to discuss about it， but at the same time there is more good than bad men。 Well there was one good male in this book， so not all men were described as abusive。 There were really important issues in this book and it's good we have this kind of books that makes us to discuss about them！ 。。。more
IzzyP73
，
*3。5
Corrin
，
Books that play around with timeliness are some of my favorites to read This one pulled it off exceptionally well。 I liked the theme of repeating assets throughout the story to signify the present tense of the story line。
sabslibrary
，
i am screaming。 I was hooked by the promise of a morally grey bi mc， but this book offered up a lot more than I expected。 The pacing was perfect and the flashbacks fit in really well with the main （bankheist） story。 i'm not normally a fan of flashbacks， but they blended seamlessly with the rest of the story and provided important insights into nora's character development。 oh and i belive this is being adapted to film？ with millie bobby brown playing nora？ idk but if it's true i'm excited。 this i am screaming。 I was hooked by the promise of a morally grey bi mc， but this book offered up a lot more than I expected。 The pacing was perfect and the flashbacks fit in really well with the main （bankheist） story。 i'm not normally a fan of flashbacks， but they blended seamlessly with the rest of the story and provided important insights into nora's character development。 oh and i belive this is being adapted to film？ with millie bobby brown playing nora？ idk but if it's true i'm excited。 this story will make an amazing movie。（4。75/5 rounded up）tws: sexual abuse， physical abuse， violence， death （murder） 。。。more
talia ♡
，
this was hella cool and dark。 Tess Sharpe is the master in writing complicated bisexual girls！！cw: child abuse， sexual assault， murder， kidnapping， domestic abuse， violence
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Girls I've Been
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Girls I've Been&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Girls I've Been&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0