Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez

This was a powerful story about the abuse of women and the fight for freedom and for your own body, but it wasn’t as gripping as I’d expected. I really wanted to love this book, but sadly I ended up feeling slightly let down by it. It had so much potential, but it never fully met my expectations.

The story follows Argentinian teenager Camila, who lives a double life. At home, she’s the careful daughter, living within her mother’s narrow expectations, in her rising-soccer-star brother’s shadow, and under the abusive rule of her short-tempered father, but on the soccer field, she’s “La Furia”, a rising soccer star.

I immediately rooted for Camila and her strong will, her dreams of a life as an American soccer professional, her determination and her passion. But sadly, what could have been a powerful, poignant story about standing up for yourself and going for your dreams, very quickly turned into a teenage romance cliché. The love interest, international soccer star Diego, felt like such a shallow character, just another good looking boy who miraculously falls in love with the ugly duckling, and the romance didn’t feel believable at all. The characters had been friends for a long time before the book started, so their romance was developed more like a matter-of-fact thing than based on feelings that would make the readers invested. The problem in addition to that, was that not even the friendship itself felt believable, and the way it all was narrated made this book felt like it targeted an even younger audience than YA. Camila was in a way very wise, strong and realistic, but at the same time she felt closer to thirteen than eighteen when it came to her feelings for Diego.

This story had so much potential and so many difficult and important themes, like domestic abuse, female oppression and sexism, but the romance part pulled it down. The parts I enjoyed the most were the descriptions of Argentina and life in Rosario. The author did an amazing job weaving the political atmosphere into the every-day life descriptions and the characters’ struggles with patriarchy and toxic masculinity, teen pregnancies and the constant risk of getting abused if staying out too late or taking the wrong way home at night. I also really appreciated the ending and the way it wrapped the story up.

If it hadn’t been for the main focus on the romance, it could have been such an amazing, gripping and empowering book. Now, sadly, it was only a half-decent three star read for me.

Rating:
​3 stars

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​Author info:
Yamile Saied Méndez