Book Review - Pure

Title: Pure

Author: Terra Elan McVoy

Synposis from Goodreads: Promise. Betrayal. Confession. Revenge.

Tabitha and her four best friends all wear purity rings, symbols of the virginity-until-marriage pledge they made years ago. Now Tab is fifteen, and her ring has come to mean so much more. It's a symbol of who she is and what she believes—a reminder of her promises to herself, and her bond to her friends. But when Tab meets a boy whose kisses make her knees go weak, everything suddenly seems a lot more complicated. Tab's best friend, Morgan, is far from supportive, and for the first time, Tabitha is forced to keep secrets from the one person with whom she's always shared everything. When one of those secrets breaks to the surface, Tab finds herself at the center of an unthinkable betrayal that splits her friends apart. As Tab's entire world comes crashing down around her, she's forced to re-examine her friendships, her faith, and what exactly it means to be pure.

My Review: Based on the synopsis of Pure, I was expecting an intense religious message, and though the main character is a devout Christian and they do talk about their beliefs, it isn't thrown down your throats. Or at least it doesn't feel like it.

*Spoiler Alert*

Tabitha has made a promise with her four best friends that she will stay pure, a virgin, until marriage. But when she finds out that one of her best friends has broken that promise, without regrets, her world is turned upside down as the friends turn on each other. Tabitha is then forced to ask herself what it really means to be pure and what she truly believes.

I loved that Tabitha didn't sit back and let her friends dictate what she should believe, particularly her friend, Morgan. They were twelve when they made the promise and donned their rings for the first time, and though twelve year old is more than capable of understanding what they just did, Tabitha did it more because her friends were doing it and she wanted to be a part of it all. Now that she's fifteen, it would be easy to go with the flow still, but when Morgan and Naeomi turn their backs on Cara for a decision she made, it just doesn't settle with Tabitha. It feels wrong to her. To me, that makes perfect sense. Through Tabitha's own research, she is reminded of the greatest of all commandments which is to love others as thou would love thyself. You don't have to agree with a friend's decision, but you don't have to shun them either. When we love someone, we love them for who they are, not what they do/did.

For me, that was the greatest message of the book. I would definitely recommend this to teenagers and their parents, especially to parents who are finding it difficult to address this issue with their own teenagers. It can help break the ice and lead the way for discussions.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.