Four out of five stars
As with the first two novels by Marita A. Hansen, I found myself becoming emotionally involved with these characters right from the very first chapter. It was easy to forget I was reading a novel of fiction rather than following the chaotic lives of real people. Her characters came across gut wrenchingly real to this reader and forced me to keep turning those pages until long past my bedtime, not just because I found myself interested in what might happen, but because I ‘HAD’ to know. My only reason for dropping the score from five stars to four was the tendency to have minor characters unable to keep secrets. I found myself questioning a few areas concerning this, which unfortunately took me out of the action. This is probably a personal issue and might not bother many other readers. It wasn’t enough to interfere with my overall enjoyment. It is not an easy read in that life is tough and not always fair. I believe Behind the Tears offers a realistic view into how people can find themselves trapped into a drug, violence, and gang related lifestyle. Definitely worth the reasonable price I paid for my Kindle copy and a story I know I’ll read again in the future.
Denna Holm 