Slave Girl - I Was an Ordinary British Gir. I Was Kidnapped and Sold into Sex Slavery. This is My Horrific True Story: I Was an Ordinary British Girl. ... Sex Slavery. This is My Horrific True Story [Kindle Edition]

I read a lot of books but have not really delved into the 'tragic life stories' genre before, but Slave Girl caught my eye on the shelf and even though the subject matter is unpleasant I was really struck by the element of hope in the book. Sarah has been to hell and back but she survived to tell the tale. Other people in that situation would have accepted their fate and given up but she kept fighting and eventually escaped. I felt like I was with her every step of the way and respect and admire Sarah for her courage and resiliance.
I was shocked to discover that 70% of the prostitutes in Amsterdam's red light district are forced to work there by greedy gangsters. Sarah's voice needs to be heard so that tourists to that city know the misery that goes on behind those windows. The corrupt police should be named and shamed and a full investigation into the local government needs to be conducted so girls like Sarah shouldn't have to go through that ordeal ever again.

Last year I wrote Trafficked: The Diary of a Sex Slave to try and raise awareness about trafficking, so after my research for it I was expecting a lot of the horrific ordeal that Sarah describes in her book, but many others will not be. This book is a must-read and is very well-written. You will cry while reading Sarah's heart-breaking story, and you will feel disgusted, sick, and angry, but it's a story that needs to be read. No one should have to go through this. Slave Girl addresses a lot of common misconceptions surrounding prostitution - mainly that these women must've got into it by choice. Society doesn't pay attention to the reason prostitutes are doing what they're doing. They don't stop and think how they got into that situation - far better to ignore it than have to deal with the horrendous fact that trafficking is a huge global problem that makes a hell of a lot of money for those involved, from the bottom right up to the very top. That woman working on a street corner or in a sauna or massage parlour that you see every day could be trafficked. In the UK, it is not hidden from view, but blatantly in your face - street corners, massage parlours freely advertising in phone boxes, on the net, in newspapers, and yet very little is done to protect these women from trafficking. Another misconception is that victims can just escape - it's not as simple as that. As Sarah says " Not all prisons have bars and walls - some are in the mind." Victims hardly ever speak out because they're subjected to unimaginable abuse and violence, or their families are threatened. They cannot escape because they are brainwashed into believing their captors and they don't know who to trust. In Sarah's case, she was further bound to her captors after being fed drugs just to get through her living hell. An addiction she's still struggling to deal with.

Sarah's previous history with abuse may have made her more vulnerable, but it could easily happen to you, or your daughter, or your sister, or your wife. She put her trust in the wrong person. A mistake that was a tragedy for her and could've cost her life. It did cost others mentioned in the book their lives. It proves that a normal person who accidentally slips up could be in the same situation. In fact, it's going on under your nose right now. Together, we can all do something to raise awareness. This is not someone else's problem - it's everyone's problem.

I applaud Sarah for having the strength and courage to share her story, and break the common misconceptions that surround trafficking. She is one of the lucky ones who managed to escape, but she is far from healed. Everything that's happened to her is an ongoing struggle to deal with. I really hope that one day she will heal the invisible psychological wounds.

I read this book in a matter of hours. It was so compelling.
Being the same age as Sarah and also living in the Newcastle area, this book really struck home.
My husband also read the book and we talked for hours afterwards about Sarah's ordeal.
If Sarah ever reads this comment... I wish you all the best in the future - you deserve it x x x