ARC Review: The Girl in Cell 49B by Dorian Box!

Thank you so much to Fiction Press via Bookish First for the digital ARC of The Girl in Cell 49B by Dorian Box! This is an amazing sequel to The Hiding Girl! These are fast paced, intense books, with fun, hope, and an absolutely fierce young woman lead! For The Hiding Girl: Click to see that review here!

Quick Facts:

Title: The Girl in Cell 49B
Series: Emily Calby, #2
Author: Dorian Box
Publisher & Release: Fiction Press, March 1st 2021
Length: 286 pg
Rate & Recommend: 5🌟 for entertainment value

Here is the synopsis from GoodReads:

Arrested for murder on her sixteenth birthday and extradited to a corrupt juvenile prison, Emily—“the missing Calby girl”—fights for her life against a vindictive prosecutor in an explosive trial as the dark secrets behind the prison walls close in.

Emily Calby disappeared at age twelve, the only survivor of a notorious home invasion. Three years after her terrifying odyssey in The Hiding Girl, she’s safe, living in anonymity with her mentor, ex-gang member Lucas Jackson—before life blows up again on her Sweet Sixteen birthday. Arrested for carrying her birthday gift—an illegal handgun from Lucas—a fingerprint scan shows her to be the missing Calby girl and worse: she’s wanted for murder in another state.

Extradited to a corrupt juvenile prison in the middle of nowhere, Emily struggles to adjust to a new code of survival while battling a vindictive prosecutor willing to resort to any means to convict her. As The Law thwarts her every move, she begins to appreciate its awesome power. She discovers an unused prison law library and buries herself in the books, casting her destiny.

As she fights for her life in court, the dark secrets behind the prison walls close in. Her cellmate, a spookily prescient drug addict, is in grave danger. So is her first love, a gentle boy sentenced to life without parole. Emily’s desperate to help them, but how can she, when her explosive trial brings one new disaster after another? A courtroom thriller like no other.

Emily Calby is facing the consequences of her actions from one book, even though it was definitely self defense. She is trying to learn about law and the legal system to help in her murder trial, where the prosecutor is an absolutely vile woman. I can just imagine how so many juvenile offenders are shafted by the legal system, but Emily is determined not to be a statistic.

I was getting Orange Is the New Black mixed with Legally Blond vibes from the time spent in the girls juvenile detention center, and liked how Emily reaches out to the other girls to try to help them … She is such a fierce young lady! The lawyers couldn’t have possibly been any different but I ended up really liking Paula, the public defender too.

Once again the book handles some dark topics though like rape, sexual assault, murder, drugs, and the broken legal system

Lucas had me cracking up again too, I wish we could have seen more from him. I seriously love him and all of these characters. Emily has a lot of personal growth in this one too, including her first crush and continuing to grapple with her PTSD and identity. She learns a lot about privilege too.

These books aren’t by any means fine literature but they are thrilling, fun, and Box’s legal background shines in this one. I devoured it and hope there are more Emily Calby books!