The Little Girl on the Ice Floe

When Adelaide's parents find her mute and unable to explain why she is crying, they bring her to the police station and file a complaint against "X" for sexual assault. Adelaide grows up without showing any outward signs of damage. As a teen and then as an outwardly cheerful young woman, she suffers in silence, battling her demons alone. Twenty-three years later, Adelaide receives a call from the juvenile squad. An investigator has reopened the classified case of "the electrician" and DNA analysis points to a man known to the police as a serial burglar. He is subsequently charged with assaulting 72 minors between 1983 and 2003, and it is suspected that he has hurt hundreds of others who never filed complaints. In the spring of 2016, at the Paris city court, along with 18 other women, Adelaide confronts the rapist who destroyed her life. In precise and delicate prose, with poise and passion, Adelaide Bon tells a story that is both terrifying and all too common. This French bestseller is critical reading for all.