We Need To Talk: The truth about sexual violence and my fight for justice

'As inspiring as it is enraging, Emily Hunt turns trauma into action, exposing a criminal justice system that fails women, and a culture that enables violence against us. A rallying call for change, and a powerful lesson in perseverance from a woman who would not give up.' The Guardian

Emily was in a restaurant, having lunch with her father – the next thing she remembers is waking up, naked, in a strange hotel room, next to a man she did not know. She suspected she had been drugged and raped. She later found out she had been filmed without her consent.

What happened to her that night could have happened to anyone. What came next happens to far too many victims, as failures by the police, CPS and other parts of the system, led to Emily doubting she would ever find justice.

Six years after her attack, Emily is an adviser to the UK Government on sexual violence. Part memoir and part investigation, Emily shines a light on the fault lines of a system and a society that is failing rape victims. We Need To Talk looks at how rape is a mainstream, everyday problem deeply damaging victims, their families, their workplaces and the economy.

This is a conversation starter about why we don’t talk about rape; that the only cause of rape is rapists, not rape victims; who commits rape and why; the reasons why society defaults to blaming the victim; and ultimately how we need to change and humanise the way we talk about rape in order to truly hear and support victims and end the current epidemic of sexual violence.

© 2023 Boldwood Books (Audiobook): 9781914451515

Release date

Audiobook: 2 February 2023