What Are The Main Themes In Troubled: A Memoir Of Foster Care?

Shea’s past has left her feeling detached and exposed. Even years later, the echo of old pain still drifts around her. When Her best friend's brother randomly rescues her at a party and takes her home, she can’t help but wonder if this beautiful boy may be able to quiet her fears. Luke hasn’t been able to take his mind off of the troubled quiet girl with a spotty reputation. After a few confusing run-ins and a lot of mixed signals he finally gets to shoot his shot with her. When it matters most can Luke speak louder than her fears? Can Shea be brave enough to face her troubled past, and allow someone else into her life after abuse?

After my son was abducted, my husband took me to an adoption center to bring home a baby boy born the same year as the child we'd lost. I poured every ounce of love I had into raising him. He had a sensitive stomach, so I pushed through my chronic back pain to cook him special meals every single day. When he spiked a fever in the middle of the night, I carried him twenty miles through the rain to the nearest hospital. When he couldn't focus in school, I was constantly at his classroom door, flattering his teachers and bringing them gifts, just to get them to pay a little extra attention to him. Fifteen years of grinding sacrifice, and it all came down to one moment at his college acceptance party. "I couldn't have gotten into Harvard without my mother's love and hard work," he said into the microphone. He raised his glass, eyes drifting toward where I was sitting. The cameras flashed as I started to rise from my seat, matching his silent lip movements. And then I heard a name I didn't expect. "She is Rachel Lynch." I froze. That was my best friend's name.

Rumor had spread through the Vittori family that the daughter they had lost years ago had finally been found. The moment I heard, I left the family branch and rushed back to the main estate. My car had barely stopped when a young woman hurried over and grabbed my hand. “So you’re the Vittori family’s adopted daughter,” she said with a smile that looked painfully sincere. “Your dress is so beautiful. It must cost tens of thousands of dollars. You can tell you’ve never really had to worry about anything before. Unlike me. I grew up in places where even finding my next meal was a problem.” For a second, I didn’t understand what she meant. Then her eyes lowered to the only necklace around her neck. “This is the only thing I have from Mother,” she whispered. “Please don’t hate me for wearing it.” The next second, she suddenly grabbed my hand, dragged it up toward her throat, and yanked hard. The necklace snapped. Pearls scattered across the marble floor. “Why would you do that?” she cried, staring at me in shock. “If you hate seeing Mother’s gift on me, I’ll take it off right now. I won’t stay and make things difficult for you. Just please don’t tell Father and Mother. I don’t want them caught in the middle, and I don’t want this family fighting because of me.” She curled into herself on the marble floor, shaking as she cried, while the guests around us immediately turned to stare. I stood there completely stunned. I had imagined a thousand ways I might meet my daughter again. I never imagined she would look me in the eye, mistake me for someone else, and frame me before I had even spoken. Because I was not Valentina. I was her mother.

My name is Chase Murphy. I've been married to Jessica Stanton for three years. After she tells me that she's infertile, she brings home two children from an orphanage. I raise them as my own, investing everything I have into their lives. But in return, they push me down the stairs without a second thought. "Now our real dad can finally be with Mom." In that split second, the truth crashes down on me. These aren't just any children—they belong to Jessica and her first love, Troy McPoland. When I open my eyes again, I find myself transported back to the day Jessica first introduces the children into our lives. This time, I'm done being the fool raising someone else's family.

On the day I'm diagnosed with dependent personality disorder, my family treats me like I'm the most fragile porcelain. My parents put me first in everything. Mom even quits her executive job to stay by my side during treatment. The day my condition finally stabilizes, they smile with genuine relief for the first time. Even my adopted older sister, Winifred Linberry, smiles. She says, "I told you Sadie wasn't that sick. She just wanted to hog your attention." That day, my parents scold her for the first time and insist she apologize to me. On the night she goes to a class reunion, I quietly mention that my heart feels a little uneasy. Dad suddenly slams the medicine box in his hand onto the floor. He roars, "Can't you be a little more considerate? Your sister just lost her competition and she's already upset! We've spent every day revolving around you. Can't we spend just a few hours with her? "If you don't feel well, take your medicine yourself. We've had enough!" The pills scatter across the floor. He grabs his jacket and storms out, slamming the door behind him. Mom looks at me, as if she wants to say something. In the end, she says nothing and follows him out. I don't say a word. I simply dig my fingernails into my arm as my breathing becomes more and more difficult.

“You will move to the Emerson’s family,” the judge announced, his voice echoing through the cold courtroom. His final words hung in the air, making me jump as he used his gavel to close my argument to move to yet another foster home. My name is Emily. For the past three years, I have been caught in a perpetual cycle of living in between foster homes, on the unforgiving streets The tragic loss of my parents when I was only fourteen left me with no choice but to rely on the mercy of the foster system. Unfortunately, my only living relative, deemed me too much of a burden due to my unpredictable moods. Consequently, I have been tossed from one foster family to another like a forgotten toy. With only four months left until my eighteenth birthday, I find myself being sent to live with the Emerson family. From what I've heard, they have two daughters and a son named Aiden, whose ego supposedly matches his oversized shoes. Aiden Emerson, a name that resonates throughout the Ford Anglia School. He holds the distinction of being the youngest student to become a billionaire at the tender age of twenty-four he had become the proud owner of eight thriving establishments. Will they be able to cope with me, considering my troubled past? Or will I end up running away again, seeking solace on the unforgiving streets where I learned to numb my pain with drugs and temporary escapes? Now, here I am, on my way to the Emerson family, my last stop before I turn eighteen and gain the freedom to decide my own fate. I can't help but wonder what lies ahead. Will my past mistakes and inner demons continue to haunt me, pushing me towards the edge of oblivion?