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Marred Mask
With a mask that conceals and a personality that defies,
a heart that breaks and a soul that nosedives,
when trauma hooked hostility and life broke prosperity,
when love lost and her body became property,
when bullies lived rent free in the mind
she fought out of the demon's bind,
the journey of a girl who fought
to find light in every darkening thought,
from the depths of brutality and the darkest corners of the brain
comes a story of resilience and a fighter that overcame.
a heart that breaks and a soul that nosedives,
when trauma hooked hostility and life broke prosperity,
when love lost and her body became property,
when bullies lived rent free in the mind
she fought out of the demon's bind,
the journey of a girl who fought
to find light in every darkening thought,
from the depths of brutality and the darkest corners of the brain
comes a story of resilience and a fighter that overcame.
404 pages, Paperback
Published July 11, 2025
7 people are currently reading
19 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
December 31, 2025
An amazing book of poetry. Really takes you through a ton of emotions. Loved it!
September 4, 2025
A work of poetry that doesn’t just touch the soul, but tells a story in the process. Marred Mask is a story of 10 years compacted into beautiful verses that brings a smile to your face & tears to your eyes.
November 2, 2025
When I tell you this book broke me more than once I’m not exaggerating. I had to take some breaks cause it’s so raw but the follow through was rewarded. Highly recommend!
October 12, 2025
I really loved it! It was so creative and well done. I loved how, although there were single pieces of poetry, it all came together to form a solid story structure. I’ve never read something like it. It was super relatable and gave me hope for the future 💕 The ONLY reason I didn’t give it 5 stars was because there was a typo or two here and there. Other than that, I recommend it.
September 22, 2025
A Powerful and Beautifully Written Journey
This poetry collection is an emotional and healing journey that takes you from pain and struggle to hope and joy. Each poem is written with such honesty and depth that you can truly feel every emotion the author pours into her words. The writing is beautifully powerful, and anyone who has experienced trauma or gone through a healing process will find comfort and connection in these pages.
What makes this book stand out is how relatable and meaningful it is—you never feel alone while reading it. The poems flow in a way that tells a story, carrying you through the challenges of recovery and leading to a place of peace. The author’s ability to share her story through poetry is moving and impactful, leaving you with both heavy heart moments and uplifting hope.
This is not just a book—it’s an experience, one that will stay with you long after you finish. Truly one of the top books of the year, and I cannot wait to read more from this author.
This poetry collection is an emotional and healing journey that takes you from pain and struggle to hope and joy. Each poem is written with such honesty and depth that you can truly feel every emotion the author pours into her words. The writing is beautifully powerful, and anyone who has experienced trauma or gone through a healing process will find comfort and connection in these pages.
What makes this book stand out is how relatable and meaningful it is—you never feel alone while reading it. The poems flow in a way that tells a story, carrying you through the challenges of recovery and leading to a place of peace. The author’s ability to share her story through poetry is moving and impactful, leaving you with both heavy heart moments and uplifting hope.
This is not just a book—it’s an experience, one that will stay with you long after you finish. Truly one of the top books of the year, and I cannot wait to read more from this author.
October 1, 2025
I have so many words for this collection of poems. I went from shock, to crying and sobbing, to begging the protagonist, to crying again and again and again for so many different reasons. The prose flowed so beautifully together that sometimes it truly felt like a spinning waltz, and at the end, it was just a wild consuming of words. So many times I had goosebumps on my arms because of the beauty written on paper!
Most of all, take this away from my review; stories like this need to be read and heard.
Corina, how very brave you are for opening up your heart and allowing others into the most intimate parts of your story. I can’t even explain to you how special it feels to have been brought into that space and see the struggles and then the triumph and joy at the end. Celebrating you tonight at like 1 am while I try and get wind down for bed after that wild ride, haha!
Most of all, take this away from my review; stories like this need to be read and heard.
Corina, how very brave you are for opening up your heart and allowing others into the most intimate parts of your story. I can’t even explain to you how special it feels to have been brought into that space and see the struggles and then the triumph and joy at the end. Celebrating you tonight at like 1 am while I try and get wind down for bed after that wild ride, haha!
November 10, 2025
It’s been a long time since I’ve read poetry. It’s not my ordinary type of read. However, I made a friend in Corina, and wanted to give the due diligence of reading her book, Marred Mask.
Nearly every person will experience trauma, some worse than others. And very few people ever recover, ever find the courage to even talk about it.
I admire this author for putting her story out there, and in such a vulnerable medium such as a book.
Lastly, this is one of the more unique books I’ve read. An entire book composed of poetry that tells an entire story. Truly, I’ve never read anything like it!
Nearly every person will experience trauma, some worse than others. And very few people ever recover, ever find the courage to even talk about it.
I admire this author for putting her story out there, and in such a vulnerable medium such as a book.
Lastly, this is one of the more unique books I’ve read. An entire book composed of poetry that tells an entire story. Truly, I’ve never read anything like it!
August 4, 2025
@theenchantedemberlibrary: I was deeply struck by how you captured real-life events with such raw, expressive language—it didn’t just tell a story, it pulled me into the weight of each moment as if I were living it alongside you. The way you used a wide, deliberate vocabulary to describe the sensory overwhelm and emotional aftermath gave the writing a haunting kind of clarity that stayed with me long after.”
August 26, 2025
poetry and heavy heart feelings
This book of poetry broke my heart in ways that I loved! Sharing your story through poetry is so powerful and meaningful. Corina does a great job of taking you on a heavy heart journey that leads to a great ending! If you plan to read this book please check your mental health first because some of the poetry is very heavy and dark. I would highly recommend reading this book!
This book of poetry broke my heart in ways that I loved! Sharing your story through poetry is so powerful and meaningful. Corina does a great job of taking you on a heavy heart journey that leads to a great ending! If you plan to read this book please check your mental health first because some of the poetry is very heavy and dark. I would highly recommend reading this book!
July 4, 2025
I'm extremely thankful I was able to receive Marred Mask early to read and review by an amazing author!
Definitely read the trigger warnings for Marred Mask, some readers may be more uncomfortable than others when reading.
Marred Mask is a beautifully written poetry book that tells a story about falling in love, experiencing abuse in it's many forms, the fall that comes after break up and rebuilding ones self from the ground up that includes new found love.
As someone who has experienced mental abuse in a past relationship, it was an amazing feeling to read someone else's story and not feel alone in having the same thoughts and experiences.
I recommend Marred Mask to anyone who feels alone and needs someone to relate to and feel comfort in relating to their story.
Definitely read the trigger warnings for Marred Mask, some readers may be more uncomfortable than others when reading.
Marred Mask is a beautifully written poetry book that tells a story about falling in love, experiencing abuse in it's many forms, the fall that comes after break up and rebuilding ones self from the ground up that includes new found love.
As someone who has experienced mental abuse in a past relationship, it was an amazing feeling to read someone else's story and not feel alone in having the same thoughts and experiences.
I recommend Marred Mask to anyone who feels alone and needs someone to relate to and feel comfort in relating to their story.
July 15, 2025
I received an ARC from Corina herself and I am so grateful for it!
her poetry is beyond beautiful, it offers a deep exploration of SA and all the hurt and pain that follows it. with that being said, please do read the trigger warnings before starting this book.
some of my favorite poems (and ones that really left a mark on me) are Tourism of the Broken,Vultures and Abuse in Disguise.
an amazing debut from an amazing author! 10/10 would recommend!
her poetry is beyond beautiful, it offers a deep exploration of SA and all the hurt and pain that follows it. with that being said, please do read the trigger warnings before starting this book.
some of my favorite poems (and ones that really left a mark on me) are Tourism of the Broken,Vultures and Abuse in Disguise.
an amazing debut from an amazing author! 10/10 would recommend!
August 28, 2025
If I could rate it 10 stars I would! The way Cori captured every emotion in every single poem to make me feel what she was feeling is an understatement! I bawled and bawled over some of these poems. So please please please buy a box of tissues when you read this book!
July 17, 2025
loved every word. everything pulls together and makes you feel through each section.
November 6, 2025
This is the first book I’ve read of prose. At times I did not understand but one thing really comes through. The author bears her soul writing about pain, abuse and loss. It really describes a painful journey followed by hope and a new love.
September 17, 2025
Absolutely beautiful work.
January 1, 2026
This was a 6 star read for me . I want to thank the author for letting me be arc reader for this amazing book .Her poetry hit close to home for me being a domestic abuser survivor.
The poetry is written beautifully. Not only does the author show you all aspects of relationships with their ups to the down right worse, to finally finding the person who treats you amazing. The poetry is realistic and very relatable. It shows that your mental health matters and that you are worth being apart of this world. Please read your trigger warnings, there are parts that can bring triggering . I know I was in tears for how many times I related to the poetry.
I have reread this so many times
The poetry is written beautifully. Not only does the author show you all aspects of relationships with their ups to the down right worse, to finally finding the person who treats you amazing. The poetry is realistic and very relatable. It shows that your mental health matters and that you are worth being apart of this world. Please read your trigger warnings, there are parts that can bring triggering . I know I was in tears for how many times I related to the poetry.
I have reread this so many times
July 14, 2025
I have always been a fan of poetry and the way it allows people to really express emotions and tell a story. Marred Mask was definitely one of those reads. You really get to go through every emotion and experience with her as she tells her story. I definitely recommend reading this but please be aware that it may be triggering for some as this collection spans over a decade of trauma this author went through. Some parts of this may be hard to get through so, as the author told those of us who had the privilege of reading this as an arc, please take into consideration your own mental health while reading this.
October 2, 2025
Where do I begin with this journey- because that’s exactly what this was for me. A HEALING journey !!! I cried more than words can explain and relate more than I hate to admit. This was such a beautiful story of RAW TRUE emotions of someone losing themselves dealing with TRAUMAAA and finding self love then true love and the author did an incredible job writing these poems. This helped me personally heal past issues I tried to mask away and hide from the world but never truly face and after reading this I honestly can say it’s time to let it go.
July 14, 2025
A poetry read that reveals the deepest and darkest moments in the author's soul. Marred Mask was gut wrenchingly vulnerable. There were several times throughout that I stopped to collect myself, tears in my eyes. Overall this read is not for the faint of heart, but truly does tell a story of hope; of finding something, anything, to live for and dragging yourself to find that again in the next day.
August 21, 2025
I am extremely thankful to this author for writing this book and for sharing her story in her own words. Poetry is a powerful form of communication and she presents her story wonderfully through this in the book. At times it is so powerful that it does bring you to tears but her strength is admirable.
- post office acquaintance
- post office acquaintance
September 1, 2025
A raw and poignant collection of poems delving into the depths of trauma and resilience. Through her words, Deiters uncovers the hidden truths we often mask. The book is a personal journey through darkness, yet it shines with a glimmer of hope. Be warned, this isn't light reading; it's emotional and real, hitting hard on subjects some may find triggering.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews