It Could Have Been You

by Merlyn Nuttall, Helena Kennedy (Foreword by)

In February 1992, Merlyn Nuttall was hurrying to work early one morning, heading for Brixton tube station as usual. Then a man appeared, apparently in need of help for his girlfriend. She followed him and within minutes he was forcing her at knifepoint into an empty end-of-terrace house. 45 minutes later, naked, bleeding from throat slashes and near death, Merlyn was on the front steps of the house, trying to summon help. She survived the horrific rape and attempted murder but her fight for recovery and to gain compensation brought her against some surprising areas of resistance—including the refusal of the NHS to pay for plastic surgery on her neck scars. Here she tells her story with the aim of helping other victims navigate the complex, sometimes indifferent, system as well as to provide vital information for those who care for victims.

184 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[BookishDramas · Rating 5 out of 5]

True story
I had read this book back in 1998 and had lost the copy while shifting back home from college. I had forgotten the name of the book. Thanks to a couple of happy coincidences, a chance remark in a friends profile here at Goodreads which came up as a notification in my mail as she posted a new comment and probably providence compelled me to check the persons profile, where I saw the cover of this book in the favorite books list and was able to recognize it. This was a compelling true story and not everyone has the guts to follow up her case as she was able to do.

I had read this book as a true crime and the case was a shock to my sensibilities. Merlyn is a heroine having suffered utter depravity and injuries to the point of death and managing to keep her strength and wits together to recover from the physical as well as psychological injuries and emotional scarring. I am surprised that not many people have read this story.

[Geraldine Dunne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book in the 2004 and i was shocked to be honest. I know the area she wrote about where the attack happened. It's graphical in the description and horrific. Its got a hero in the fireman who helped her by putting a compress on the wounds to try stem the bleeding. Thank God for decent people who don't just walk by.
Great read and I recommend that you give it a read.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book when it was first published in 1997 when I worked for the same company as Merlyn Nuttall (BhS) and her story was being talked about amongst us at work. It was a shocking and truthful book about what this brave lady went through in the hands of a disturbed maniac and managed to survive her awful heart wrenching ordeal. Her story needs to be read to understand what actually happened to her on that fateful morning when she stopped to help... what she thought....was someone in need of help!!!

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read a signed by the author copy loaned to me by a member of her family.