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The Case of Billy B
A young boy and his father encounter immense challenges as they struggle to find love and acceptance in an unforgiving world. Abandoned by his own mother, rejected by all but his loving father, Billy B is thrust into a silent hell alone, branded a freak and a misfit. Billy becomes the ultimate life spectator in a game of survival. Who can he count on to save him, when all seems lost?
284 pages, Paperback
First published January 26, 2010
About the author
Cindy Vine
45 books34 followersCindy Vine is an author, mother of three kids, with lots of life experiences she uses as an inspiration source to write her books about. She is a teacher and uses her teaching qualifications to travel around the world teaching.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
April 30, 2010
Wow! An unforgettable book inspired by a true story that everyone should read at least once. I read this book in one day and I just couldn't put it down. I kept thinking about it days after I was done. It is sad to see what that boy, Billy, went through in his life (his mom left him when he was a baby, child abuse...). I recommend this to everyone. It's a must-read!
Want to Read
April 7, 2010I won this in the First Reads giveaway and definitely can't wait to read it! Will post a review soon!
June 1, 2025
WARNING FOR TRIGGERS THAT MAY EFFECT SOME.
This book is inspired by a true story, focusing on a young boy, Billy, and his father as they navigate significant challenges, including abandonment, child abuse, and a psychopathic stalker. After the wife abandons her husband & her New born, things go downhill fast. He is unable to maintain a job, moves to another place hoping life would be better…nope it only turns out worse, the book is one that will keep you reading as the story line is engrossing.
Narrator did not fit for this book
This book is inspired by a true story, focusing on a young boy, Billy, and his father as they navigate significant challenges, including abandonment, child abuse, and a psychopathic stalker. After the wife abandons her husband & her New born, things go downhill fast. He is unable to maintain a job, moves to another place hoping life would be better…nope it only turns out worse, the book is one that will keep you reading as the story line is engrossing.
Narrator did not fit for this book
September 30, 2010
Having read the description for this book on the First Reads giveaways section of Goodreads, I was very taken in by the mystery and intrigue surrounding the plot summary. This book wasn't really what I imagined it to be at all. I think there were a lot of un-necessary parts to this book, or things that I would have preferred to have been done differently.
I wanted to read this book as my Mum loves true story novels, autobiographies, and the like, and thought that she may enjoy reading this when I was done with it. To be blunt, there is no way I would ever give this book to my mother to read. She doesn't enjoy coarse language in books (and there is plenty in this), and the amount of unnecessary sex in it was actually quite shocking.
Don't get me wrong, I'm no prude. I have no problem with swearing or sex in novels. Being a big fan of fantasy books, I'm very used to having random sex scenes crop up in books, or swearing between characters. It just felt rather out of place in this, and almost embarrassing in some places.
I'm not entirely sure I like how Billy was portrayed from his point of view in the book. I feel as though he needed to come across a bit more innocent and childlike. The chapters in the book written 'by Billy' were more adult in language, grammar, etc, than Chris or Stella's chapters. I found this a little strange. Although Billy says in several chapters that he couldn't express how he was feeling to adults in the story because he was only two, or only three, there is no way he would have been having the thoughts that were expressed in the book, in this case. And before anyone says 'it's a book, it's not real', yes, I understand that, but it just didn't really seem to fit.
Despite the niggles, the storyline was, as expected, harrowing, and thought provoking. Characterisation was good, and everything was described in a very imaginable way. The ending, with everything else that had gone on within the book, was very creepy and unnerving which fit the whole emphasis and style. All in all, not a bad book, just maybe not my cup of tea. It just seemed to feel like it may need a bit more tweaking or re-thinking in my humble opinion.
I wanted to read this book as my Mum loves true story novels, autobiographies, and the like, and thought that she may enjoy reading this when I was done with it. To be blunt, there is no way I would ever give this book to my mother to read. She doesn't enjoy coarse language in books (and there is plenty in this), and the amount of unnecessary sex in it was actually quite shocking.
Don't get me wrong, I'm no prude. I have no problem with swearing or sex in novels. Being a big fan of fantasy books, I'm very used to having random sex scenes crop up in books, or swearing between characters. It just felt rather out of place in this, and almost embarrassing in some places.
I'm not entirely sure I like how Billy was portrayed from his point of view in the book. I feel as though he needed to come across a bit more innocent and childlike. The chapters in the book written 'by Billy' were more adult in language, grammar, etc, than Chris or Stella's chapters. I found this a little strange. Although Billy says in several chapters that he couldn't express how he was feeling to adults in the story because he was only two, or only three, there is no way he would have been having the thoughts that were expressed in the book, in this case. And before anyone says 'it's a book, it's not real', yes, I understand that, but it just didn't really seem to fit.
Despite the niggles, the storyline was, as expected, harrowing, and thought provoking. Characterisation was good, and everything was described in a very imaginable way. The ending, with everything else that had gone on within the book, was very creepy and unnerving which fit the whole emphasis and style. All in all, not a bad book, just maybe not my cup of tea. It just seemed to feel like it may need a bit more tweaking or re-thinking in my humble opinion.
June 10, 2010
Cindy Vine kindly made three of her books available for free, as eBooks, in a promotion at Smashwords back in May, and being a lover of ‘free’ I couldn’t resist the opportunity, especially as I do most of my book reading using my smartphone these days. It took a while for me to get around to reading them (hey! I’m busy you know!) but I wasn’t disappointed when I did.
I read them in the ‘wrong’ order. That is, not in the order they were published, but each is a self-contained story, about different characters, so it’s not a necessity. I started with The Case Of Billy B, then moved on to Stop The World I Want To Pee, then to Not Telling.
All three books, although not directly connected, deal with difficult topics. Billy B is the victim of child abuse, Fenella, in Stop The World, could be described as a slightly reluctant wild child, and Jenny, in Not Telling, is the victim not only of misfortune but also of sex abuse as a child.
So, if you are looking for a cosy, rose-coloured glasses read then these books are not for you. But despite the stories being about the raw side of humanity, Cindy Vine’s writing, and her insight into her characters make them well worth reading.
It would be nice, perhaps, if the world was a place where such cruelty, both directed and random, did not exist, but we’ve a long way to go before we reach that stage, if we ever do. I sometimes find myself wondering how people can behave as they do, when I hear a story of cruelty on the News, particularly when the victims are children. Cindy explores how such things can happen and puts depth into all the characters involved, both good and bad.
I happily recommend Cindy’s books, and thank her for making them available in the way she did. Even though the free promotion is over, you can still purchase the eBooks for only $1.50 at Smashwords.
I read them in the ‘wrong’ order. That is, not in the order they were published, but each is a self-contained story, about different characters, so it’s not a necessity. I started with The Case Of Billy B, then moved on to Stop The World I Want To Pee, then to Not Telling.
All three books, although not directly connected, deal with difficult topics. Billy B is the victim of child abuse, Fenella, in Stop The World, could be described as a slightly reluctant wild child, and Jenny, in Not Telling, is the victim not only of misfortune but also of sex abuse as a child.
So, if you are looking for a cosy, rose-coloured glasses read then these books are not for you. But despite the stories being about the raw side of humanity, Cindy Vine’s writing, and her insight into her characters make them well worth reading.
It would be nice, perhaps, if the world was a place where such cruelty, both directed and random, did not exist, but we’ve a long way to go before we reach that stage, if we ever do. I sometimes find myself wondering how people can behave as they do, when I hear a story of cruelty on the News, particularly when the victims are children. Cindy explores how such things can happen and puts depth into all the characters involved, both good and bad.
I happily recommend Cindy’s books, and thank her for making them available in the way she did. Even though the free promotion is over, you can still purchase the eBooks for only $1.50 at Smashwords.
January 24, 2012
It's very hard for me to say I didn't like a book, but that is how I felt about this one. The dialogue and discussions made from the view point of the child were way to "old". Whether you are abused or not, at 1 year old you dont sound 60 and you dont cuss and you dont wonder if God loves you. The steriotypical garbage in this story really set me off. For instance: Military White Men being stupid and only out for sex; over religious foster parents harping on God; hippies; big busted women being needy, sluts, and crazy; all women are trash and cheats.
May 18, 2011
I always like books that are narrated or told from the child's perspective. I loved the way the story started but poor Billy.... The abuse he endures is mind blowing. Made me mad at the father. Only thing that I didn't like as much was that the PTS Army thing almost seemed thrown in there. It didn't seem ad prevalent in the beginning.
October 17, 2011
Heart wrenching
July 13, 2014
Awesome book, couldn't put it down, such an ending!
Awesome book, I would recommend it highly, I could not put it down. I would read it again, very interesting.
Awesome book, I would recommend it highly, I could not put it down. I would read it again, very interesting.
July 14, 2011
I felt it was written for a tweener by a tweener,
Sorry.......
Sorry.......
August 8, 2012
Odd story but it was an interesting read.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews