Salonika Street

An abandoned quarry at one oclock in the morning. Cars skidding in the gravel, their headlights carving through the darkness. A dozen young men celebrating their bucks night, high on booze and testosterone. And a terrified sixteen-year-old girl, waiting to be sacrificed to their lust. Later, when she finds the courage to stand up in court and tell the truth about the savagery they inflicted on her, she is violated again—this time, by the people charged with protecting her from harm. Salonkia Street is the true story of Julie Stringer. How she forged a successful business career, breaking through the blatant sexism of the times. How a ruthless company director then pulled the rug from underneath her, plunging her into a crisis of alcohol abuse, depression and bulimia. And how she dragged herself out of the depths of despair, and confronted the consequences of her rape: that she had made a stone of her heart. Her redemption arrives in the shape of Sam, who teaches her how to love joyously, without conditions. But when Sam is suddenly snatched away, Julie faces the fight of her life. The fight to win him back. Drawn into an under-world of drug crime and violence she shows strength and fearless determination that few people will ever possess. Raw, heartfelt and uncompromising Salonika Street will make you realise that sometimes in life, all is not what it seems. Author Biography: After more than fifteen years running the same race as the other career corporate rats, Julie Stringer now lives a relaxed and healthy lifestyle on Queenslands Sunshine Coast. Following an impressive career in I.T. and the travel industry, she undertook studies with the Australian Institute of Applied Psychology and dedicated a great deal of her written work to the area of depression in women. After graduating, she devoted her field assignments to the area of drug and alcohol addiction, a devastating form of dependence she knows too well. Having forged through her own emotional issues of alcohol addiction, clinical depression, and bulimia, she is passionate on the topics of health, personal development, self-awareness, and the belief that emotional recovery is truly possible. She has proven to herself and many others, that you are truly braver than you believe.