Within mere seconds of hearing his footsteps, I froze, and the hairs on the back of my neck rose in anticipation of what was to come.I lay there, half asleep, numb with terror in the black of night, hoping he had simply confused my room with his own. As usual, luck wasn't with me...After years of living under the tyrannical rule of her mother, and the leering eyes of her mother's boyfriend, Hailey Cunningham has only one goal - escape. Despite her struggles, Hailey must find the courage to leave her old life behind, and embark on a life-changing journey to the big city, where the lure of anonymity is too strong to resist. With her life at a crossroads, will her passion for music be enough to help her persevere? Or will Hailey's new-found freedom allow her to find love and friendship where she least expects it?Exploring modern teen issues against the backdrop of a factory town, Surviving Seventeen is a provocative portrayal of a teenage girl on the cusp of adulthood, with all its joys and sorrows.