Susan Caringella explores the legal definitions and prosecution of rape, especially date/acquaintance rape, deconstructing the myths and rhetoric used to blame the victim and presenting practical solutions to the problem of rape reform. Drawing on feminist and critical theory in sociology and criminology, as well as conservative and liberal theory in political science, this book assesses alternative models of rape reform, relying on concrete court cases and statistical data and the fascinating revelations of public opinion and attitude studies, which showcase the discrimination and humiliation rape victims face when they go public.

Susan Caringella's painstaking, provocative, and highly readable research probes every aspect of rape law and the discrepancies between enacted and implemented law, or ideal law (on the books) and real law (law in action). She canvasses the success and failures of reform in the United States as well as Australia, Britain, Canada, and New Zealand, and uniquely delineates a creative alternative model for change, with an eye toward practicality. She further addresses the discretion that permeates criminal justice decision-making and undermines efforts at reform. These issues include charging the accused and plea bargaining; confronting a lack of transparency and accountability in implementing law; and acquiring funding for affecting change. Caringella writes the first comprehensive book on rape since Susan Brownmiller's Against Our Will (1975) and Susan Estrich's Real Rape (1987), and touches on such modern-day cases as the University of Colorado rapes, the Kobe Bryant case, and the accusations lodged against the Duke lacrosse team.