Fiction has always had the power to shine light into places we’d rather not look. In There’s Something I Need to Tell You, author Vega Belogui uses that power to explore one of today’s most misunderstood and stigmatized realities: the emotional toll of an HPV diagnosis. But rather than focusing on sterile medical facts, Belogui turns our attention to the people who live with the virus, and the ripple effects it sends through their relationships, identities, and futures.
At the heart of the novel are two narrators, a twelfth-grade student and her teacher, whose lives take a dramatic turn after they are both diagnosed with HPV. On the surface, their situations could not be more different: one is just beginning adulthood, still shaping her sense of self; the other is an authority figure, already shaped by choices and regrets. Yet both are forced to confront the same unsettling feelings: guilt, shame, fear, and the daunting question of how to move forward when the life you imagined suddenly feels compromised.
Why HPV Matters Here
HPV, or Human Papillomavirus, is one of the most common infections in the world. Millions of people will experience it at some point in their lives. And yet, despite its prevalence, it remains cloaked in silence. The virus is often framed as a moral failing rather than a medical reality. That stigma makes people feel small, ashamed, and undeserving of compassion. Belogui’s novel places that stigma under the microscope, showing how corrosive silence can be, not only for those diagnosed, but also for the people around them.
Two Voices, One Shared Storm
The choice to tell this story through alternating perspectives is more than a literary technique, it is an ethical stance. By giving both the student and the teacher their own voices, Belogui refuses to flatten the complexity of their experiences. Instead, the book invites readers into their private storms, where hope, regret, and confusion collide.
For the student, the diagnosis magnifies questions of self-worth and safety. She wonders if she will ever be loved without judgment, and whether her voice will be taken seriously. For the teacher, the diagnosis is a reckoning with past decisions and a sobering confrontation with responsibility. Where their experiences intersect, tension sparks; where they diverge, readers glimpse the many ways stigma refracts through gender, power, and age.
Suspense Rooted in Humanity
This is not suspense built on cheap shocks. Instead, Belogui uses time itself as a tool of tension. The past bleeds into the present, and the future looms with unanswered questions. Dark events unfold, and a revelation approaches that binds the narrators’ lives more tightly than either expected. It’s a page-turner, but one that lingers because of its humanity, not just its mystery.
Trauma Treated With Care
Importantly, the novel does not shy away from difficult themes such as physical abuse and trauma. But Belogui handles these subjects with clarity and restraint, avoiding sensationalism. The story acknowledges harm without exploiting it, naming violence without reducing characters to victims. This balance makes the book both unflinching and compassionate, qualities too rarely found together in fiction.
From Silence to Solidarity
Perhaps the greatest achievement of There’s Something I Need to Tell You is the way it reframes the narrative around HPV. It reminds us that a diagnosis is not just a medical event, it is an emotional earthquake. The novel argues, implicitly but powerfully, that compassion and accountability must walk hand in hand if healing is ever to take place.
The men in the story, fathers, partners, mentors, are portrayed with nuance. Some protect, some harm, some remain silent. Their presence demonstrates how relationships shape recovery, for better or worse. Healing, Belogui shows us, is not a solitary act but a communal one, built on listening, believing, and choosing honesty over secrecy.
Why This Book Matters
In a world that often silences conversations about sexual health, abuse, and stigma, this novel gives readers the language to begin. It is ideal for book clubs, classrooms, or anyone who values character-driven fiction that engages with pressing social issues. It invites discussion about responsibility, care, and the courage required to speak truths that are too often buried.
By the final chapter, Belogui has accomplished something rare: a story that is both sobering and hopeful. It refuses to sensationalize, yet it refuses to minimize. It makes clear that while a diagnosis may alter a life, it does not define it.
There’s Something I Need to Tell You is more than a novel about HPV. It is a call for awareness, compassion, and solidarity. It is a reminder that behind every statistic is a person with a voice worth hearing. And most of all, it is proof that fiction can change the way we see each other, by daring us to look, and daring us to care.
Amazon Link: There’s Something I Need To Tell You
