Vindicated: Confessions of a Video Vixen, Ten Years Lat… (2024)

I will admit that sometimes I start a book with a great deal of skepticism about its content and this was definitely the case with Vindicated. I read Karrine’s first book where she detailed her so-called exploits with some of hip hop’s biggest names so I had mixed feelings going into this one. A part of me applauded her for behaving in a manner that many men do without any apologies and another part of me thought her behavior was a cry for help.

In Vindicated some answers were given to Karrine and her psyche. In detail, Karrine shares what I assume are diary entries and her memories from the past few years which included her marriage to a well-known actor as well as ongoing relationships with two well-known rappers. Her marriage signifies what is a common cycle amongst women in physical and/or emotional abusive relationships. They know they should leave but something (maybe the hope of change in their partner’s behavior, low self-esteem, fear of the unknown, etc.) causes them to stay and Karrine was no different.

I was torn between rating this book a 3 or 4. I choose to give it a 4 because Vindicated was a brave book for Karrine to share with the world especially because that meant exposing her faults and her own weaknesses. And, while most of the story centers on the mind games her husband played on her and the physical abuse, one thing that stood out to me is that while she was weak for her husband, she was quite strong and wanted others to play along and be completely fine with her being at Lil Wayne’s beck and call. And, this leads to another issue I had with this book: she doesn’t mind calling out Lil Wayne and Bow Wow by name (maybe she needed that name recognition to sell the book), but she gives a pseudonym to her abusive husband (Darius McCrary from Family Matters) and the man who paid her for sex (I am assuming it is Bill Maher) which leads me to believe that a part of her still wants to protect them. Overall, Vindicated can serve as inspiration for other victims of abuse to break free and tell their stories and for that I applaud Karrine Steffans for sharing her story with the world.

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of Vindicated in exchange for an honest review.

I read this with a certain schadenfreude in that no matter how bad my love life is, it's not this bad. The author is a good storyteller and it make this story easy to read. On the other hand, she's an unreliable narrator and often says contradicts herself and tries to paint herself in the best light no matter what happens. In her first marriage, she includes diary entries of events but in another entry it contradicts her account of when they last had sex.

She is an abuse survivor and hugely sympathetic. She gets out of an awful first marriage but then then married a guy who wants a green card and is unkind to him. There's also a thread through of how she is disparaging towards fat people and dark-skinned black people. It was weird how she insulted the second husband for being short, dark, ugly, and dreadlocked when she would often discuss the love of her life, Lil Wayne and how she kept going back to Wayne. The only difference between then was that one was rich and famous and didn't need her.

It was a fast read, but you feel frustrated in that you that you wonder if she will ever break out of the cycle of destructive relationships.

Very impressed and I too feel vindicated

I promised Karrine that I would purchase this book and leave an honest comment so here it goes: at times I was mad at her for going through the cycle with the same person. It became frustrating but I felt her pain during what he put her through! Karrine is a very very strong , determined, crafty yet translucent person who embraced her flaws and her sensitivity regarding love! I thought that there was no hope for her because it seemed that she had lost hope within herself but it's amazing how someone you love so much can hurt you to only give you the catalyst needed to be stronger than ever! I loved every minute of this book and I learned valuable lessons on selflove, a deeper faith in God and never giving up despite the pain and hurt you have gone through! Thanks karrine for helping me to be free and vindicated and for being the voice for abused women! You rock!!!!!

hadn't heard of her, so all the allusions to what I must think of her, the ups and downs of fame, etc. didn't mean much.

funny passage in which she gets (back) together with Lil Wayne and has a self-acceptance breakthru upon realizing that she doesn't have to be average or normal like regular people (phew!).

otherwise, an eventful life of bad abusive relationships, money troubles, custody battles, etc. but not a good writer and not a lot of compelling insight. Looks as though she has a bunch of other books, but i'll skip.

3.5 Stars

There were times I wanted to just put this book down and walk away for awhile. Everyone have lessons to learn in life, without a doubt, but the decisions made throughout the years made me want to pull my hair out and hope she realized she deserve so much better. In the end, I think the lesson she learned is a lesson that any woman can benefit from and learn even from just learning from another woman's lesson in life. But, I will say in the end I'm glad it came together for her outside of just a relationship with her partner but a stronger relationship with herself, her son, and God. Getting through it was difficult because of the abuse she suffered but to see her come out on top was beautiful.

I was interested in reading this book by Karrine Steffans.. It's been 10 years and I wanted to know where she was....it was hard to read about her abuse because you know that this was a beautiful woman who only was looking for love in the wrong places . Her love choices were hard to swallow. At this same time I guess I was looking for her to be more self sufficient and that after 10 years she had learned about messing with people in the industry and that her son was the main focus as far as the man in her life . ..That she had already started putting herself first and knowing what she was worth before all these additional things occurred . ..while I was happy to see the cycle of abuse finally end ...I don't know if the author has found themselves yet....maybe that's the true next vindicated book.

Awesome!!!

I finished this book in two days. It only took me this long cause I had to sleep and & work lol! It was a page turner from start to finish. I'm sooo happy she was able to find her muse and tell her side of the story. It was very relatable as far as the abuse she dealt with because she believed in, wanted & deserved a happy ending!!

it was alright

A trainwreck you can't look away from.

No growth, still as manipulative but without a good ghostwriter. Seems to be stuck her tricking days.

Painful read.

I heard of Karrine Steffans when I was in high school (2006). Everyone was reading her first book. I'm 34 and this is the first book I've read by her and then I read her first book after I read this one.

I think her book was straightforward and I feel she kept me engaged in each chapter. She has been through a lot and reading her first book; I understand more about her. A lot of us black woman been through similar situations and this book made me feel connected to her because what happened to her, and it happened to me in my lifetime.

After reading this book, I feel she is trying to become better. I follow her on Instagram and seeing her grow from her first book to this book and what she is doing now is growth. She still makes certain mistakes, but she acknowledges them right away, then before.

She is pregnant with her second child by Kwame Onwuachi. I wish her the best and I hope she continues to strive at her craft.

The emotional and psychological torture that arises out of domestic violence is truly a disease of epic proportions. This to me was a difficult read, not linguistically but on a human and emotional level. As a woman and a mother of two daughters it's hard not to bleed in empathy for those suffering from the emotional, financial, physical, spiritual and psychological abuse (that develops into a form of PTSD) from partners/spouses/husbands who are out of control and seek that control through violence. Worst to see the infection of that disease spread and passed along to children in the form of learned behavior is heart breakingly sad. This kind of pathology is toxicity at its best.
I am glad she was able to triumph, though I felt she made a move in the end that cost her her life. Luckily this was not the outcome and we won't be watching horrified as the CNN reports.

Vindicated

This was a good book I couldn't put it down to be honest. I know what abuse does to your mind and how everyone on the outside can't understand why you tolerate it or take the abuser back. It's a very hard cycle to break from especially on your own. I commend Karrine for the strength she showed and hope she has kept herself away from the negative people.

2025 is NINE MONTHS AWAY. I wonder is she conjuring up a "CONFESSIONS OF A VIDEO VIXEN, TWENTY YEARS LATER" Copy to mark the tragic occasion.
I guess I shouldn't give her any fresh ideas on a VERY STALE story.

Karrine Steffans is SUCH a great author. Very vivid storyteller. Plus, she keeps it real. My kind of girl 😘

Good book

I chose this rating because this book was a good read. She spoke her truth and has grown from everything she's been through.

This was a quick read, more of Karrine's story. The book shed insight into her marriage and life shortly thereafter.

I wanted to like this more, but it was just really frustrating at points. Has this woman learned anything??

This kept my interest. I was glad to hear how good of a person Shad was, but I was so tired of hearing about Wayne. https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMdfEsN1S/

Okay, so I'm a huge fan of Karrine's writing. Always has been, probably always will be.

However, there was something about this book that didn't do it for me. Normally, I'm one of those people who will defend this author until I'm blue in the face when it comes to her storytelling as I believe she has an amazing talent for that aspect. However, I feel like she's finally hit that point where her creative juices and groundbreaking prose has run out. She's run out of steam, unfortunately.

Why do I say that? Well, I bought this book eons ago and I had never read it until a few weeks ago. It had been sitting on my bookshelf for a year or maybe more, if I'm being honest here. However, her book about her relationship with Lil' Wayne was more exciting and intriguing in my eyes so I read that one before I read this one, even though it was released after this book. The issue with that is simple - some of the things that were written and published in that book was completely copy and pasted from this book. It's that age old question - what came first: the chicken or the egg? So it's like, which book did she write first - this one or How To Make Love to A Martian (Lil' Wayne book)? I kid you not; there are certain passages in this one that are exactly the same as passages written in that book. So, if you've read that book but not this book, don't waste your time or money buying this one because it's almost a carbon copy of it. Or vice versa. Unless you simply have to read it.

I never read her first book so I can't speak on that book too much in contrast to this story. However, this story wasn't very compelling when all is said and done. Mainly because you expect the author to be in a better (or different, at the very least) place. That's the whole point of writing a follow-up story framed from the eyes of an individual who's 10 years older. You expect there to be a significant amount of growth and evolution and you expect that person to have changed their life for the better. You're not going to find much triumph and perseverance here. The author is essentially stuck in the same vicious cycle she was in mentally when she wrote the book that preceded this one and kicked off her writing career.

However, none of that takes away from the fact that Karrine is a great storyteller. I believe that she's finally run out of material and drive to continue this journey, unfortunately.

This book was hard to finish. It was a never ending loop of bad decisions she made with men one after another. As soon as I thought things were looking up for her, another horrible ex came back into the picture to complicate her life even further. Although I did finish the book, I don't recommend.

A fast, entertaining read that was extremely relatable, and serves as a good awareness for abused women everywhere. Abuse is not just physical, but also emotional, and Steffans really showcased that in her story.

Who would've thought

She put on such a charade that she was this strong and could handle herself. And she didn't need anyone but in fact she needed and wanted support

Excellent book! After reading Karrine Steffans book it feels like I know her. I feel sorry for her. It's a tragic life story but I'm glad she has been, "vindicated!"

Karrine's first book was great but this book was disappointing to me.

Easy Read