REVIEW and GIVEAWAY
Love Me, Love Me Not
by S. M. Coz
Love Me, Love Me Not by S. M. Coz is currently on tour with Xpresso Book Tours. The tour stops here today for my review, an excerpt, and a giveaway. Please be sure to visit the other tour stops as well.
Description
Family, abandonment, and forbidden romance are at the core of S. M. Koz’s powerful and emotionally charged novel about a teen who falls for her foster brother.
When Hailey Brown is removed from her home and put into foster care, all she wants is a safe, comfortable place where she can finish school and move on with her life. It’s not easy adjusting to a new school and a new life, but Mr. and Mrs. Campbell and their teenage son, Brad, welcome Hailey with open arms.
As Hailey begins to adjust to her new life, she and Brad grow closer. For the first time, Hailey feels like she might have a real shot at a future. Soon, however, Hailey realizes her relationship with Brad has crossed the line from friendship into something more. But being with Brad would mean giving up the perfect life that Hailey has waited so long to have.
Can Hailey and Brad resist the feelings that are developing between them - or will they risk it all to be together?
Chosen by readers like you for Macmillan’s young adult imprint Swoon Reads, S. M. Koz delivers a powerful debut about the ups and downs of being a foster child.
Excerpt
“Hailey Marie Brown, what am I going to do with you,” Sherry says, shaking her head. She’s my social worker and was not at all happy about being woken up in the middle of the night to remove me from another foster home.
I stare at the dotted yellow lines in the road as we travel through rural North Carolina, so I don’t have to see any more disappointment on her face. I’ve known Sherry for a couple years and we’ve grown fairly close in that time. She came out to visit me and my mom on her very first day on the job and has been checking up on us regularly. She’s also the one who finally removed me from that home three days ago. For that, I’ll be eternally grateful, which only worsens the guilt I feel for what I’m putting her through.
“Chase is a negative relationship. You need to start building positive relationships,” she says.
“He’s all I have.”
“You have me.”
“It’s not the same.” Chase made me feel loved when no one else did. He came into my life when I needed him most. He’s not perfect, but who is?
[Want more? Click below to read a longer excerpt.]
Praise for the Book
“I loved this book! Growing up as a foster sibling, I understand how skeptical a family can be. Hailey's history is real and true.” ~ LydiaBeach, reader on SwoonReads.com
“I love how I could feel every emotion through the author’s words. I wouldn’t change anything about the book. It's an amazing book and I would recommend it to anyone!” ~ AnnaBanana, reader on SwoonReads.com
“I love this book! It was so cute yet full of suspense. There were many heated scenes and oh-my-gosh moment, too!” ~ Tay, reader on SwoonReads.com
“This book was amazing! I loved reading about Brad and Hailey, it's such a beautiful book with real life problems. I can't wait to read more about them two.” ~ WattPadBai, reader on SwoonReads.com
"Love this book! Gripping and pulls at the heart strings.” ~ R. Turner, reader on SwoonReads.com
My Review
By Lynda Dickson
Hailey is sent to a new foster home and has to finish her senior year in a new high school and make new friends. Her new family seems perfect, and her foster brother Brad is hot. But her boyfriend is starting to show his true colors, and they’re not pretty. Will he ruin everything for her? Or will she ruin everything all by herself with the inappropriate feelings she has for Brad?
The story is told in the first person present tense from Hailey’s point-of-view. We get to experience all of the highs and lows of Hailey’s life. We root for her but cringe at some of the decisions she makes. Even though I love Brad, how can any seventeen-year-old be so perfect? The supporting characters are great, too, with Michelle playing the part of the typical mean girl.
A light romance with some serious issues thrown into the mix.
Warnings: coarse language, child abuse, drug references, sex scenes (not graphic).
About the Author
S. M. Koz is a medical writer from North Carolina, where she lives with her husband, two sons, and numerous pets. She has a BS in Biology from Duke University and a Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from North Carolina State University. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys reading, photographing nature and her family, gardening, travelling, and attempting, usually unsuccessfully, to decorate birthday cakes. Love Me, Love Me Not is her first traditionally published novel.
Giveaway
Enter the tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win a print copy of Love Me, Love Me Not by S. M. Coz (US/Canada only).
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