*I am reviewing this book which I was gifted for free by Bloomsbury in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own. *
Title: I Hold Your Heart
Author: Karen Gregory
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Source: Sent by the publisher
Rating: 4/5 stars
Book Summary:
'You make me feel like there's something good in the world I can hold on to,' Aaron says. He kisses me again, draws me so close it's almost hard to breathe. 'I love you, Gem. And I promise I'll hold your heart forever.'
When Gemma meets Aaron, she feels truly seen for the first time. Their love story is the intense kind. The written-in-the-stars, excluding-all-others kind. The kind you write songs about.
But little by little their relationship takes over Gemma's life. What happens when being seen becomes being watched, and care becomes control?
Told in both Gemma's and Aaron's words, this is a raw, moving exploration of gaslighting in teenage relationships that skewers our ideas of what love looks like.
When Gemma meets Aaron, she feels truly seen for the first time. Their love story is the intense kind. The written-in-the-stars, excluding-all-others kind. The kind you write songs about.
But little by little their relationship takes over Gemma's life. What happens when being seen becomes being watched, and care becomes control?
Told in both Gemma's and Aaron's words, this is a raw, moving exploration of gaslighting in teenage relationships that skewers our ideas of what love looks like.
Book Review:
Karen Gregory has been a top YA author for a couple of years now, with an army of readers by her side but I have not read any of her books so when I sawed this book to review as part of the blog tour I jumped at the chance. I Hold Your Heart is the perfect introduction to Karen Gregory's work and I can't wait to dive into her backlist.
Karen Gregory has been a top YA author for a couple of years now, with an army of readers by her side but I have not read any of her books so when I sawed this book to review as part of the blog tour I jumped at the chance. I Hold Your Heart is the perfect introduction to Karen Gregory's work and I can't wait to dive into her backlist.
One of the main things that drew me to her books was the fact that they dealt with real and difficult issues. This is something that I Hold The Heart does, dealing with an abusive relationship. Karen Gregory does this differently showing both sides of the relationship which could be difficult to read at times but highlights the complexities that this causes. I think that Karen Gregory does this well and it really conveys the messages of being in an abusive relationship.
Although a minor part of the plot and book, the characters are from working-class backgrounds who have jobs and I feel like this made them a lot more relatable compared to other YA stories. Overall, I did really like I Hold Your Heart dealing with hard-hitting issues with such care and sensitivity.
The Verdict:
I Hold Your Heart is a raw and unflinching look at teenage relationships, bringing to light gaslighting which every teenage and person needs to read.
Have you read I Hold Your Heart? Do you want to? Let me know in the comments below.
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