Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Goodreads synopsis
Isabel has one rule: no dating. It's easier-- It's safer-- It's better-- --for the other person. She's got issues. She's got secrets. She's got rheumatoid arthritis. But then she meets another sick kid. He's got a chronic illness Isabel's never heard of, something she can't even pronounce. He understands what it means to be sick. He understands her more than her healthy friends. He understands her more than her own father who's a doctor. He's gorgeous, fun, and foul-mouthed. And totally into her. Isabel has one rule: no dating. It's complicated-- It's dangerous-- It's never felt better-- --to consider breaking that rule for him.
Review
I thought that this book was going to be a lot like The Fault in Our Stars or Five Feet Apart so I was ready to be an emotional wreck when I finished this book. I was pleasantly surprised when I didn’t end up feeling this way because this book is so much different.
While the book focuses on two teenagers who are both ill in their own way, this isn’t a book that ends in a traumatic way. This is a book about two people figuring how to continue living their lives to the best of their ability, figuring out how to fall in love and function in a world that makes it so hard for people who are ill, even if they don’t look it.
I found myself connecting with Isabel on a very unique level. Whilst I haven’t been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), I have lived with the insane doubt that you’re making these feelings up in your own head. I’ve suffered from depression clinically since I was 18. Now 9 years down the line I still wonder if I’ve made it all up in my own head, that from my years of studying psychology have led me to believe that I have these symptoms. I know that this isn’t true, the same way Isabel is truly suffering from RA. The fear is still there, and this is the first time that I’ve read a book where those thoughts have come to the forefront in our main character.
This is a book about chronic illness but it’s so much more than that. This is a heartfelt, honest, funny and emotional story about two teenagers who are just trying to live their normal lives. They’re trying to balance school, love, family and friendships alongside of chronic illnesses that most people can’t even pretend to understand.
This is a book that I found impossible to put down and one I found myself loving. I ended this book feeling warm inside and as I mentioned before this was not the emotion I expected to feel after reading this book.
This book is going to educate a lot of people and I’m honestly so happy that teenagers have the opportunity to learn more about chronic illness and how badly it can affect people, even if it doesn’t show on the outside.
Sick Kids in Love is a quick but refreshing and impactful book with love and self-acceptance at its core. It is definitely one of my favourite books of 2019.
Rating: 5/5 stars.
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