Review - But I Love Him by Amanda Grace

Summary:

Tonight was so much worse than anything before it. Tonight he didn't stop after the first slap.
 
At the beginning of senior year, Ann was a smiling, straight-A student and track star with friends and a future. Then she met a haunted young man named Connor. Only she can heal his emotional scars; only he could make her feel so loved — and needed. Ann can't recall the pivotal moment it all changed, when she surrendered everything to be with him, but by graduation, her life has become a dangerous high wire act. Just one mistake could trigger Connor's rage, a senseless storm of cruel words and violence damaging everything — and everyone — in its path.
This evocative slideshow of flashbacks reveals a heartbreaking story of love gone terribly wrong.


Review:

 This book was utterly amazing.  It is 264 pages of pure, raw, emotions.  I sat down with this book at the bookstore intending to read the first couple of chapters to decide if I liked the writing style.  I ending up reading the thing in 3 hours.  I was totally riveted and captivated that I didn't even move from my chair.  Needless to say, I bought the book and will probably do a rered sometime in the future.

Characters:  I loved the 2 main characters, Ann and Connor.  And I guess I shouldn't like Connor, considering his attitude and his actions toward Ann.  But as the story regresses, we get a glimpse of what has made Connor the way he is.  You kinda feel bad for the guy, but his violence towards Ann makes you hate him as well.  Both characters were incredibly well written and as much as this book was great on it's own, I would love to see a sequel about Ann and Connor after the ending.

Plot:  I was a little nervous about this book, as it is told backwards.  The first page of the novel, we see Ann at her worst, on the ground, because of Connor's violence.  In each subsequent chapter, we go back a few weeks/months into Ann and Connor's relationship.  This ended up being quite refreshing, as you don't see many books told in reverse order, especially domestic violence ones.  This book reminded me of Sarah Dessen's Dreamland, but with a more likeable antagonist (Connor vs. Rogerson).  I think everyone should pick this book up, as it gives a literal view on what it's like to love someone so much that it hurts.

5 out of 5 stars