Tragic and disturbing, Bad Romance takes a close look at toxic and emotionally abusive relationships through the eyes of a moody theatre student named Grace. Grace is flighty and easily distracted, but she in no way deserves Gavin. He, like many abusers, seems fine at the beginning. But as time passes, he slowly becomes more and more toxic and she ends up trapped in the relationship. As things progress, she gets pulled further and further into his world and farther away from those who love her.
Heart wrenching and hard to read, Bad Romance was absolutely brutal to read. I'll be honest, I DO NOT like the character of Grace, she is flighty, impractical and had moments of objective stupidity. Her personality grated deeply on my nerves throughout the whole beginning of the novel. But my dislike of her did not prevent me from being horrified at how she was treated and sympathizing with her in her struggle. I find that there was some real legitimacy to the accuracy of the abuse cycle in the relationship between Grace and Gavin. I also give this novel credit for its smooth narrative voice, it is what kept me from hating this novel. I would not recommend Bad Romance, and I give it the rating of THREE OUT OF FIVE STARS!
*Advanced Readers Copy Review*
