Review: Love Me Not by Holly Smale

The Valentines are a glamorous showbiz family who, to the outside world, seem to have it all. However, living in the spotlight isn’t always as it seems. Mercy Valentine, party girl and actress, is the eldest of the Valentine siblings and is not a nice character. She’s sarcastic, sharp and deliberately destructive. She herself says in the opening lines, “You’re not going to like me. I’m not nice, I’m not relatable, you’ll find it difficult to empathise with the snarky daughter of Hollywood royalty …”

Love Me Not is the third book in the Valentines series by Holly Smale. If, like me, you have not read the first two books, do not worry. Mercy’s story stands alone, and it does not matter at all if you haven’t read the previous novels.

While Mercy Valentine is not very likable, I still loved her. I found that the first-person narrative really helped me to empathise with Mercy. It helped me to understand her complex emotions of guilt, self-loathing, anger and grief. Her character is written so well and I found myself empathising with her even after she had crossed the line numerous times with her bratty behaviour. The plot was so engaging and I found myself constantly wondering what was going to happen next. This moving story thoughtfully explores sibling relationships, parental separation, teenage romance, addiction and bereavement.

If you enjoyed reading the first two books in the Valentines series – Happy Girl Lucky and Far From Perfect, I would definitely recommend reading the final instalment. Alternatively, if, like me, you read Love Me Not first, I would definitely recommend going back and reading the first two books in the series, they are well worth the read!

Laura Aylward, 16