This book made me have a love/hate relationship with Marcus as he meets Penny and their “relationship” forms. There were a couple parts where I laughed out loud and more than one part that tore my heart out. This story is one that had me from beginning to end to find out what happens next.

I got confused a lot of times reading this book. Overally it was a good book that is quite enjoyable for the greater part

I'm not sure how to describe this book? The characters were Idk kind of weird? I guess? It was an odd book for me! Penny was an odd quirky girl and Markus was kind of mean lol Idk I'm at a loss of words for this book although I did enjoy reading this book it was just strange for me?! So I do recommend reading it to see what you think?! Lol thank you NetGalley and the publishers for sharing this book with me!

I’m not sure if there was a lot lost in translation but this story had a lot of potential. The main contention I had (besides how gross of a person Marcus was) was that it was narrated in third person from what looked to be Penny’s POV and thoughts and it was first person from Marcus’ POV. Then at the end it thew in a few more people’s POVs and that threw me even more. This was a roller coaster and if you like that and shock value, you will like this book. It just wasn't for me.

Penny basically fell in love with this guy after he treats her terribly and bangs random girls in front of her and tells her he is leaving her in a few weeks when his girlfriend gets out of prison. WHAT? She just can’t help herself. She showed no strength through the book and that made me sad.

I can’t even begin to talk about Marcus without wanting to be sick. Yes he was messed up because of childhood but I’m sorry that doesn’t give you the right to treat people the way he did. Even so, maybe this could be real life but, there was no love story here or romance.


The translation possibly had something to do with the way things were worded and I looked past that because it was written in Italian first, but the whole plot of the book was just not for me. It was crude, confusing and the characters were severely lacking.

Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for allowing me to read this book early for my honest review, I just wish I liked it a lot more.

I start by saying that for me, reading this book remains a rollercoaster ride, a ride on and off of strong emotions.

I know the author, besides being a person with a good heart, I 've had the opportunity to meet her in person and I want to say that she writes really, really, really well.

I love all her books, I am Italian, so I've read almost all her works. I only miss the fantasies she writes under another name.

But going back to the book.

Marcus and Penelope are at the antipodes, she's sweet and kind to everyone, pure beauty. He's sexy as hell, with a turtle in the right place and tattoos covering his skin.

She feels attraction for him, it's inevitable, but Marcus with his rough and wild behaviour tries to push her away, but with poor results.

Penny is aware that she is not the right woman for him, but going on the two get closer, they get to know each other, their paths meet and their hearts start beating in unison.

Needless to deny that every time, with all the books of Amabile Giusti, I feel butterflies in my stomach.

Amabile Giusti has a masterful way of narrating, to the envy of many readers. She, with a simple story, knows how to shock me. The book is write from the both point of view.

If you haven't read anything about this author yet, I absolutely advise you to catch up.

You won't regret it!

Trying Not to Love You is a book by Amabile Giusti and translated in to English.
It’s the story of Penny, she works in a bar at night and looks after her Gran who suffers from dementia in the day.
Penny is timid and scared and having issues with a customer in the bar.
One night she meets a new resident to her apartment building. Marcus is like no one she has ever met before. He’s rude, crude, on parole and she can’t resist him.

I will be honest, this wasn’t what I expected it to be at all from the description. It also came under the genre “Romance” on NetGalley.
This book is not my idea of romance at all. It’s more erotic fiction and for that reason I struggled with it. I very nearly gave up on it. Had I not received it as an ARC to review I would probably have given up on it.
For the majority of the book I didn’t like either of the main characters. I thought Penny was pathetic and weak and Marcus was vile but in sticking with the book I was introduced to The Malkovich’s and Sherrie and start to learn a bit more about Marcus and why he is the way he is.
Overall it wasn’t a bad storyline and I liked the ending. This type of book is not for me though.

Thank you to the Author, Publisher and NetGalley for gifting me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Trying Not To Love You is a beautiful romance novel. This is my first book by :Amabile Giusti and I loved it. This is only the second translated work by the Italian author, but I will definitely take a look at When In Rome next.

Penny is in her twenties and still lives with her grandmother, Barbie. Her life basically evolves around tenting to her grandmother's needs and balancing her two jobs. When Marcus moves in the apartment upstairs her mundane routine is starting to get threatened. The rude delinquent is out on parole and not interested in anything Penny has to offer, that is until both of them need a favor from the other. Now they're forced to spend time together and the walls Marcus has put up are slowly crumbling down.

Barbie is adorable, and while her story is only secondary, I couldn't help but feel empathy and grief for her own love story. Penny is a simple girl, with so much more to give than a first impression may tell. She grows in confidence throughout the story and I enjoyed seeing that. Marcus is a possessive alpha with a dark past, who has trouble opening up to people. He merely sees women as objects to meet his needs, and is thrown off by the emotions Penny is able to get out of him. His growth was the most exciting part of the story. Marcus emotions and actions are complicated and truly tragic. His relationships to Penny and Francisca, especially at the end made me cry some serious ugly tears. I felt like my heart was breaking by the misunderstandings and unspoken words.

"Love is that golden four-leaf clover, that warm blanket, that distant music, that miracle which comes back one evening at sunset, when everything seems lost forever, and makes you feel eternal because someone out there has never forgotten you."

The chapters are mostly written in the past tense third person with a focus on Penny, but the book is interspersed with chapters in the present tense first person POV from Marcus (and Francisca at the end). I loved Penny's chapters, but wasn't a big fan of Marcus'. His POV was merely a rough retell of what we already know from Penny's chapters, not giving us a whole lot of new information and I don't quite understand the switching of time from past to present. In my opinion it messed with the flow of the timeline.

Overall the plot was just beautifully tragic. There were a few scenes that made me laugh, but it was mostly serious and heavy read, leaving me with lots of thoughts and a swelling heart.