The first half of this novel is a fascinating story of female friendship - even the love triangle made sense in the context of Glo and Cyn's realistic and detailed relationship. The second half is a ripped from the headlines thriller that deteriorates into complete melodrama at the end. Even though I was disappointed by the ending, I loved the connection between the women and I will definitely read Elizabeth Lee's next book.

4 stars for M. Elizabeth Lee's debut. This book consists of two points of view before and after in the life and time of Glo & Cyn. Oh did I mention the love triangle that included Raj? I enjoyed this novel but felt that there were too many what happens, that left me wanting more.

Atria Books and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of Love Her Madly. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

Love Her Madly, the debut novel for author M. Elizabeth Lee, is the story of two college friends whose friendship is put to the ultimate test. Gloria Roebuck and Cynthia Williams are not the likeliest of best friends, but it all works well until a guy comes between them. Jealousy and love gets batted back and forth, not unlike a badminton match. When Cyn disappears in the jungle during a trip to Costa Rica, leaving Glo with unanswered questions, will the truth of what happened ever be revealed?

I ended up liking Love Her Madly because of the conclusion of the novel, as the beginning was slow to start. The second half of the book was more interesting than the first, with a realism that I found appealing. Life is often messy and does not work out as we plan, just as it was for Glo, Cyn, and Raj. I would recommend Love Her Madly to readers who enjoy mystery/suspense and I look forward to reading more by this author in the future.

Traveling With T’s Thoughts:

When the author contacted me about possibly reviewing this book, I was intrigued. It sounded like a “me” book and I was eager to find time to read it.

And ultimately, I did like the book. But it caused me a lot of frown lines and made me want to pull out my best Nancy Regan impression of “Just say no”.

What I liked:

The cover. COME ON- a gorgeous background with just 1 shoe? It hints at all sorta delicious twists.

How the second part was structured- I enjoyed hearing from a voice besides Gloria, but would have loved an additional voice.

Intense friendship storylines intrigue me!



What I didn’t like:

Ok, I’m showing my Pollyanna ways, but the casual way that drugs were mentioned and used. Listen I get for some people drugs are a part of the college experience and I’m sure that the fictional use was well-researched. But it’s always jarring to me to see people so freely admitting to “dropping E” as if they were saying “My favorite color is blue.” I’ll just be over her in my bubble now.

This is a bit of a spoiler: YOU DON’T GO OFF TO SOME OTHER COUNTRY AND TAKE PART IN MIND-ALTERING DRUGS. You just don’t. Bad things happen when you do. Why can’t girls just be interested in having like 1 freaking pina colada on the beach and working on their tan lines?



Bottom line: This story does have tons of appeal, but also lots of drama and characters that can exhaust you. But if intense friendships ,unreliable narrators, and romantic triangles are your cup of tea- then Love Her Madly will be like literary cat-nip to you!



*This book was sent to Traveling With T for review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are mine alone.*



Happy Reading and Bookishly Yours,

T @ Traveling With T

I liked this book. I wanted to love it, but the ending was kind of flat for me. It was a fast read and one that made me have a hard time putting the book down, I just wanted to keep reading.

I liked the characters, liked their interactions, but again I was a little disappointed with the ending. Think I would have liked a little more of a twist.

But it was enjoyable and held my interest.