Love Times Infinity by Lane Clarke
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ Pros: captivating story, sweet, hopeful and honest
Cons: I cried a LOT (not really a con)
TW: Mental illness, Grief, Suicide attempt, Rape, Abortion, Sexual assault, Death, Addiction, Alcoholism
I don't remember what my thoughts or expectations were when I first began reading Love Times Infinity but they were absolutely exceeded. Lane Clarke has written her own story in these pages; I hardly think my review will do it justice for this book but I will try my best.
This story is Lane's but it also felt like mine. It mirrored a lot of my own lived experiences; it was like reading a story I was already way too familiar with and I was in no way emotionally prepared for that.
The story follows a young girl named Michie who is trying to write essays about herself in attempt to get scholarships for college. That is a lot of pressure on its own but add to that the fact that Michie is raised by her grandmother, estranged from her mother, working part time, is in therapy to help her make sense of her trauma and could potentially be the first person in her family to go to college... that is so much for one person to bear. Luckily, throughout the book, we get to see Michie lean into herself and the people who love her; we get to see her friendships evolve and her relationship with her grandmother deepen. We get to see her heal. I am about to cry just writing about it.
I am not going to go into too much. more detail because I believe this is a book that you should 100% read and experience for yourself. It is so powerful, so beautiful, so devastating and hopeful. It deserves all of your attention.
Also, please enjoy my GoodReads review and follow me there if you'd like! This review is a great summary of all the things I plan to discuss at length below.