Review: A Tragic Kind of Wonderful by Eric Lindstrom
SYNOPSIS:
In the vein of It’s Kind of a Funny Story and All the Bright Places, comes a captivating, immersive exploration of life with mental illness.
For sixteen-year-old Mel Hannigan, bipolar disorder makes life unpredictable. Her latest struggle is balancing her growing feelings in a new relationship with her instinct to keep everyone at arm’s length. And when a former friend confronts Mel with the truth about the way their relationship ended, deeply buried secrets threaten to come out and upend her shaky equilibrium.
As the walls of Mel’s compartmentalized world crumble, she fears the worst–that her friends will abandon her if they learn the truth about what she’s been hiding. Can Mel bring herself to risk everything to find out?
In A Tragic Kind of Wonderful, Eric Lindstrom, author of the critically acclaimed Not If I See You First, examines the fear that keeps us from exposing our true selves, and the courage it takes to be loved for who we really are.
REVIEW:
*Book Received in Exchange for Honest Opinion/Review*
This is one stunningly beautiful cover, I have been dying to get my hands on this book since I found out Eric was publishing again and boy did it not disappoint. The book gods, aka my wonderful pen pal friend, sent me the copy she received and I devoured the book in 2 days. It was really difficult not to finish it in one sitting and I could not get Mel or David out of my head.
Eric Lindstrom poignantly captures mental illness and stands on a level all his own. Seriously, I cannot praise the author enough for his accurate and gutting descriptions, they are spot on. Mel is struggling with bipolar disorder, and her battle is truly too close to home. Mel’s emotions and internal battles are raw, piercing, and resonate with a part of me that like Mel, I try to keep buried.
David was sweet, thoughtful, selfless, and witty as hell. His and Mel’s banter had me in fits of giggles and blushing, my face was starting to hurt from smiling so much. Eric Lindstrom seamless blends mental illness and budding romance to create a flawless story. Mel’s support system is awe-inspiring and the story truly and accurately captures that it takes an army to truly heal, but most importantly, it starts with yourself. Thank you Eric Lindstrom…thank you.
PRE-ORDER THE BOOK (Available February 7, 2017):
