Review: Sweetest Taboo by

Title: Sweetest Taboo
Author: Eva Márquez
Publication: September 1st 2012
Genre: Young Adult
Source: Review copy from author
Format: e-Arc
Cover Rating: 5/5
Content Rating: 4/5
First sentence: By my calculations, I had seven minutes.

~Synopsis~

Isabel Cruz was fifteen years old when she met Tom Stevens. She was 15 when they started dating, and 16 when she lost her virginity to him. By the time she turned 18 and went to college, everything had fallen apart.

This hadn’t been an ordinary love, though. Not a love between two dear friends, or even high school sweethearts. This had been the most taboo sort of love there was: a relationship between a student and her teacher. Isabel started her high school career as a normal student, but set her sights on Tom Stevens as soon as she met him, and pursued him with an intense – and sometimes reckless – fascination. When he finally approached her after swim practice and told her that he shared her feelings, it was the start of a forbidden and dangerous relationship.

Join Isabel as she makes her way through this dark love story, hiding from teachers, lying to her parents, and defying the authorities to make a life with the man she loves. Watch as she discovers the wonders of love and romance, and the terrible betrayal of jealous friends. And cry with her when she learns the hard truth about life and the people in her world.

Sweetest Taboo is inspired by the true and tragic stories of students who fall in love with their teachers, and live with the hard truths of forbidden romances. In a world full of after-school specials on sexual predators, this touching book seeks a different path, casting both student and teacher in a gentle light, and showing that true love may lie at the base of even the most illicit romance.

My thoughts: 
Sweetest Taboo by Eva Márquez was giving to me by the author herself for review. When I first read the synopsis and watched the book trailer I knew I wanted to read this book because it looked and sounded like a great read but on the other hand  I was a little unsure if I should read it because it's not really in my genre of books (since mostly I read paranormal books) and kind of out of my comfort zone because it's about a teach-student relationship but I accepted the review request anyway and I'm really glad I did. At first I didn't plan to read it right away but in a few weeks but since I leave for a two week vacation on saturday I knew I wouldn't be able to wait that long and decided to read it all at once since Sweetest Taboo wasn't that long. I managed to read it in a matter of a few hours. 

I loved the authors writing and the narrator's voice right away. The words flowed really well. The story as the synopsis suggest was really intense for me but I liked that. It was a nice break from the books I normally read (paranormal, dystopia, etc...) that can seem a little unbelievable sometimes. The story of Sweetest Taboo you know can happen, is happening and will happen. But that was what's so great about the book. The reality of it.

I love how you could totally see the change in Isabel, the narrator. From a kind of insecure fifteen year old to a confident 18-19 year old who could make heart breaking decisions to do what's best for herself. That was probably one of my favoite aspects of this book. 
Another thing I immensely loved were the titles. They were all song titles and me the music lover that I am couldn't help but smile at them.

I have a hard time forming opinions about Tom, the teacher in question. I mean the man was married and had two daughters! Cheating is never alright no matter the circumstances. In the beginning I felt a little uncomfortable with how he began to come closer to Isabel but that disappeared as I got more into the story so I guess it was just me needing to get comfortable with this kind of book. At some point I liked him because I thought he was sincere to Isabel at least but at other points I wanted to scream at both him and Isabel for what they were doing. They were both really selfish and doing dangerous things. They lied to their loved ones all the time but I do understand (not that it makes it alright) why they did it. For love. 

At times I really felt for Isabel. I could feel her heart breaking and mine did a bit too. That's how hooked I was by this story. I really felt this book in my heart. And the only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was because the topic isn't something I would usually read. But I did enjoy this book immensely and I'm really grateful to the author to have given me this chance to read this book that's normally not in my comfort zone.
This book has some romance and sexual content but how could it not? I realize it's not for everyone so if you're reading my review and planning on reading Sweetest Taboo and you do not like sex scenes here's a heads up. But nevertheless I do encourage you to read this book. You won't be disappointed!

Sweetest Taboo is a great, edgy and tragic love story that will hook you until the very last word with its intensity and controversy.

~Quotes~

“I've never been in love before,” I finally confessed, looking into his eyes. “But I know that I would die if anything happened to you. I know that I can‟t sleep at night because I want to be at your side. I know that seeing you in the morning brightens my day. If that's what love feels like, then I think I'm in love with you, too.”

I found myself smiling back, my mind flying along the list of possibilities. “But if we're together … the questions …”
Tom raised his hand to put a finger on my lips and silence me. “There will be questions, and it may get tough. But we'll face them together, Isabel, and that's all that matters.

~About the author~

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, daughter of European immigrants, Eva Márquez has spent most of her life outside of her home country. At the age of five, Eva accompanied her parents to the United States, where the family settled permanently. After graduating from university, she went on to complete graduate studies in International Relations in Spain. Eva received her Master of International Studies degree from the University of Sydney and went on to work in the global health field in Sub Saharan Africa and South East Asia. Eva currently resides in Southern Africa. Visit the Sweetest Taboo website:  http://sweetesttaboobook.com

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Check out the book trailer!