GLBT Week- Love Drugged by James Klise

Love Drugged by James Klise
"If you could change who you are, would you? Should you?

Fifteen-year-old Jamie Bates has a simple strategy for surviving high school: fit in, keep a low profile, and above all, protect his biggest secret-he's gay. But when a classmate discovers the truth, a terrified Jamie does all he can to change who he is. At first, it's easy. Everyone notices when he starts hanging out with Celia Gamez, the richest and most beautiful girl in school. And when he steals an experimental new drug that's supposed to "cure" his attraction to guys, Jamie thinks he's finally going to have a "normal" life.

But as the drug's side effects worsen and his relationship with Celia heats up, Jamie begins to realize that lying and using could shatter the fragile world of deception that he's created-and hurt the people closest to him."- summary from Amazon

I really liked this book, though it was hard for me to really relate to the main character because I never wanted to change who I was. I do think though that this book will definitely help out a lot of kids who do feel that way. But the premise was very intriguing and it brought up some interesting issues about sexuality and modern medicine.

I pretty much flew through this book because of the storyline, the characters, the humor, the emotions. I loved all the characters and they were all written really well. My favorite interactions were the ones between Jamie and Celia and I think if Jamie had been honest from the beginning, I could see the two of them being really good friends (gay man and his fag hag, lol).

I had a couple of complaints though- one that's more personal preference, and one broad one. The personal preference had to do with the romance (or lack thereof)- I'd really been hoping for Ivan (a hottie) and Jamie to get together once Jamie accepted himself. And they didn't, and that made me a bit sad. The more broad one has to do with the ending, which felt a bit rushed to me. As I was nearing the end of the book, I kept thinking "How is this all going to wrap up in 30 pages?" It didn't feel as natural and flowing as the rest of the book to me.

Overall though, a really good, interesting debut and a wonderful book for gay teens that I think will help them come to terms with their sexuality and realize that a) it's not something you can change or grow out of and b) it's something to be proud of.

FTC: Received final copy from publisher. Link above is an Amazon Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.