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Mad Love

by Suzanne Selfors (Goodreads Author)

3.66 of 5 stars 3.66 · rating details · 1,004 ratings · 213 reviews

When you're the daughter of the bestselling Queen of Romance, life should be pretty good. But 16-year-old Alice Amorous has been living a lie ever since her mother was secretly hospitalized for mental illness. After putting on a brave front for months, time is running out. The next book is overdue, and the Queen can't write it. Alice needs a story for her mother-and she ne...more

Hardcover, 326 pages

Published January 4th 2011 by Walker Childrens (first published November 18th 2010)

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Mar 06, 2012 Reynje rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: i-regret-nothing, read-2012, unexpectedly-liked, young-adult, swap

A Week in YA Kissing Books - Haiku Mini Review #3

Cupid wearing black
Wants his true story written
Do I smell clam juice?

Well this was… not really what I expected.

I’ll freely admit that I picked this up because I was looking for brain-sugar. A pick-me up / temporary high after a mentally and emotionally gruelling week. I mean, look at that cover. I know I’m not supposed to judge, but doesn’t it shout “I AM FAIRY FLOSS!”, as if it’s so sweet it could rot your teeth? It’s about a girl that meets cup...more

21 likes · like · see review

Apr 22, 2013 Amelia, the pragmatic idealist rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: fans of complicated love stories or those interested in stuff about mental disorders

Shelves: 2011, arcs, bloomsbury, ya-kids-teen, annoying-protagonist, mc-girl

Mad Love's main character is Alice Amorous, and I thought she made a fine heroine. She was a good combination of sass and sweetness, and I thought she held her own very well against all the crazies around her. She's a character that really does seem to have it all together: when she makes a mistake or shows a lapse in good judgment, it's more because of her circumstances than who she is as a person. There was something very cheer-worthy about her, and I had a pretty easy time relating to her. Un...more Mad Love's main character is Alice Amorous, and I thought she made a fine heroine. She was a good combination of sass and sweetness, and I thought she held her own very well against all the crazies around her. She's a character that really does seem to have it all together: when she makes a mistake or shows a lapse in good judgment, it's more because of her circumstances than who she is as a person. There was something very cheer-worthy about her, and I had a pretty easy time relating to her. Unfortunately, her story didn't seem all that realistic to me. I just had a hard time believing that any young adult other than, say, Christopher Paolini could write a book and have it be passed off as the product of a prolific bestselling author. My "Yeah Right" radar was buzzing all over the place. I guess the story elements were a little too "out there" for me. Like, nearly everybody is sick, or dying, or has something wrong with them (eating disorder, bipolar disorder, cancer, etc). In my opinion, very few books can get away with that much "drama" and it just seemed like with Mad Love, there were too many things going on.
As for the love story (Errol's story, that is)...I think I'm just getting tired of love stories that have to be so hard. So depressing. Not that I like the other extreme - where everything's butterflies, rainbows, and boy band songs - but...Errol's character and his story didn't work for me. He reminded me too much of this other guy in YA fiction that I kind of have an issue with (name rhymes with Mace Fayland). When it comes to love interests, I have two tolerable types: the genuinely good-natured, loyal, respectful/respectable, slightly-innocent guy, or the hardened-exterior, attitude-that-masks vulnerability brooder-with-a-heart-of-gold. And Errol wasn't either of those. Plus he really gave off a creepy vibe that I never really got over...
Above all, the premise of Mad Love is built around the idea that the traditional myth of Cupid and Psyche is wrong/not the whole story. See, I kind of loooove the myth of C&P, it's actually my favorite of the Greco-Roman myths, most of which, if you haven't noticed, are just bummer sad. I think that's why I loved the C&P story so much - it's one of the very few that has a happy ending. But see...in this story, that's kinda messed with. The story of Mad Love was definitely creative and interesting, but I guess I'm just too much a fan of the original myth. And in all honesty, that's probably why the story just didn't make a fan out of me. I mean, really! If you want a bummer-sad myth with unrequited love and dying and madness and sadness, there's a plethora of choices! Why mess with one of the happy ones?
The good news is, though, that most of you probably don't feel the same way I do. In that case, there's nothing keeping you from potentially loving this book :)(less)

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Apr 03, 2011 Cara rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011

I am an official fan of Selfors. She always write stories that have a magical element in them, but sets them with modern characters and/or settings. What's that genre called? Magical realism I think, well she is good at it.

Alice Amorous is the daughter of the Queen of the Romance, Belinda Amorous. She writes what people would call "trashy" romance novels, but she has a knack for it and has loads of fans. Her mom is successful, but there has always been something that has been odd about her. They...more I am an official fan of Selfors. She always write stories that have a magical element in them, but sets them with modern characters and/or settings. What's that genre called? Magical realism I think, well she is good at it.

Alice Amorous is the daughter of the Queen of the Romance, Belinda Amorous. She writes what people would call "trashy" romance novels, but she has a knack for it and has loads of fans. Her mom is successful, but there has always been something that has been odd about her. They find out what she has is a bi-polar disorder. She is sent to a place so she can recover, while Alice has to keep things in order while she's gone. The problem is that it has to be kept a secret. The publishing house, her fans, and the public in general cannot know about it. Only a few trusted people know what is really going on. As the summer progresses Alice is having a hard time keeping up with the lies, and the ground falls from under her when her mom's publishing company threatens to withold the royalities and take back her advance if she doesn't write a book pronto. How can Alice tell her mom that? She can't, she has to get better and there is no way she can write a book now. In comes Errol, a dark strange weird guy that claims he is cupid and that Alice is destined to write his "real" story. She tries to steer clear of him, but this guy is persistent. Then there is this other guy she's been crushing on who she dubs, the Skateboard guy. Can she deal with a lunatic, a possible romance, and trying to salvage her mom's career and reputation?

Even though Alice has the brunt of all the responsibility, she has great adults that surround her. Then there is the annoying, but complicated Realm. She plays an odd, but important role in the story. She kind of forces Alice to come to terms with the truth. It was kind of funny, and sweet to see the interaction between Tony (skateboard guy) and Alice. I wish we could have seen more scenes between them, but it was understandable that we didn't because Alice had A LOT going on.

I was so excited to read this book, and the magic that was interwoven in it was so good. What bothered me some was Errol, though interesting he always came off to me as a little creepy and depressing. That aside though I thought it was a great story of how magic can be real, and that everybody has that special (I hate using that word but I think it fits here) something.(less)

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Mar 17, 2013 TPK rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Mostly cute rather than deep despite some of its themes, this teen supernatural romance features Alice Amorous, daughter of well-known Seattle romance writer Belinda Amorous, who is secretly in a hospital for a mental disorder. Trying to cover up her mother's illness, Alice attends a gathering at a local bookstore only to come across a mysteriously magnetic young man named Errol, who tries to convince Alice that he is the legendary Cupid, demigod of love, and that she must write his story about...more

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Dec 23, 2012 Kat rated it 4 of 5 stars

La madre de nuestra protagonista: Alice, es bipolar, además
de ser una escritora romántica de mucho éxito. Y Alice guarda
el secreto de la enfermedad mental de su mamá, así que por mucho
tiempo ha vivido ella sola, ayudada por una vecina.

Ah, si, no olvidemos mencionar al misterioso chico del patinete
que siempre pasa por enfrente de su ventana a las 9:30 am, y del
que ella esta ~~secretamente enamorada.~~

Pero entonces esta rutina cambia cuando conoce a Errol, que le dice
que debe escribir su historia, la...more

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Aug 05, 2012 Tammy Smith rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: my-reviews

In my opinion, and it is only an opinion, Ms. Selfors weaves magic with her words. "Loneliness had moved into my apartment as if it had no better place to go. It rubbed up against me like a hungry cat when I stepped inside."

Alice is not strong, she's not brave and she's not confident that she is not losing her mind. At the age of 16, she has, it seems, the entire weight of the world on her shoulders. Her mother is bipolar and hospitalized, not responding to the medical treatmernt she is receivi...more In my opinion, and it is only an opinion, Ms. Selfors weaves magic with her words. "Loneliness had moved into my apartment as if it had no better place to go. It rubbed up against me like a hungry cat when I stepped inside."

Alice is not strong, she's not brave and she's not confident that she is not losing her mind. At the age of 16, she has, it seems, the entire weight of the world on her shoulders. Her mother is bipolar and hospitalized, not responding to the medical treatmernt she is receiving. Alice is forced to handle all her mother's affairs in secret. The world can't be allowed to know the Queen of Romance is mentally ill, so she lives a lie. Her mother's next novel is past due and the publisher is threatening to sue. Their money has run out and the hospital is threatening to throw her mother out. She had to leave her private school to finish her high school degree online so she could take care of her mother's business. It's a lot to deal with. The only three people who know are the three tenants in the apartment building who were there before Alice's mom bought the building. And they don't know all the things that Alice has had to do to keep up the charade for the rest of the world. Alice lives in the shadows. She feels she can't let anyone into her life because they can't find out the truth. She promised her mother she'd keep their secret. Even when she gets asked out by a cute guy, she has to refuse because she can't let him in on her situation. So she shuts him out even as she wishes she could let him in.

The she meets Errol. He wants her to write his story, the story about the love of his life and perhaps the greatest love story ever told. There's only one problem; he claims to be Cupid. She refuses, but things start to happen in her life that she can only accept as proof that she has inherited her mother's condition. She is convinced he has mental issues as well, but decides to help him and in so doing, help herself. If she can manage to write his story, she can pass it off as her mother's new novel and their financial worries will be over. During the process, however, she finds herself starting to care deeply about his story and realizes maybe he's not so crazy after all. (less)

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Jan 24, 2012 Rosalia rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, young-adult, based-on-mythology, offtheshelf2012

Alice lives an apartment building alone. Well the neighbors check on her. Alice's mother is the world famous Belinda Amorous and what everyone doesn't know is that Belinda is currently in a psychiatric center being treated for bipolar disorder. Alice has been forging her mother's signature to pay bills, sign books and now she needs to find a way to fill the publishers demand for a new book. Then she meets Errol, a clearly crazy guy who believes he's cupid that wants her to write the true story o...more

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Aug 03, 2011 The Bookologist rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: arcs-i-own, for-review

Romantic and fun, Mad Love warms you’re heart with it’s touching mood and story of love, regret, and hope. There was the ups and downs but overall, it was filled with fun and intensity.

Mad Love starts out slow; the fact that it took some time for the main character to get convinced that someone is a cupid was a bit wearisome. Although, the pace of the plot picks up and we’re introduced to even more characters and more problems are thrown in, keeping the tension at the right level.

Throughout the...more

1 like · like · see review

Aug 01, 2011 StorySeekers rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011

Sarah - Love makes us do crazy things, but I don’t think Alice could picture her life becoming more complicated when the God of Love asks for her help.

I really like this book. Alice’s mom is an adult romance novelist, and her books are famous. She is known as the Queen of Romance. The only problem is now, the Queen of Romance is in asylum. Not wanting to ruin her mom’s reputation, Alice tells the publishers and everyone else, that her mom is traveling to find inspiration for her next novel.

But p...more

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Jul 12, 2011 Ashleyn Poston rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: blog, favorites

If you think you know the story of Cupid and Psyche, think again. According to Errol himself, the myth is a lie, and he has selected one very unlucky girl to pen the real story. The one that she, he tells her, is fated to write.

Mad Love by Suzanne Selfors is a lot deeper than I originally anticipated. The cover summary really doesn't tackle the meat of this novel the way it should. I was pleasantly surprised, however, like finding a Waldo.

Alice has a problem: her mother is the Queen of Romance a...more

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Jul 07, 2011 Anne rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, young-adult, realistic-fiction

Alice's mom is a very well known writer of romance novels. What isn't well known is that her mom suffers from manic-depressive disorder and is currently in a mental hospital. Alice is trying to carry on with every day life as well as paying the bills, fooling the editors, answering fan mail, etc. Luckily she has some help from very supportive neighbors in her 4-plex who know what is really going on. While all of this is going on, Alice meets two very different, very interesting boys. One is Tony...more

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Jul 05, 2011 Tiffany rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, favorites, cutesy, modern-fantasy

Belinda Amorous writes romance books some days. A lot of romance books. Other days, she settles into a deep sadness. Those days, she doesn't move around very much. Alice is her daughter trying to pay the bills and keep her mother's bipolar disorder away from the press. But the publishing company is waiting for a book that hasn't been written, and Alice needs to come up with a new novel - soon. In comes Errol, also known as Cupid, asking for his love story to be told. As Alice writes down Errol's...more

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Jul 02, 2011 Jade Walker rated it 4 of 5 stars

Original review at http://inkscratchers.blogspot.com/

If i had to sum up this book in one word, it would be FUN. The book is sort of magical realism, real characters, magical element. It's completely different to every other magical book out there because it's magic in the real world, not magic in a new world or a parallel world like in urban fantasy, as well as this, the main characters doesn't have any powers or anything, which is good.

This book is really cute, I knew it would be from the front...more Original review at http://inkscratchers.blogspot.com/

If i had to sum up this book in one word, it would be FUN. The book is sort of magical realism, real characters, magical element. It's completely different to every other magical book out there because it's magic in the real world, not magic in a new world or a parallel world like in urban fantasy, as well as this, the main characters doesn't have any powers or anything, which is good.

This book is really cute, I knew it would be from the front cover because it's pink and love hearty and that just screams CUTE! at me. I mean, a daughter of a romance writer meets Cupid? that's just adorable! I just loved the cute aspect, it's the type of book you can just sit down with any time because it doesn't really take a lot of preparing for like a lot of 'dark' young adult and teen books out there anymore, I mean, it's the type of book I could give to a thirteen year old and not have to worry about being shouted at by her mum. That's not to say that this book is happy! happy! happy! because there are some sad aspects which I won't get too deep into now, but compared to the majority of books for this age group out it's very, very tame.

So yeah, I'm doing squeeing over how cute this book is, I should do some real reviewing right? Okay, the characters were great, Selfor's doesn't go too deep with the characterisation and the book is very much a show and don't tell book, as in Selfor's gives us information through actions rather than paragraph after paragraph of explanation and this means that we get all the information we need without having to hear loads and loads about Alice's looks or her Mom's illness but you still don't feel like there is any information missing.

There is a wide range of characters from our 'main' characters Alice and Errol, to the background but still important characters, tony, Mrs Bobot, The Reverand and Archibald are all amazing characters. The character of Alice is lovely, we see her thoughts, which are quite often humorous and because she is just a normal teenage girl it's easy to relate to her which I suppose is always a good thing. Errol is like the typical angsty YA boy toned down, he has issues, and he has a past but can still be funny and lovely and likeable and I really liked Errol. Tony was adorable, I keep using that word! But yeah, Tony...EEEEEE!! He is just the cutest boy ever, extremely likeable, totally sweet and the perfect match for Alice! Then, there is Alice's tenants, Mrs Bobot, the mother hen with a big crush on the Reverand, Archibald, the reverand's gay roomate, Realm, Mrs Bobot's emo granddaughter all supply laughs and gasps to the book and these keep the book as cute as it is!

There is a really sweet love story there as well, despite the main plot being Errol and his story there is also Alice's budding romance with Tony, the new guy in town which is developed perrrrrfectly! We see the crush stage, the nervous stage, the awkward stage and all of it is just sweet! It develops just like a real life crush that any teenage girl can relate to!

If I had any issues with this story it was the pacing, I never wanted to put it down, but it did have some slow points, the beginning half of the book is sort of still establishing whats going on and most of the events don't actually happen until the second half which may make it difficult for some readers to get into, I also think that the love story should have been developed more. Some readers may have liked Tony popping up at some points but I think that for a book about the true meaning of love,w e should have seen Tony more! (Plus I love Tony!).

I think this book is suitable for readers of any age and because of this the content may not be interesting for older readers, however I personally very much enjoyed this book. Despite this book being cute, it touches on some powerful issues and has a very strong meaning which is executed almost flawlessly!

Overall rating: A-(less)

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Jun 23, 2011 Emily rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: family-stories, mythology, paranormal, ya-fiction

Sixteen-year-old Alice Amorous is dealing with things that a girl her age shouldn't have to deal with. Her mother, famous romance writer Belinda "Queen of Romance," is bipolar and in treatment, but she doesn't want anyone to know, so Alice must lie to keep the secret. She lives alone with the support of neighbors in her apartment building, and she forges her mother's signature for book signings and tries to communicate for her with the publisher. When the publisher threatens to take back an adva...more

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Jun 16, 2011 Kate McMurry rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-paranormal, ya-fantasy, young-adult-fantasy, young-adult-paranormal, young-adult-romantic-comedy, ya-romantic-comedy, greek-mythology, magic, mental-illness

Is it magic or madness? A young adult contemporary fantasy about Cupid in Seattle

Sixteen-year-old Alice Amorous is the daughter of bestselling romance author, Belinda Amorous. Due to her mother's suffering from years of untreated bipolar disorder, Alice's family life has been highly unstable, leading to the present crisis of her mother being institutionalized for catatonic depression.

Alice has no father to step in and take care of her, because she's the product of a one-night stand occurring du...more

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May 22, 2011 Hannah-Linn rated it 3 of 5 stars

this was a pretty good book in my opinion. but before i go all crazy book reviewer on y'all :), i just want to say that my review contains some spoilers, ones that dont impact the story all that much, but ones that will make the beginning of the story make a whole lot more sense, unless your that type of person that really wants to start a book with a completely blind idea of what the book is about, im not like that. i always read the last page of the book after i read the first chapter, its a h...more this was a pretty good book in my opinion. but before i go all crazy book reviewer on y'all :), i just want to say that my review contains some spoilers, ones that dont impact the story all that much, but ones that will make the beginning of the story make a whole lot more sense, unless your that type of person that really wants to start a book with a completely blind idea of what the book is about, im not like that. i always read the last page of the book after i read the first chapter, its a horrible habit.

there were two thing i found really misleading about this book. the first is kind of my fault, because i only read half of te description before buying the book, so i was confused that this book had a sort of supernatural fantasy feel to it, woops. but the weird part is that it cant really be classified like that, because it has more of a real element than most fantasy supernatural kind of books.

the second thing that was REALLY misleading, was that she and errol do not fall in love, at all, whatsoever. They do not end up together. there is another boy, whom she likes. weird right? i was SSSOOO confused, because they honestly make it sound like they fall in love, the other boy isnt even mentioned in the description!! confusing much? it's weird because:
MAJOR SPOILER DO NOT READ ON IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS IN THE END, NOT THAT IT WAS ONE OF THOSE MAJOR CLIFF-HANGER TYPE BOOKS, ESPECIALLY SINCE YOU PRETTY MUCH KNOW WHATS GOING TO HAPPEN FROM THE MIDDLE OF THE BOOK ON, BUT SKIP THE NEXT PARAGRAPH IF YOU DON'T WANNA KNOW WHAT HAPPENS.

so here it goes, the oddness of the book: Errol dies in the end, yes, cupid dies. cupid has cancer, and alice does not fall in love with cupid (just for a day. :)) she falls in love with the other boy, not to say that Errol doesn't get jelous, because he does.

overall, even though i had no idea what this book was about, i found it quite interesting, and i got a sort of love story even though it wasnt what i was expecting. I liked all of the characters. Just know that there are times in this book where you will be confused. Or i just was because i didn't know what this was about in the first place when i started it... just read the book please! because then you can either agree with me, or make fun of my lack of understanding in a few parts of the book. (less)

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Mar 26, 2011 Angelina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya

I really loved this story. The only thing that prevented me from giving it 5 stars was a gaff that happens on page 120, when a doctor in the story diagnoses a possible brown recluse bite.

The doctor says "They're not deadly but their poison can have many effects. Dizziness, sleepiness, mild hallucinations. The venom will run its course. She should be fine in a day." A few lines later he's cautioning to check the house for the spider and says "They're big and brown."

Wow! Really? To the best of m...more

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Mar 09, 2011 Sarah BT rated it 4 of 5 stars

Rating: 3.5 Stars

I was drawn to this book because of the Cupid storyline. It reminded me a bit of the TV Show Cupid, which I watched in high school and loved.

While there is a plot with Cupid, this is more about Alice growing more confidant and learning she doesn't have to hide her mother's illness. A good portion of the book is about Alice's mother and her bipolar disorder and Alice learning how to live with it and realizing she can't always fix everything. I think this issue was handled well a...more

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Feb 17, 2011 Amy Jacobs rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-own

This is the first book I have read by this author and I must say that this was a cute and enjoyable read! The author gave me a new take on Cupid and what his appearance could really be. In Mad Love, Cupid is not the chubby naked baby that we have come to recognize as Cupid on Valentine's Day. In this book he is mysterious, kinda cute and needing his story told by Alice.

Alice on the other hand, has a crush on skateboarder Tony. Alice is also trying to deal with her Mother being in a hospital for...more

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May 18, 2012 Melissa Garrett rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I downloaded Mad Love not long ago when it was being offered for free. I have a ton of books on my Kindle waiting to be read, but I was in the mood for something very specific . . . something a little lighthearted . . . a YA, maybe, and not too difficult on the brain . . . something I could relate to in some way. Long story short, I landed on Mad Love.

I tore through this book in less than a day. I actually took a much-needed morning off from work in order to read - just read! - which is not som...more

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Feb 15, 2012 Kelly rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, read-in-2012

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. When I first started reading Mad Love by Suzanne Selfors, I was expecting standard chick-lit fare. I was pleasantly surprised, though, by the depth of the main character, Alice, and how she approached issues that no teenager should have to deal with. It also didn’t hurt that Mad Love threw in some mythology and supernatural goings-on. That’s always fun.

Alice Amorous is the daughter of world-famous romance novelist Belinda Amorous. People probably think that being the Queen of Romance’s daughter...more When I first started reading Mad Love by Suzanne Selfors, I was expecting standard chick-lit fare. I was pleasantly surprised, though, by the depth of the main character, Alice, and how she approached issues that no teenager should have to deal with. It also didn’t hurt that Mad Love threw in some mythology and supernatural goings-on. That’s always fun.

Alice Amorous is the daughter of world-famous romance novelist Belinda Amorous. People probably think that being the Queen of Romance’s daughter is glamorous and full of flowers, hearts, and candy…but they couldn’t be more wrong. Alice is doing her best to hide the horrible truth from everyone. Her mother is battling a mental illness in a private psychiatric hospital, and she hasn’t written a word in three years.

It’s up to Alice to make sure the bills get paid, books get autographed (or forged, as the case may be), and eager fans and publishers are kept at bay. But it’s getting harder and harder to cope…especially when her mom’s publisher wants a completed manuscript or a return of the $100,000 advance for the next book, and the hospital needs payment for Belinda’s care and treatment. Alice doesn’t have the money needed, and she doesn’t know how she’ll get it…until she gets the bright idea to write a romance novel herself…in her mother’s name, of course. There are a few problems though: 1. She’s not a writer. 2. She’s never even been in love (and how can you write about romance if you’ve never experienced it?). 3. The publisher needs the novel by the end of the summer, so she’s got about a month to come up with something. What’s a girl to do? Well, someone comes along who may just have the answer to all of Alice’s problems…

When Alice first meets Errol, she thinks he’s crazy. Also, he reeks of clam juice. After talking to him for a bit, she still thinks he’s crazy, but she’s willing to hear him out if it will ultimately help her mother. See, Errol thinks he’s Eros, better known as Cupid, and he wants Alice to write the real story of Cupid and Psyche, the story that the gods wanted hushed up. Alice has quite enough crazy in her life, but she agrees to help Errol–even though he’s wrecking her relationship with Tony, the new guy in town. As Alice works on the book that she’s sure will fix everything, she learns a little about what a love story truly is and the power of love in all its forms.

Will Alice be able to tell Errol’s story before it’s too late? Will it be enough to keep her mother’s illness a secret? Is this guy really Cupid? Will her mother ever get better? And will Alice finally get her own love story with Tony? Answer these questions and many more when you read Mad Love by Suzanne Selfors.

Mad Love is a quick, easy read that will definitely appeal to tween and teen girls. (It will be a hard sell for most male readers.) Despite the cover, this is an emotional read that highlights what children of depressed parents go through. It also gives a new look at a story you might have encountered before. Many mythology enthusiasts–like myself–know the story of Cupid and Psyche, but Mad Love presents it in a whole new way…without the “happy ending” that we’ve grown accustomed to. Author Suzanne Selfors does a great job of showing readers how truly powerful love can be, whether it’s the love between parents and children, friends, romantic interests, or even total strangers. Mad Love is a wonderful, heart-wrenching book that will leave you examining the love in your own life. I know it did for me.(less)

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May 11, 2011 Mj rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

I enjoyed Suzanne Selfors' Coffehouse Angel very much so I thought I'd try this new novel. I am disappointed in the story. Each of the characters had issues through which they were working. Their issues, while relevant to the story, became a little overpowering at times. Maybe the title should have been my first clue. The main character in the story, Alice, is a very grownup teenager struggling with a bipolar mother. The supporting characters,the tenants in her apartment building, Erroll (also k...more

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Feb 14, 2012 Brittany rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, mythology

Alice's mom is on a bit of a mental vacation, "researching her next book", overseas...really she's in a mental hospital. The famous Belinda Amorous had bipolar disorder but she doesn't want anyone to find out, especially her publisher. So Alice is tasked with taking care of the house and finances and keeping her mothers treatment hush-hush. Soon Alice is forging her mom's signature on checks, letters and copies of her novels. Then Alice meets Errol. He is convinced that he is Cupid and that it i...more Alice's mom is on a bit of a mental vacation, "researching her next book", overseas...really she's in a mental hospital. The famous Belinda Amorous had bipolar disorder but she doesn't want anyone to find out, especially her publisher. So Alice is tasked with taking care of the house and finances and keeping her mothers treatment hush-hush. Soon Alice is forging her mom's signature on checks, letters and copies of her novels. Then Alice meets Errol. He is convinced that he is Cupid and that it is Alice's destiny to write his story. He claims that the story of Cupid and Psyche has been mistold and he wants the real, true story written down. Alice feels she has enough on her plate already, without this weird boy trying to get her to write some strange love story but she might be convinced otherwise. Somehow she has to juggle all these things plus a crush and try not to go crazy herself.

This was an interesting story. It wasn't a cute love story like one might expect from the paperback cover, it was a whirlwind of emotion. The love part comes in to play mostly from Cupid. I mean...it's Cupid, love and what not. Anyways, there is a budding crush in Alice's life but her life is a car wreck, so it's hard for her to stay focused on the task at hand. Alice was really all over the place. She clearly has taken on way more than she, personally, can handle. Some kids are in Alice's situation and can handle things okay, but it does really seem like too much all at once for Alice. Errol/Cupid was such a creep. He just seems like the sketchiest person alive. Even though I feel a little bad for him, I still would cross the street if I saw him. This was a really interesting story though. I liked the premise that maybe Cupid's love story wasn't happily ever after and that was just an ending that the gods liked better. I wish there was more to do with the mythology, and maybe less story plots altogether. There was so much going on in this book Suzanne Selfors handle it well and it was never confusing, but so much just seemed to be happening in just a few days, that it was a little bit hard to picture the story taking place in less than a week. I think the memories made it feel longer too, because it broke up the timeline. I did love the characters though, I could picture them all in their funky little apartment building. Some parts of this book were hilarious and then others were somber, which made the balance of emotion work out quite nicely. I think Archibald was my favorite character. He wasn't really involved with the drama of everything and just was very down to earth. Plus he was a bit sassy and gave fantastic advice. This is not a great read to put you in a lovey mood, but it was a pretty great read for itself.

First Line:
"When you're sixteen, summer is supposed to spread before you like a magic carpet, waiting to carry you to new, exciting places."

Favorite Line:
"We followed her from the church, a rumble of distant thunder accompanying our exit."

Read more: http://www.areadingnook.com/#ixzz1mQ3...(less)

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Mar 27, 2011 Julia rated it 4 of 5 stars

Alice Amorous has spent years covering for her Queen of Romance author mother, but now everything is coming due. Alice's mother has been usurped of her title and is late on her next romance novel for her publisher. Enter a pale, strange young man in a hoodie who gamely tracks Alice until she will listen to him. Errol (Eros/Cupid) wants Alice to hear and tell the real story about the great love of his life, Psyche. I enjoyed the mythological aspects to this story, in fact, I had to look up the st...more

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Feb 24, 2011 WilowRaven rated it 4 of 5 stars

Really not what I thought it was going to be - in a good way! With it's slightly tragic paranormal twist and characters that were very well developed, Mad Love was a fast, enjoyable read.

Have to say, at first, Errol, aka Cupid, really got on my nerves. He was kind of annoying. It wasn't until after I read more about his life and his backstory that I really started to understand and like him.

My favorite thing about Mad Love is the fact that it takes Alice a really long time to believe what Errol...more

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Feb 17, 2011 Lillie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: bloomsbury, for-review, i-own, received-from-publisher, review-copy, ya, reviewed-for-blog, book-or-blog-tour

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. See the full review at: Read My Mind

My Review:
Mad Love tackles the very serious issue of someone who suffers from bipolar issues. But, it's told from the point of view of the young daughter that has to watch her mother succumb to this disease, and is left to protect the mother's reputation as Queen of Romance.

I did actually have some issues with the way that Alice was left with no adult supervision within her own home. Sure, there were several neighbors looking out for her in the apartment bui...more See the full review at: Read My Mind

My Review:
Mad Love tackles the very serious issue of someone who suffers from bipolar issues. But, it's told from the point of view of the young daughter that has to watch her mother succumb to this disease, and is left to protect the mother's reputation as Queen of Romance.

I did actually have some issues with the way that Alice was left with no adult supervision within her own home. Sure, there were several neighbors looking out for her in the apartment building that her mother owned, but I just found it woefully impossible that Alice could live in those conditions, hiding her mother being committed to a hospital miles away and living virtually on her own. At best, I could see this situation lasting for only a few weeks or months, especially when Alice makes public appearances for her mother and uses the weak excuse that her mother is "overseas".

That being said, I quite enjoyed MAD LOVE. Suzanne Selfors does a very good job of showing the toll that bipolar can take, not just on the person that suffers from it, but also on the family and people around that person. Alice's character takes things into stride, but I can imagine her loneliness, and how isolated she feels with her situation.

The lovely thing about this novel is that it has more than one plot line, but neither one is so complicated that it is too hard to follow along, nor do any of the strings seem to be unrelated to the overall arc, or to lead nowhere. Sure, the inciting event is the mother's bipolar issues, but the real star of the book is "Cupid", who Alice meets, and must help before he succumbs to his own surprising mortality.

MAD LOVE is a light read, in that the language and pace move the reader along fairly quickly. I was able to read this book in less than three sittings, over the course of a few hours. Though the topics are serious, this is not a difficult book to read, and I think that the incorporation of Cupid's love story, along with Alice's possible burgeoning love life, as well as her independent nature, will appeal to a wide variety of readers.

3.5/5 for plot
4/5 for characters
3.5/5 for language

My Rating: 11/15 (3 stars)

Recommend, if you liked:
Kindred by Tammar Stein
Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins(less)

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Feb 11, 2011 Cindy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 100-books-in-2011, arcs, blog-tours, received-from-publishers

I wasn't sure what to expect when I first picked up Mad Love. I'm not a big fan of reading the cover synopsis of books because I like the element of surprise too much to get a lot of details before I start. I have to say I was very pleasantly surprised with this one.

The story kicks off with Alice doing an awful lot of lying to protect her mother and immediately my interest was piqued. We soon find out that although Alice is only sixteen, she's been running her household for months because her m...more I wasn't sure what to expect when I first picked up Mad Love. I'm not a big fan of reading the cover synopsis of books because I like the element of surprise too much to get a lot of details before I start. I have to say I was very pleasantly surprised with this one.

The story kicks off with Alice doing an awful lot of lying to protect her mother and immediately my interest was piqued. We soon find out that although Alice is only sixteen, she's been running her household for months because her mother is suffering from bipolar disorder. As if that isn't bad enough, Alice gets hit with more and more bad news until finally she decides she's going to have to take matters into own hands - literally. The publishing company that her mother works for is threatening to sue if a book isn't produced in a month's time. Knowing that there is no money, Alice settles on writing the book for her mother. It's romance, anyone can write a romance novel, right? So, this plot line in and of itself, could make for a great book but that's not all this book has to offer.Let's add in a little paranormal and mythological stuff too while we're at it.

See, there's this guy. You've probably heard of him - Cupid. Yeah, you know, that cute little baby that's all chubby and shoots people with arrows to make them fall in love? Well, what if he wasn't a cute little baby but instead a gorgeous, smoldering sixteen year old who has been suffering for centuries upon centuries without his true love, Psyche? What if that sexy Cupid, who is otherwise known as Errol, found Alice and decided she was the one to tell his story? His true love story? Okay, so now that sounds great too, right?

Now, let's add in Tony. The sweet, handsome, intelligent new guy in town. He's nice and charming and considerate and did I mention handsome? I was so excited when he was described as wearing glasses. There is definitely a shortage of hot fictional guys with glasses. I cannot be alone in thinking this, right? Glasses can be so attractive on a guy. Oh, and he falls for the emotionally unavailable Alice. Keeps getting better, doesn't it?

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Having personal experience with individuals that have bipolar disorder, I was supremely impressed with Selfors' accuracy in the ways the disease can present itself. I have seen the affect this disorder can have on someone first hand and I was very pleased with the way the author wrote this into the story line. It all rang true to me and again, I will just say I was impressed.

I will be the first to admit that I'm not much a historian nor do I know much about mythology in general but I loved this take on Cupid. Picturing him as a smoldering love interest as compared to a chubby infant, well, there really is no comparison, is there? And Tony, he was a rock for Alice, even when didn't realize she really needed a rock. The secondary characters in Mad Love were very well written as well. I absolutely loved Mrs. Bobot, Reverend Ruttles and Archibald. Archibald I especially had a soft spot for. There were also plenty of scenes that offered comedic relief from Alice's not-so-great life. :-)

So, I guess what I'm saying is I loved this book and I loved that I was surprised by it. I am very excited to have found a new author I can look forward to reading.(less)

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Aug 15, 2011 Arjun Thakrar (Excellent Reads) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I was slightly skeptical when reading this because it had a booming pink cover but surprisingly it’s for all genders and I really enjoyed it. It’s actually a fast paced, fantasy-romance, that isn’t the typical YA fantasy-romance.

The book covers many important things such as First Love, BiPolar and living on your own in your teenage years. It’s actually really good, and also has quite a bit of Greek Mythology which I’m always up for. The book follows Alice, daughter of the Queen of Romance, who h...more

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Feb 17, 2011 Eleni ( La Femme Readers ) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Cupid. We all know him as the cherubic, bow and arrow love maker. Suzanne on the other hand, introduced Errol. A dark, and sexified version I wouldn't mind seeing plastered on Valentine's Day. The infamous story of Cupid's existence was tweaked with a more realistic and emotionally moving approach. Instead of keeping the original version, Suzanne exemplified the heartache that sometimes comes along with falling in love. Alice, daughter of the queen of romance, was a spunky teen whose relatibilit...more

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Dec 03, 2012 Bre Kimble rated it 3 of 5 stars

I actually kind of like this story. It's not like other stories. It's about a 16-year-old girl named Alice Amorous who has been living a lie ever since her mother was secretly hospitalized for mental illness. After putting on a brave front for months, time is running out. The next book is overdue, and the Queen can't write it. Alice needs a story for her mother-and she needs one fast. Errol who used to be called Eros, most known as cupid. He was the one and only cupid. When Errol was talking to...more

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About Suzanne Selfors

Suzanne Selfors lives on an island near Seattle where it rains all the time, which is why she tends to write about cloudy, moss-covered, green places.
She's married, has two kids, and writes full time.
Her favorite writers are Kurt Vonnegut, Charles Dickens, and most especially, Roald Dahl.

Please visit her at www.suzanneselfors.com to learn more about her books.

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“When we place more value on what other people think of us than on what we think of ourselves, it’s a formula for misery.” — 19 people liked it

“What is more terrifying-- the things we imagine or the things that are real?” — 16 people liked it

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