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OCD Love Story

Corey Ann Haydu (Goodreads Author)

3.67 · Rating details · 3,985 ratings · 603 reviews

When Bea meets Beck, she knows instantly that he’s her kind of crazy. Sweet, strong, kinda-messed-up Beck understands her like no one else can. He makes her feel almost normal. He makes her feel like she could fall in love again.

But despite her feelings for Beck, Bea can’t stop thinking about someone else: a guy who is gorgeous and magnetic... and has no idea Bea even exis ...more

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Hardcover, 341 pages

Published July 23rd 2013 by Simon Pulse

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This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith

2013 Contemporary YA

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Dec 07, 2013 Jessica Lewenda rated it did not like it

Shelves: library, what-the-hell-happened, young-adult, romance, contemporary, bad-romance, 1-star, as-angsty-as-when-ed-dumped-bella, terrible-writing, love-at-first-sight

I have OCD. It's a debilitating mental disorder that has ruined my life and my body. My OCD mostly comes in the form of dermatillomania, which is essentially picking at my skin. My body is covered in tiny scars from when I've picked at my skin hard enough to bleed, and it's been a source of extreme anxiety and low self-esteem.

Now, we are told that Bea, the main character of this novel, has OCD. I picked up this book solely for that reason. I was so excited to read a character just like me.
But s ...more

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Feb 05, 2012 Lexie marked it as to-read

If this is gonna be called "OCD Love Story," the author had better get OCD right.

Or else.

description

...more

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Feb 08, 2017 Grace (BURTSBOOKS) rated it liked it

Shelves: reviewed

Good mental health books are very hard to come by, in my experience, they’re practically non-existent. OCD Love Story was 100% not perfect but it was good and with the lack of mental health books that aren’t complete trash out there, I’m satisfied with it being just good.

This book like every other book has its problem’s but I think it accomplished what it set out to do. OCD Love Story reads in a way that can only be described as uncomfortable, in the best way. While reading it, it is almost as Good mental health books are very hard to come by, in my experience, they’re practically non-existent. OCD Love Story was 100% not perfect but it was good and with the lack of mental health books that aren’t complete trash out there, I’m satisfied with it being just good.

This book like every other book has its problem’s but I think it accomplished what it set out to do. OCD Love Story reads in a way that can only be described as uncomfortable, in the best way. While reading it, it is almost as if Bea’s anxiety slips off the page right unto you, unpleasant, leaving no room for romanization.

It is a slippery slope when it comes to mental health in the media, it is so easy to cross the line from respect to romanization, and this book maintains the perfect distance away from that dreaded line while still including a romantic storyline. The unavoidable ugliness that comes along with mental illness is not avoided or glossed over but also not glorified. In this book, Bea's compulsive tendencies are identified as what they are, unpleasant side effects of a sickness. It isn’t seen as something to long for but it isn’t a revolting trait Bea or her love interest have either. They both have their tendencies but that doesn’t make them unlovable. Their relationship is flawed and neither of them claims or try to fix the other, in fact, Bea as a character is extremely flawed, outside of her mental illness which is something else that is rare.

Bea is selfish and arrogant, reading in her point of view is unpleasant at best and offensive at worst, she is not a nice person. While reading quite a few of the passages in the novel I couldn’t help but feel unsettled. I became uncomfortable (in a bad way), but I can’t get mad at the book, Bea is supposed to be this way. She has terrible thoughts, like everyone else. Bea isn’t likeable, she is however well written. An example of this is when we first meet the other teens in her therapy group. She has the oh so familiar mentality, that she is above the “crazy” people she is in therapy with, she thinks of them as gross because unlike her their mental illness is more visible and while Bea’s internal monologue is realistically offensive that doesn’t take away from the fact that it is offensive. I can only imagine how someone looking for rep in this book would feel to have their own tendencies shit on by the main character. – This is just one example of Bea being terrible (believe me there are others) and I can understand why someone would rule out this book altogether because of it but I don’t think Corey Ann Haydu is trying to say this mentality is okay, she isn’t excusing it, Bea is in fact proven wrong, as her mental state diminishes and she realizes that she is not better than any of the people she deems lesser.

At the end of the book, Bea isn’t cured, but she is on the road to recovery, which I appreciate. Mental illness is such a long-standing bullshit ride that it can’t possibly be cured in one novel, not even if said novel was 30,000 pages. Too many YA books like this end in unrealistic happy rainbows or suicide, while I’ll take the rainbows over the suicide neither is all that hopeful. Seeing someone recover without any actual recovery involved is aggravating and nonsensical in the best of situations, so the positive realism is greatly appreciated.

OCD Love story is an uncomfortable and unpleasant book, full of unlikeable characters and offensive internal monologues and somehow I don’t hate it.

*I do not have OCD so I can’t speak for the rep in this book. *

**I do however have anxiety and write this review from the point of view of someone who has struggled with mental illness for a long ass time. When I read a book like this I hope to find reassurance, not a carbon copy of my experience’s. ** ...more

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Feb 25, 2013 Vivid Light ~ ♥♥ rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, really-liked, reviewed, not-published, badass-covers-read, arc-read, best-ya-couples

To all yous who are saying "Oh em gee there better be proper depiction of OCD" well I have one .gif for you.

...more

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Jun 19, 2012 Christina (A Reader of Fictions) rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc, owned-print-copy, on-my-shelves, right-in-the-feels

OCD Love Story is one of those books that I think I'm going to love in retrospect. It's a painful read, one that actually sort of grated on my brain. The description calls it "raw," which is apt, and relatable, which it wasn't really for me. In the end, I'm really impressed with Haydu's debut, but largely undecided on just how I feel about it, and I already know I'll have to sit on it for a while and reread to really process my feelings about Haydu's debut.

There is no doubt in my mind that OCD L OCD Love Story is one of those books that I think I'm going to love in retrospect. It's a painful read, one that actually sort of grated on my brain. The description calls it "raw," which is apt, and relatable, which it wasn't really for me. In the end, I'm really impressed with Haydu's debut, but largely undecided on just how I feel about it, and I already know I'll have to sit on it for a while and reread to really process my feelings about Haydu's debut.

There is no doubt in my mind that OCD Love Story is brilliantly done. Haydu approaches OCD with honesty, and I learned a lot about OCD from this novel. I always thought I might be a little bit OCD, but, wow, I was wrong. The compulsions that Bea and the rest of her group have are nothing like my desire to listen to music at volumes that are either multiples of two or five. OCD isn't pretty. Even though the goal of these behaviors is to give the person a feeling of safety or order, the end result is not that.

Unlike the cover says so many times, Bea is not stalking a boy in OCD Love Story, though she did have a history of that. She's stalking a man, Austin, and his wife, Sylvia, who have the session before her with Dr. Pat. She overheard snippets of their session, and started a notebook about them. From there, she began to worry about their safety, felt the need to check in on them or she would be overcome with anxiety. On top of that, she's terrified of sharp objects, afraid that she'll hurt someone with them, can't drive above 30 miles an hour, because she thinks she'll hit someone, and pinches her thigh to a blue/black mess. Bea's issues are believable, but they were really hard for me to personally relate to. At the same time, this frank portrayal was great, because it really opened up my mine to different ways of thinking and being, which is one of the things I love about literature.

The romance depicted in OCD Love Story is really touching, actually. For a moment, I was afraid it would go to creepy Juno-like places with the Austin stalking, but it didn't thankfully. Right at the beginning, Bea meets a guy in a blackout and makes out with him. She meets him again in OCD group therapy, and he's just her type (huge and muscular and difficult to hurt). Beck and Bea are both incredibly messed up teens and seriously in denial about that. What I love about their romance, though, is it shows that love isn't skin deep and isn't just about perfection. In YA, the heroine and hero are generally idealized and perfect. Beck and Bea are not that, but it doesn't mean they can't find someone to love them, which is such a great message. Plus, their relationship has problems, but they work on it and stay together. It's not magically perfect or that the world wants to keep them apart.

OCD Love Story made me want to go into the book so that I could sit Bea down and give her a talking to. Beck too. Their compulsions are so hard for me to really understand. However, I loved the way that Haydu brought it all together in the end, as you find out what happened to Beck and Bea in the past. Their compulsions come from logical places, but practical concerns are taken to a level that's beyond rationality.

Perhaps I'll change my mind on this later, but, for now, the reading experience was sort of unpleasant. Worth pushing through, certainly, but reading this book almost physically hurt. This is obviously a sign that Haydu has done her work and done it well. You're meant to be uncomfortable, because that's what it's like to be Bea. Even though I know this is a sign of quality, it did lessen my liking of the book a bit. A reread might change my mind, but for now...

Aside from that, the writing style didn't really appeal to me. It fits Bea very well, but I didn't much care for it. That's a very personal thing, of course, and Haydu did do a great job with the voice overall, but it's just not my favorite writing style.

Lovers of honest books about hard subjects will not want to miss OCD Love Story. This is a book that will make you think and make you feel awkwardness and pain for the characters. ...more

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Jun 08, 2013 Katy rated it liked it

SO messed up…

I wouldn't be honest if I said that I liked this book because quite frankly, I was a bit disturbed. But I think the book accomplished what Haydu had intended, or at least I think it was what she had intended, and for that, I have to give her props.

I was looking for a cute, fun read that this was definitely NOT that. It forced me into a very serious topic in a not very pleasant light. I often joke that I'm border-line OCD because I'm pretty anal about certain things or particular abo SO messed up…

I wouldn't be honest if I said that I liked this book because quite frankly, I was a bit disturbed. But I think the book accomplished what Haydu had intended, or at least I think it was what she had intended, and for that, I have to give her props.

I was looking for a cute, fun read that this was definitely NOT that. It forced me into a very serious topic in a not very pleasant light. I often joke that I'm border-line OCD because I'm pretty anal about certain things or particular about evening or balancing things, and I know this book focused on extreme cases, but I was willing to take a peek.

Let's admit it, Bea is kind of a scary person - (view spoiler) is kind of creepy, and it would probably freak you out if that was happening to you - someone you know, let alone a stranger. I liked that she wasn't your typical case of what you would consider OCD, but I was curious where Haydu was going with it. And in a way, it was morbidly interesting - maybe not mobid, but how you can't help but stare at an accident or someone who is mentally challenged.

But I was interested by the different cases that were presented in the therapy session, although I do think that an obsession with washing your hands/body and an obsession with constantly working out is a weird combination - only because you get sweaty and dirty when you work out so it seems like it's a never ending cycle, just an odd combination in one person.

And it was interesting to see what triggered their OCD and how they got over it. HOWEVER, I did not like the fact that in the cases in this book, namely Bea and Beck, that it was a phase in their life. Some people pick up these habits early on in life, and it wasn't some dramatic event in their lives that triggered it. And yes, I do think medicine and therapy can help you deal with it, but I don't it's something that you can just overcome. And I don't want to make the assumption that Bea and Beck are completely cured by the end of the book, but everything is tied too neatly at the end.

But like I said, I do have to give Haydu props for having the guts to write a book like this. I wouldn't say I was sucked in, and it was more of curiosity than deep intrigued that kept me going - because I did feel that the book was a long read. But I do think that it was interesting to read, and it did mess with my head. I'm curious to know if this was based on a real story or a fictionalized version of real cases or if it was something Haydu totally made up and how much of this could really happen. ...more

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Mar 20, 2013 Dahlia rated it it was amazing

Shelves: sex-in-ya, fave-friendships, i-own-in-hardcopy, top-ten-debuts, favoritey-faves, neurodiversity, anxiety-disorders, simonandschuster, 2013-or-prior

If I took any "points" off this book, it would be because at times, it was an incredibly difficult read, in the sense that Haydu takes you so far inside the main character's head, and it's not really a pleasant place to be. But I opted not to take points off for the fact that the author did a fantastic job presenting a disorder with which I have no experience.

Bea was definitely not the sort of main character I've ever seen before, nor Beck the sort of love interest. But this book really and tru ...more

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Aug 18, 2019 Carrie Poppy rated it it was amazing

I have OCD — diagnosed fourteen years ago in my twenties, but I’ve had it since childhood — and I loved this book.

The main character is complicated but sympathetic, and we see the world through her fears and compulsions. There’s a lot of subverting expectation around the usual love story tropes, and character tropes. The writing frequently caught me off guard, with Bea identifying things I’ve never been able to articulate.

It’s a very powerful novel and, I think, a hopeful one. I see that some ...more

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Jul 15, 2013 loveandstolenkisses rated it it was amazing

As someone who have OCD very close in my life, I can´t tell how much this book hit a sore spot in me.

The author really understood how to write a book that don´t sugercoat, and make OCD to something we all can laugh at. It is a true, and very heavy story, that is so well written that you live the feelings in the book. You will experience the panic attacks, the feeling of wanting to apologize all the time, the shame, the need to do the OCD things to feel better, and how people react around one, w ...more

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Jul 15, 2013 Lindsey Tipton rated it it was ok

This book was so stressful I might end up in therapy!

My rating for this book could be improved one to two stars just by changing the cover and marketing. The girly colors and frills on the cover are specifically relevant to the story but send a drastically different message about the general tone of the book. This book is intense with an emphasis on the "OCD" rather than the "love story." I expected a light-hearted and quirky story but found myself trapped in someone's personal hell.

When I read ...more

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Feb 26, 2014 Katelynn rated it did not like it

Shelves: own, ugh

I despised this book. If it hadn't been marketed so poorly I never would've picked it up.

Admittedly I don't know much about OCD, so I was hoping this book would at the very least educate me about the disorder even if it couldn't engage me in any other way.

All this book did was romanticize a mental disorder while simultaneously vilifying those who have it. Almost every character in this book who suffers from OCD was completely unlikable and since it's so poorly written it just makes it seem lik ...more

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May 11, 2012 Heather rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2013-release

So here are the catch words I wrote down after finishing OCD Love Story: Intense, harrowing, anxious, stressful, cringe worthy, heart racing, sad, hopeful. I felt ALL of these emotions as I was reading this book. It's a tough read. Or at least it was for me. It reminded me a bit of Hilary T. Smith's Wild Awake, especially the parts of that book where protagonist Kiri is in full-on manic mode. The difference is that in OCD Love Story, protagonist Bea is pretty much ALWAYS like that. Always full o So here are the catch words I wrote down after finishing OCD Love Story: Intense, harrowing, anxious, stressful, cringe worthy, heart racing, sad, hopeful. I felt ALL of these emotions as I was reading this book. It's a tough read. Or at least it was for me. It reminded me a bit of Hilary T. Smith's Wild Awake, especially the parts of that book where protagonist Kiri is in full-on manic mode. The difference is that in OCD Love Story, protagonist Bea is pretty much ALWAYS like that. Always full of anxiety. Always compulsing and obsessing over things and people in her life. It was hard to read because I rarely had time to catch my breath. It just kept going on and on. Which is probably why I had to take a step back from the book as I was reading it. I think I put it down for almost a month before picking it back up again and finishing it.

Now I don't want to give the wrong impression. I didn't walk away from the book because it's bad, because it's not. In fact it is extremely well written. Corey Ann Haydu definitely has her writing chops in check. I walked away because of the intensity. It was HARD to be in Bea's mind for long periods of time. It was exhausting. I felt super stressed out as I was reading. And I'm betting that that is exactly what Haydu was going for when she wrote this book.

My personal experience with OCD and other anxiety disorders is pretty limited. I do have a distant family member who has been diagnosed with compulsion issues and I can tell you it is not easy being around him. It's the same with Bea and Beck in this book. Both these kids were to me VERY likable characters. And very sympathetic characters. The thing about Bea is she KNOWS how out of hand her behavior can get. When she is in the middle of a dull blown anxiety attack, or when she is in the middle of acting completely erratically and, let's just say it because Bea does, CRAZY, she knows it. At the beginning of the book, Bea does have some denial issues when her therapist Dr. Pat (who is SUCH a great character, one of my fave's in the book) wants to start treating her for anxiety disorder. But by the half way point, Bea fully comprehends just how bad her illness has become.

So, like I said, because of this it's very easy to like Bea and want to see her get better. It's easy to want to cheer her on and watch her overcome her illness. Even when her disorder causes her to do things that will absolutely make you CRINGE in embarrassment. In fact, especially then, because Bea is almost like an outsider looking in--her disorder just takes over and even though she knows she REALLY shouldn't be saying certain things or doing certain things, she is HELPLESS to stop it.

There are all sorts of things that trigger anxiety in Bea. Sharp objects: she's obsessed with the fact that anyone, even her, especially her, could pick up a pair of scissors or something and hurt someone. Driving: Bea can barely make it from point A to B because she is so worried she will accidentally hit something or someone. In fact, she often has to turn around again and again to double back and make sure that she really didn't just hit that kid on the tricycle. It's like when you run back inside your house to make sure your turned off the curling iron or locked the back door times 1,000.

And then there is Bea's most disturbing fixation on a couple who are also patients of Dr. Pat's that she begins watching. The watching turns to listening in and transcribing their therapy sessions, which then leads to her following them home which then leads to full on stalking. And why? Because she fears something will happen to them if she doesn't keep watch over them. It's this kind of erratic behavior that makes up the 'OCD' part of OCD Love Story.

So what about the 'Love Story' part? It's there. In the beginning of the book, Bea meets Beck at a school dance. The lights have gone out in the gym, and Bea senses that a nearby boy is having a panic attack. Turns out it's Beck. When she runs into him a few days later at her first group therapy session a friendship forms.

Beck has got a lot of issues as well. He's a compulsive hand washer. He's obsessed with the number 8. And he compulsively works out. To the point that his body gives out on him. As a result he looks pretty menacing--but Beck is a very fragile, broken guy on the inside. I really did love the romance that develops between these two. But again, it was HARD to read. I loved that they both turned to each other and tried to help each other with their disorders, but it's not a really conventional romance. Part of me felt like they really were in no way ready to enter into an emotional or physical relationship--they both had SO MANY PROBLEMS. But on the other hand, I think the benefits of them finding each other and working on having some kind of normal relationship outweighed the negative aspects.

I mentioned how much I liked Dr. Pat, Bea and Beck's therapist. She was great. But there was also a character that I had a lot of negative feelings about and that was Bea's best friend Lisha. I won't go into details but Lisha is an enabler and while I can understand how that happens, Lisha does some things in this book that really bothered me.

I know this review might be all over the place, and that is probably a good indicator of how I felt as I was reading. But in the end I liked this book a lot. It was tough, but I liked getting this inside view of what it is like to live with anxiety and compulsion disorders. I have a new found respect for the people who live with them, as well as their friends and families that deal with it, and the individuals who help treat them.

And remember one of my catch words was HOPE. Because this book does have a lot of that in it too. Bea and Beck do have breakthrough moments, one happens to Bea while she is driving with Dr. Pat, and those are WONDERFUL to read. I walked away from this book feeling like both Bea and Beck, while not magically cured, have reached a turning point, and the future looks brighter for both of them.

So, would I recommend this book to others? Yes. I realize that it may not be a book for everyone--there is no denying that it was an uncomfortable read for me at times, but it exposed me to something that MANY people live with on a day to day basis and I think that is a very, very good thing in the end. Kudos to Corey Ann Haydu for having the balls to write a book like this. I'll definitely be watching for more from her in the future.
...more

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Mar 16, 2014 Anastasia ｼ rated it really liked it

Shelves: romance, contemporary, young-adult, authors-h, 2014

Reviewed on my blog~ ...more

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Nov 27, 2012 Alexa rated it really liked it

Recommended to Alexa by: Estelle

Shelves: read-in-2015

FIRST THOUGHTS:

It is so, so difficult to read a novel where the main character is suffering from a condition that could potentially make you uncomfortable. And yet, I also think that's why books like this are so important. Real people have these real conditions (or something similar), and maybe it might not be exactly the same symptoms or choices because of it, but at least we know how to empathize with them and understand what they are going through a little bit more.

REVIEW:

(Originally posted FIRST THOUGHTS:

It is so, so difficult to read a novel where the main character is suffering from a condition that could potentially make you uncomfortable. And yet, I also think that's why books like this are so important. Real people have these real conditions (or something similar), and maybe it might not be exactly the same symptoms or choices because of it, but at least we know how to empathize with them and understand what they are going through a little bit more.

REVIEW:

(Originally posted on Alexa Loves Books)

OCD Love Story is not an easy read. There are moments that will make you uncomfortable, instances that will make you cringe, things that will make you unbearably emotional. All of the discomfort is centered around Bea, who suffers from severe OCD that causes her to act in questionable ways. So, to be completely honest, I can't tell you I enjoyed reading it because it just made me feel off-kilter.

Yet, it's because OCD Love Story depicts something so raw and real that I feel it's really important for readers to encounter Bea's story for themselves. Real people suffer from conditions like Bea's every day, and the novel goes a long way towards helping readers understand exactly what it could be like for them. While there are varying symptoms or levels of these conditions, this novel encourages a better understanding and true empathy for those who battle mental illnesses.

Even though she's also the source of my discomfort, Bea is also the reason I kept on reading OCD Love Story. Little glimpses into her past, into her character, into her vulnerabilities, all of that really helped me engage with her as a character. It made me want her to find solid footing among the tumult of her OCD and the hard stuff she was afraid to face, even when she was trying my patience with her choices. While it's not something that can be cured completely, OCD can be managed (based on what is mentioned in this novel, as well as what I know from real life) and I wanted that for her.

There are a lot of things going on in OCD Love Story, but to me, it's heavily focused on Bea being diagnosed with OCD and dealing with it. What stands out most in my mind is that, even though the story is messy and riddled with uncomfortable moments, it reads so authentically. In the end, Haydu's story is a testament to one simple truth: life goes on, no matter what you have to deal with in your every day. It's a hard truth, but a good one to be faced with, and I believe it will inspire readers to face the fact that life as we know it might not always be perfect - and we should persevere anyway.

It will challenge you. It will make you think. It will drop-kick you out of your comfort zone. But OCD Love Story is worth all of the time you'll spend reading it, and I sincerely hope you'll give it a shot. ...more

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Jul 26, 2013 Kelly rated it really liked it

Shelves: ya-fiction, read-in-2013

An excellent exploration of mental illness. Maybe more than an exploration but an actual head-on EXPERIENCE of mental illness. A damn good debut, with a nice side of romance that is never actually a romance. It is, as the title suggests, a love story.

Full review to come.

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Aug 13, 2014 Sam rated it it was amazing

5/5 Stars

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Nov 26, 2013 Kelly (and the Book Boar) rated it liked it

Shelves: read-in-2013

Find all of my reviews at: http://52bookminimum.blogspot.com/

3.5 Stars

Bea has a bit of a problem. A stalking problem. She doesn’t spend her time stalking her maybe/maybe not boyfriend, Beck. They just attend group therapy for OCD together. No, Bea spends her time stalking Austin, a man who happens to attend couple’s therapy with his wife in the timeslot right before Bea’s individual therapy sessions. But really, what Bea does isn’t stalking, is it? It’s not her fault that she gets to therapy an ...more

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Jun 23, 2012 Nicole marked it as to-read

I have OCD...so let's see how this goes. ...more

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Jun 30, 2015 PinkAmy loves books, cats and naps rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Grade: A-

High school senior Bea suffers from a compulsive form of OCD that, among other things, causes her to fixate on a person and stalk him. Now, in addition to the man she's stalking, she's dating a guy from her OCD support group and by dating, I mean they're enabling each other to fall deeper into their obsessions. Bea falls deeper and deeper into dangerous territory and nobody seems to be able to stop her, least of all herself.

OCD: A LOVE STORY is not a love story, the friendship between Grade: A-

High school senior Bea suffers from a compulsive form of OCD that, among other things, causes her to fixate on a person and stalk him. Now, in addition to the man she's stalking, she's dating a guy from her OCD support group and by dating, I mean they're enabling each other to fall deeper into their obsessions. Bea falls deeper and deeper into dangerous territory and nobody seems to be able to stop her, least of all herself.

OCD: A LOVE STORY is not a love story, the friendship between Beck and Bea is much more prominent that the light romance between the too. If anything, OCD: A LOVE STORY read more like a thriller. I found myself holding my breath, anticipating when Bea would be caught stalking, by whom, and how the fallout would pan out. I had to take frequent breaks to catch my breath, the tension permeated page after page. I actually felt Bea's anxiety jump off the pages and into my gut.

Corey Ann Haydu gave Bea a fantastic, realistic voice, not unlike other OCD teens I've treated. I do wish she would have gone into more details about her previous stalking episode and the incident that was the impetus of her anxiety. While Bea is annoying, often inappropriate, selfish and narcissistic some of that can be attributed to her anxiety and OCD. I hated how she treated her best friend, even more so because she knew she acted unkindly, but rather than engage with Dr Pat and tell the truth, she lied in order go continue her behaviors. Bea was unlikable more than sympathetic for most of the novel. I rooted her to have consequences, not just help for her OCD because of how often she crossed the line in hurtful ways.

I wish the stalking incident was set up and resolved more realistically. Most therapists gave white noise machines and don't put chairs so close to the door that would allow the next client to hear entire sessions as clearly to write take such copious notes. Most therapists would have an extra eye on a client with a history of stalking. Also, I don't know of any therapists who have their adult clients call them Dr ______ (first name), kids and teens, maybe, but not adults.

THEMES: OCD, mental illness, anxiety, stalking, romance, friendship

OCD: A LOVE STORY accurately portrays the tension and anxiety sufferers experience and I'd recommend it to teens and young adult clients with anxiety and OCD. ...more

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Jul 16, 2017 Disability in Kidlit added it

Shelves: mental-illness, ocd

"At the risk of oversimplifying, [people with OCD] doubt ourselves deeply. In OCD Love Story, Corey Ann Haydu infuses her story about Bea, a teenage girl who gets diagnosed with OCD and doesn’t quite believe it, with the back-and-forth, pulsing presence of this doubt. The result is a first-person, insider’s account of what OCD feels like for many.

We are introduced to Bea in the form of a panic attack. While the power goes out in the middle of a school dance, Bea hears someone gasping for air, a ...more

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Jul 22, 2014 Sabrina E. Gallien rated it did not like it

I ranked this book incredibly low for incredibly selfish reasons. As a person suffering from even a mild form of OCD I was highly triggered by the novel. It made my own personal compulsions worse, added to my anxiety, and disrupted my functionality. However, I couldn't go without finishing the book because /my own/ OCD wouldn't allow it. Bea is a good girl, and her symptoms are highly realistic, as well as her mindset. The other characters also expose the disease in various forms and in that way ...more

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Dec 29, 2012 Pragya rated it did not like it

Recommends it for: No one

Shelves: library, 2014, struggled-to-finish

First Published at Reviewing Shelf.

I had my sights set on this book even before it released last year. Although I got my hands on a review copy, I couldn’t get to it last year. So when I saw it in my library, I enthusiastically grabbed it.

The book began interestingly enough but soon seemed to lack lustre for me. I kept waiting for it to pick up, then waited for it to just get over and finally struggled for a month before being done with it. Phew! So glad it’s over.

I had high hopes set for this First Published at Reviewing Shelf.

I had my sights set on this book even before it released last year. Although I got my hands on a review copy, I couldn’t get to it last year. So when I saw it in my library, I enthusiastically grabbed it.

The book began interestingly enough but soon seemed to lack lustre for me. I kept waiting for it to pick up, then waited for it to just get over and finally struggled for a month before being done with it. Phew! So glad it’s over.

I had high hopes set for this book and it dashed it all. A love story along with OCD interests me as a psychologist and a reader on so many levels. But this book dragged on with no obvious end in sight.

The characters didn’t make me feel and at times, seemed too bizarre. I get OCD, I see it all the time in my clinical practice and quite a lot of the information there was accurate and I applaud the author for it. But there had to be some editing in there.

Also, the story could have benefitted from, you know, actually having a story, rather than basing one on OCD symptoms. It isn’t a memoir after all. For a love story, the guy’s perspective was hardly shown and not even dealt with in its entirety, leaving things to the reader’s imagination. I am all for using my brain cells but at least make me want to do so. This book just made me want to fling it at the wall because it dragged on forever and I hate to leave books unfinished so I struggled through with it, wasting so much of my time. This 300+ page book could have easily been summed up in 200 and could have had an actual story, going by me.

The characters apart from Bea (the main one) are a bit unsteady and I found myself reading about them and saying ‘oh, really?’ in my head. They just don’t seem real enough, the situations seem vague and unlikely. Well, I can go on and on but I truly failed to understand the point that the book wanted to carry through.

Other readers have really liked the book so it may be my psychologist’s biased opinion and not just as a reader’s. So give this a chance at your own peril. I take no responsibility.

1.5/5 stars – The author has worked hard but the book really wasn’t for me.

Find more reviews at Reviewing Shelf. ...more

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Apr 25, 2015 Olivia Ho rated it did not like it

This book was… a slight bit too love based for me. It has mature topics, such as swearing and alcohol use in it, and I really didn't like that at all. I do not recommend this book. The topic of OCD and the main characters compulsions weren't interesting and romanticized. It's not romantic, and the author portrayed it completely wrong. The main character, Bea, was every stereotypical white girl movie hero, a.k.a. Love obsessed, boring, self-centered, "kind," is "like everyone else!!111!!," and pl ...more

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Apr 13, 2013 Trisha rated it really liked it

This is a tough but realistic look at OCD.
I love that this book is real - it's raw and powerful and not easy to read. But I'm glad there is a book that lets someone like me, who doesn't know this disorder well, get more information and understanding. ...more

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Feb 25, 2015 B.A. Wilson rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, ya, diversity, contemporary

This shredded me. It was so painful to read. I had to set it aside more than once. It digs deep into OCD and took me to some dark places. But I loved it despite how angsty it made me. It's full of voice and rather adorable at times. It's also raw, messy, and eye-opening. ...more

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Jun 24, 2014 Fari rated it it was ok

Shelves: genre-contemporary, 2014, opinion-disappointment-letdown, stand-alones, genre-young-adult, dnf

DNF @ page 200

There isn't exactly wrong with this book. I just don't care, you see. It was due at the library today and didn't bother renewing it. ...more

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Jan 09, 2013 Estelle rated it really liked it

Shelves: favorites, young-adult, own, 2013-new-releases, arc, top-notch-female-leads

4.5 stars.

Review originally posted on Rather Be Reading Blog

This book. THIS book.

Even though I loved them for the unique stories they were, I can only compare my OCD Love Story reading experience to Wild Awake. The cover promised me this bright, happy story and the inside gave me something entirely different. A female character dealing with demons, in denial about those demons, and going through hell to hopefully move one step forward. (Whether she knows it or not.) Both debuts are filled with 4.5 stars.

Review originally posted on Rather Be Reading Blog

This book. THIS book.

Even though I loved them for the unique stories they were, I can only compare my OCD Love Story reading experience to Wild Awake. The cover promised me this bright, happy story and the inside gave me something entirely different. A female character dealing with demons, in denial about those demons, and going through hell to hopefully move one step forward. (Whether she knows it or not.) Both debuts are filled with bittersweet moments, difficult moments, happy/sweet moments, and force you to really take your time going through the pages. Both authors are extremely talented; great language usage and a main character full of personality. And just like with Wild Awake, I want you to love OCD Love Story as much as I did.

Bea has such an enthusiastic personality. She wants to be a costume designer. She likes hot chocolate. She loves boys! She also enjoys listening into her therapist’s session before hers. The compelling and beautiful couple that have sort of a sexless marriage. Then she starts noting their secrets in a mini notebook, and driving by their place… and things get messy. Even though Bea has been actively in therapy for a period of time and is now taking part in an OCD therapy group, she is convinced she is not the weird one. That she’s not ripping her hair out of her head or washing her hands until the skin flakes off so she is okay compared to everyone else.

The realization that she is not and can’t grasp exactly what she is doing — jeopardizing her best friendship, halting her potential romance with fellow OCD groupee, Beck — is painful to watch unfold. I had to close the book a few times and take a deep breath because I just wanted to help Bea and make it all better. But I couldn’t. Haydu does a great job showcasing different OCD cases without making it feel medicial or too technical. Instead there is always that underlying feeling that dealing with OCD is a process and even making strides does not mean you are all “fixed.”

As for romance, I really liked Bea and Beck together even though I couldn’t quite tell if they would get it together. At one point, Bea says something to Beck like: Let’s stop being weird about the shit that we do. But even this acceptance that Beck is obsessed with working out or Bea drives super slow on the highway no matter what the weather doesn’t always mean sunshine and butterflies for them. Their connection is strong and they do understand each other, but sometimes you are not sure if they are actually helping one another or enabling in some way. I was rooting for them so much, both individually and as a couple.

OCD Love Story is so skillfully written: from the vibrant dialogue to the hard to read moments and also to the detail planting that Haydu does so well. She carefully plops in little clues, meant to explain the events that led to Bea becoming so fixated on certain things. I was actively telling myself to pay attention to those small facts, stringing them together until the whole story pieced together rather nicely.

My favorite stories of any genre are the ones that make me curious, leave me thinking about the characters way after I’m finished with the book. I’m still wondering if Bea’s best friend was actually just a good friend or totally cold-hearted and not understanding enough. I’m thinking about Dr. Pat and her way she worked with her patients. And what about the musician and his wife? Haydu gives us such a multi-dimensional story that I feel like I need to read it again to pick up all the great details she lovingly pieced together in this story. Most importantly, she gave us a character to really care about even when it hurt to do so.

All I can say is: Bravo.
...more

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May 08, 2013 Tabitha (Bows & Bullets Reviews) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: quiet-ya, favorites, reviewed

The review is also available on my blog, Bows & Bullets Reviews

Bea is just your average girl with a weekly therapist appointment. She just likes to take notes, and is a bit obsessive….with a tinsy history of stalking. She meets Beck and he just might be perfect for her, but she can’t stop obsessing over Austin and his perfect life and she just needs to check in on him to make sure he’s alright one last time and then she’ll move on!

I’m a bit speechless. I was expecting an interesting love story a The review is also available on my blog, Bows & Bullets Reviews

Bea is just your average girl with a weekly therapist appointment. She just likes to take notes, and is a bit obsessive….with a tinsy history of stalking. She meets Beck and he just might be perfect for her, but she can’t stop obsessing over Austin and his perfect life and she just needs to check in on him to make sure he’s alright one last time and then she’ll move on!

I’m a bit speechless. I was expecting an interesting love story about a girl with minor OCD tendencies, like a need for everything to be in its proper place and maybe a obsession with keeping everything including herself extremely clean, you know kind of a “Out damn spot!” kind of thing. I was so far off. Bea’s compulsions have nothing to do with cleanliness and everything to do with obsessing over everyones safety. It was both fascinating and terrifying to watch her stalking manifest. It started as something so small and then grew so massive.

Watching her struggle to fight her compulsions and losing more often than not was heartbreaking especially because she is fully aware of how insane she acts and she is helpless to stop it. Once she and Beck start dating, watching them both use the other to help fight the compulsions and also to comfort one another when that fails was endearing. I love that Bea fully accepts Beck as he is, with his fitness obsessions and the number 8 fixation. She realizes that she is just as damaged and knows that on the list of compulsions, those aren’t nearly as bad as they could be. Not to mention the fact that he a very compelling reason for developing those obsessions.

The really disturbing thing about this was how fixated on Austin and Sylvia she becomes. Even after she starts a relationship with Beck, she can’t stop watching them and taking notes on the parts of their sessions she overhears. Her fear that something bad will happen to them if she doesn’t make sure they are okay is so vivid that she physically cannot stop herself from going to them.

This novel gets 5 stars for shock value alone. This is the only YA novel I have ever read that portrays OCD and stalking…well with the main character is a stalker because I’ve read several where the main character gets stalked. My point is more of this is the first one I’ve read where the stalker is portrayed in a semi-sympathetic light and the first one that seriously discusses OCD as more than just a vague reference to someone with an obsession with order. I do not have OCD, but I did take several different college psychology courses and I feel like Haydu did an excellent job portraying this condition. I highly recommend this to anyone looking for something outside of your typical YA contemporary and for anyone interested in mental disorders.

****Thank you to Simon Pulse, an imprint of Simon & Schuster for providing me with an eARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review**** ...more

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Jul 25, 2013 Janina rated it really liked it

Shelves: teens

I really enjoyed this book. I've always been a sucker for stories like this - those with mental health problems. I suppose I just have an odd morbid curiosity for things like this.

Bea isn't your run-of-the-mill person with OCD. Typically you hear about the ones that have to wash their hands a billion times a day and have to check and recheck the locks on their doors before they leave the house.

Bea has an obsession with checking on Austin & Sylvia at their posh apartment in Boston. She discovere I really enjoyed this book. I've always been a sucker for stories like this - those with mental health problems. I suppose I just have an odd morbid curiosity for things like this.

Bea isn't your run-of-the-mill person with OCD. Typically you hear about the ones that have to wash their hands a billion times a day and have to check and recheck the locks on their doors before they leave the house.

Bea has an obsession with checking on Austin & Sylvia at their posh apartment in Boston. She discovered them while waiting for her sessions with her therapist to start. Sylvia & Austin see the same therapist and Bea discovered she could hear part of the therapy session going on and her OCD with them bloomed from this discovery. She kept a notebook on them - on every single detail she could absorb from what they said to what they wore and when she feels her anxiety ratchet up, she reads the notebook for relief and often "checks" on them once a day. She feels if she does not "check" and make sure they are okay, then they could die.

She has other compulsions as well - like pinching her thigh to keep some of her compulsions in check, and driving 20 mph because she fears hitting someone. Sometimes she will make loops to continually check on someone walking outside to make sure she did not hit them while driving.

She starts group and officially meets Beck, a boy she "met" at a school dance at the beginning of the book, and things begin to unravel. As her relationship with Beck starts to develop, Bea's OCD gets worse and worse. Beck and Bea together is a bit odd and strange and yet somehow works. It begs the question of what happens when two OCD people get together? Do they try to help each other to stop the other person from compulsing, or do they enable each other because they understand the anxiety that can ensue if they don't get to compulse.

I really enjoyed going on Bea's journey with her and how it all came to a head for her and what she ultimately had to do in order to control her compulsions. Very well done! ...more

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Nov 05, 2015 Anja rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This story is about Bea and Beck (stupid name). They both have OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder), Bea is a stalker, takes lots of notes on the people she stalks and on accidents etc. and pinches her thigh whenever times get hard for her; Beck is addicted to the gym and cleaning his hands and the number eight.

They meet at a school dance or something during a blackout in the gym. Beck is having a panic attack and Bea helps him through that (and they kiss, which I found strange). After that Bea's ...more

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“Torture: knowing something makes no sense, but doing it anyways.” — 36 likes

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