Love Me, Love Me Not

by Alyxandra Harvey

Dating isn’t easy when you’re in the middle of a blood feud.

Anastasia Vila’s family can turn into swans, but just once she’d like them to turn into responsible adults.

After hundreds of years, they still cling to the blood feud with the Renard family. No one remembers how it started in the first place—but foxes and swans just don’t get along.

Vilas can only transform into their swan shape after they have fallen in love for the first time, but between balancing schoolwork, family obligations, and the escalating blood feud, Ana’s got no time for love. The only thing keeping her sane is her best friend, Pierce Kent.

But when Pierce kisses Ana, everything changes.

Is what Pierce feels for her real, or a byproduct of her magic? Can she risk everything for her best friend? And when the family feud spirals out of control, Ana must stop the fight before it takes away everything she loves.

Including, maybe...Pierce.

This Entangled Teen Crave book contains language, violence, and lots of kissing. Warning: it might induce strong feelings of undeniable attraction for your best friend.

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal, Retellings, Shapeshifters, Mystery

Paperback

First published February 22, 2016

About the author

www.alyxandraharvey.com

Alyxandra Harvey is the author of The Cinderella Society, The Dainty Devils, The Drake Chronicles, The Witches of London, Haunting Violet and more!
She likes chai lattes, tattoos, and books.
Sometimes fueled by literary rage.

Reviews

[Sarah Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to Entangled Publishing, LLC and NetGalley.)

“I was going to ruin everything. And I just couldn’t seem to stop myself.”

This was a good retelling, and I liked the romance.

Ana was a bit blind to her feelings in this book, and even when Pierce told her that he loved her, she didn’t seem to believe him! I really wanted her to figure out how much she liked him, but it did seem to take her a while.

The storyline in this was about the feud between the foxes and swans, and Ana finding true love in order to earn her wings, and it was an entertaining story, even if the pace was a bit slow.

I did find the romance in this quite sweet though, and I liked the way we got a happy ending.



6.5 out of 10

[Paula M · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked the idea of Swans vs. Foxes. So original! And just like I expected, very much swoonyyyy. Full review to follow!

[Stephanie (Bookfever) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anastasia 'Ana' Vila comes from a family that can turn into swans. Before a Vila can turn into a swan they have to fall in love first, which is Ana's main problem. Between school, obligations to her family and the feud they have with the Renard family, how can she find the time to fall in love? Luckily Ana's best friend Pierce is around. Only Pierce is in love with her, which she has been pretty much blind to, until Pierce kisses her and everything changes.

I really did like Love Me, Love Me Not. As I said before the characters were all great. The main characters especially were great to read about. Pierce was my favorite, mainly because he's a big reader and I liked that for a change, the guy was in love with the girl and not the other way around.

This story is a Romeo and Juliet retelling. There are lots of hints to Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare and what not. So I had expected Pierce to be from the Renard family, except he wasn't. So, I don't know... maybe that's part of the reason why I didn't fully connect to the story. Also, the whole magic and swans things confused me a little and was glossed over too fast. I also wanted to learn more about the Renards.

Luckily, I've always liked Alyxandra Harvey's books. She has real talent to write strong characters, especially the females. I've also always liked how she writes her male characters as well. So it's not surprising that it was the same with this book.

Love Me, Love Me Not was definitely a story that I liked. The characters were my favorite thing in it — they were all really great. I just couldn't feel a real connection to the story in general.

[Anne Bollmann (Annelise Lestrange) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review originally posted on The Book Adventures of Annelise Lestrange :)

I received this copy from Chapter by Chapter in exchange for an honest review. Let's go :D


The Story

Ana is just your regular small town girl, struggling with school papers, family feuds and to get the attention of her dream boy Edward. Of course that everything would be so much easier without her swan heritage, family weird traditions and blood feud, that kept her and all the Vilas on their toes, and if she only could carry an intelligent conversation (you know, on human level) with Edward. And if she could be certain that she would properly fall in love and grow her wings, instead of ending up like one of her crazy aunts.

Thank Goddess her best friend, Pierce, was always there to hold her ground.

Pierce, in the other hand, has been head over hills with Ana for a while now, but the girl was incredibly dense. Pierce knew how much pressure she had, but he also had problems of his own. You know, just a delinquent thief brother, a nazi grandma and tight money 24/7. Even being only human, life can be cruel to you.

If only Pierce could make Ana see that they already got each other’s grounds.


The Analysis
Just remembering that those were my impressions and opinion as a reader :)

I really loved this book! I mean, there wasn’t much that could go wrong with so many elements that I love on a young adult story: magic, fairy tale retelling, geek drop-dead-guys and a good mystery. I loved Ana as a protagonist and deeply admire her for her acts; despite everything that she was taught, she was a pacifist. And had Pierce, which definitely makes her the most lucky girl in the world, haha! I read this book in a single seating because I couldn’t stand the thought of leaving it before its end. My only problem with it was the writing style, but we will get there. My rate for it was four stars <3

The narrative is first person styled, with switching point of views between Ana and Pierce and I’m surprised to say that I loved both narrators equally – I usually prefer guys on first narratives. I may have to change my views on first person narratives, as lately I seem to have found several books with high quality narrators, haha! What didn’t really struck me was Harvey’s writing style: it wasn’t all fluid and graceful. I felt like the book was a car: on most moments, it worked just fine, but out of nowhere, there were halts on the storyline and I had to make sure that I hadn’t skipped a page by accident or something like that. There weren’t divisions for the time passages, you know? Other than that, I have no complains on the narrative or writing style, haha!

The plot was simple, with a touch of mystery, but very well executed. I already saw what was coming for the Vilas and Renards as soon as the weird stuff began and it was pretty obvious who did it all, but I wasn’t bothered by it. As it happens with my sugared romances, what I really like is to see the reasons, motives and details on how things are going to work out, haha! But if you are a pinner for surprises in plots, you’ll be slightly disappointed with Love Me, Love Me Not. (And that’s pretty much the second out of two reasons, as this book is very good! In case you didn’t catch it, the first one is the writing style, haha!)

I really loved Harvey’s characters, all of them! Come on, Liv was supposed to be a huge bitch and she was, but I couldn’t help myself: I had so much fun on her scenes, haha! Everyone was so well-built that took my breath away. Besides my surprise for linking Ana so much (I’m usually not a good girl’s fan), I also could see how Vila and Renards could be real. Even with the blood feud going on, they all were just like you and me. How to not relate?

Besides, Pierce was the perfect guy. One more bookish boyfriend for my list <3 Seriously, I improperly squealed on so many occasions that I’m ashamed of myself, haha! I wish I could meet someone like him…

Which brings us back to Ana and why I identified myself so highly with her. I’m also very scared to never fall in love, to be alone and become insane. Harvey shows us in the book that what outside people say doesn’t matter; we have to see and feel secure for ourselves. And this is so hard, sounds so… Impossible. I was pinning for Pierce, of course, but I was glad to see that Ana’s feelings were gradual and real, not some weird insta love. Bonus points to Harvey for making me feel better, haha!

Overall, this book is a must read if you like fairy tale retellings, magic, strong females, funny punch lines and hot males <3 I’ll definitely keep my eyes open for other Harvey works, as she clearly is a brute diamond!

Thank you for reading :D And, once again, thanks to Chapter by Chapter for this chance, I loved Love Me, Love Me Not <3

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anastasia Vila is a Swan Maiden. All the females in her family have the ability to gain their wings and transform into swans once they fall in love. Ana's family is full of traditions and study hard to not only learn their magical powers but to defend themselves. You see, one of the traditions of the Vila's is their long standing blood feud with the Renard family. The Renard's are foxes. All of their family members can transform into foxes once they reach puberty and foxes and swans just don't get along.

Once things start happening to both families the blood feud is of course thought to be the cause but both families deny breaking their treaty and harming the other. Ana just wants to fall in love and gain her wings but she finds herself trying to solve the mystery behind who is to blame for all the happenings between the Vilas and Renards to stop the feud.

I was not familiar with the story of the Swan Maidens going into reading this book so in the beginning I found myself grasping for more information. The story starts off a bit jumbled and confusing for my taste throwing a lot of little tidbits about the families and the characters at a reader all at once without going into a lot of depth. It took a few chapters to kind of sort out what was going on and get a bit more familiar with where the book was going.

Once I started understanding the story a bit more I found it an OK read. The ending probably saved it from being one that I ended up not liking at all. I wasn't overly impressed up to the last few chapters as I found at times Ana just seemed a bit immature for my taste. Perhaps if the world and character building had been given a bit more depth I may not have felt that way but as the story stands I'd have to give this one three stars.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.wordpress....

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Blending the mythology of The Swan Maiden folktales with blood feuds, including but not limited to Romeo & Juliet, I really loved this short novel with distinct fantasy and magical elements. Ana (short for Anastasia) Vila is someone who carries the magic of the swan within her. Unlike her aunts and some of her cousins, she hasn't yet shifted into her swan form yet — she needs to fall in love with someone who loves her before that can happen. The Vilas have a long-standing blood feud with the Renards, a family that can shift into a fox form, including Ana's arch nemesis, Liv.

While I didn't ever imagine this happening (or at least I hope not for the sake of the previously unnamed children because...really...sonnets and solioquys are lovely, but I wouldn't want to be named after either of them), I think the names of many of the secondary characters in the Vila clan are rather fitting for a story that draws heavily on Shakespearean mythology. Super clever and distinctive. I also liked that despite a large number of characters, especially in the Vila clan, they had distinctive ways of dealing with the challenge of making someone fall in love with them, amped/or abilities in doing so with their voice magic.

Told from the alternating perspectives of Ana and her best friend Pierce, who is in neither of the feuding families, but like the Renards is very skilled at tracking and hunting food for his and his family's survival, this is the story of a young girl finding her way to love, understanding what real love, not magic induced infatuation, is all about, and becoming a full member of the Vila family. I also loved the way Alyxandra Harvey twisted the mythologies she based her story on to create a distinctive and less expected ending.

[Stacee · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I read the synopsis, it wasn't something I would have normally read, but I loved some of Alyxandra's other books, so I wanted to give it a shot.

I liked Ana and Pierce well enough. The BFF to more is one of my favorite plot lines and I did love that we got both of their POVs. There are a lot of secondary characters in this story and I struggled to keep them all straight in my head.

The magical aspect was interesting. I did like the Romeo and Juliet like aspect, but the escalation of the feuding seemed off. I was barely done learning about the swan ability when there was immediate fighting between the families.

Overall, it was a unique premise that had a lot of potential. Maybe if it was a little longer and fleshed out I would have seen the spark I was expecting for this topic. I can definitely see how people will enjoy it, but ultimately, it wasn't for me.

**Huge thanks to Entangled Publishing and NetGalley for providing the arc in exchange for an honest review**

[Sharon Mariampillai · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy from Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

April 2018 Review:

Actual Rating: 3.25

This was an alright read. I first read this book 2 years ago, and I thought the story was good. This time, I thought the story was good. However, I still think the fact that Ana kept denying her feelings for Pierce made the story less enjoyable because she was constantly denying herself the chance of earning her wings. I thought that was ridiculous and confusing. I did not really enjoy the slow pace of the book. The ending was good. I want to read more of Alyxandra Harvey books now after this book. Overall, an okay read.

April 2016 Review:

This was a good read. The book is about Ana who does not seem to realize her true feelings for Pierce. However, Pierce has no problem telling Ana that he loves her. I think the only part that bothered me was how she continues to downplay her feelings for him and how she kept denying herself of true love. The story is about Ana finding her true love, so that she can earn her wings. I have to say that the book went at a slow pace, but the story was enjoyable. I really loved the ending and it made the story come full circle. Overall, a short yet slow, enjoyable read.

[Karla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was interesting and something that reminded me a lot of Romeo and Juliet, if only for the whole feud thing. The whole two people falling in love with each other but their families are enemies didn't happen here so I was glad that the author decided not to go that route since it's been overused and cliche.

I liked that romance was important, the fact that the Vila women have to find love in order to turn into swans was a key factor in the story, but at the same time, it didn't really take away from the plot or focus solely on the romance.

I wish the whole family blood feud between the foxes and the swans could have been more in depth, it feels like the author just barely grazed the surface of the whole feuding thing, but at least I got the gist of it and understood the fighting and the use of magic in each of the families.

It was a quick read but I wouldn't mind reading more of the characters and about the feud between them. Maybe this time it'll be in one of the foxes' POV, Lia or one of her brothers...

[Andrea Heltsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this newest Alyxandra Harvey book! It was very much the style of her other creative books. The book was a mashup of Romeo and Juliet with The Swan Princess. The romance was so sweet throughout the plot. I loved the richly imagined setting of this story. The way of the swans and the characters belonging, read like a special way of life. Then the characters from the fox family brought up chaos between the families. The petty fighting and wars lent a fun part of the plot. The things the feuding families did and didn't do kept me entertained. I also liked the way the story progressed and was very satisfied with the whole book from beginning to end. A modern fantasy that deserved five glittery stars!

[Haraiah Eve · Rating 2 out of 5]

“You don’t have to love me back, Ana. But you can’t keep telling me I don’t know my own feelings.”

Full review at Random Things In Action

[Angel - Angel Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can find this review and more Angel Reads
I received an e-arc of Love Me, Love Me Not by Alyxandra Harvey from Entangled Publishing: Crave in exchange for an honest review, this has in no way influenced my thoughts or feelings about the book.
As soon as I saw this book I knew that I had to read it for a few reasons. 1. I love the author. I adore Harvey’s Drake Chronicles, it was one of the first YA series that I read actually. 2. The plot sounded extremely interesting.
Love Me, Love Me Not follows protagonist Anastasia Vila and her family, who can well shapeshift into swans. I think that was the most intriguing part of the novel. I was unique and as soon as I heard that I knew that I need to read it.
The Vila family can only turn into swans once they have fallen in love for the first time. At the start of Love Me, Love Me Not Anastasia is yet to have transformed.
And while the Vila family can turn into swans the Renard family can transform into foxes. And a blood feud between supernatural families is never a good thing, but one that has been going on for hundreds of years always ends with blood.
I really enjoyed Anastasia, she was quite interesting and felt like a protagonist that I could get along with. There were some moments where I wanted to wake her up to her feelings, to see what is around her, but overall, I did enjoy her.
Then there is Pierce, oh how I loved him. It was adorable and from the moment he was introduced, I was rooting for him. Pierce is Anastasia best friend and knew that she could transform into a swan, however he was brought far more into the world in Love Me, Love Me Not.
That is what I like about Alyxandra Harvey, she writes really strong main characters that are really fun and different to read.
Tough I loved the premise of the whole book, it did fall flat for me unfortunately. While the plot of the world worked really well, I wanted more. It is only 211 pages, the world building kind of wasn’t really there. Things were thrown out at us without really explaining it and it just confused me.
I also felt that there was far too many characters. I was just so confused, everyone had names and nicknames and there was this family and that family. When a character hadn’t been on for a few pages and then they would pop up, I would have to really think about who they were.
I liked the climax of Love Me, Love Me Not. Alyxandra Harvey again does this part really well. I had my thoughts about what was happening on, I guess some bits, but I didn’t guess why – and I loved that. It made it for a really interesting ending. However like the rest of the book, I felt that the ending was way too fast. It was like bam, bam, bam and I really didn’t get to breath and it was a little much.
Overall, I quite enjoyed Love Me, Love Me Not. The protagonists were really enjoyable to read and I did find interesting. The plot was intriguing and very unique, that he has me turning page after page, however I did feel that it lacked in the world building element and had me begging for me.

[dearrivarie · Rating 3 out of 5]

*I received a copy from Entangled Publishing for review. All opinions are 100% my own.*

I read Red by Alyxandra Harvey last year and it reignited my interest in YA paranormal. This book went in a completely different direction and I absolutely adored it. The plot line is reminiscent of The Weight of Feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore with a family feud that revolves around magic. The Vilas have the ability to shift into swans and every full moon, the young girls who have not yet earned their wings dance in the moonlight to replenish their magic. In order to earn your wings, you must find your true love. The Renards are the family of fox shifters and there has been a long history of tension between the two families.

Words cannot express how utterly fascinated I was by the whole premise surrounding the families and their magical powers. The Vila girls who haven't earned their wings yet draw power on the length of their hair, so they don't cut their hair because the more hair they have, the more powerful their magic will be. They also "perform" their magic through song and I have to admit, that was one of my favorite elements. The Renards are trackers and they have a pendulum that they use. It's not as important as a swan cloak as if a cloak disappears, the Vila cannot shift and become mentally ill. I can go on and on about how fascinating the story is but I just might ruin something important.

Anastasia Vila believes that her true love is Edward and she has spent the past couple of years trying to form a relationship with him. Her best friend Pierce just stands on the sidelines and watches the girl he loves chase someone else. The relationship between Ana and Pierce is comfortable and he is always there for her. Needless to say, I was rooting for the two from the very beginning and I really enjoyed seeing their relationship grow closer and stronger. Also, I have to mention this: I loved the names of Ana's cousins. She mentions how her aunt had a thing for literature so she named her daughters Soliloquy, Story, and Sonnet. How incredibly cool is that? I feel a bit bad for my future kids because those names have made my list of favorite names.

The ending was shocking to say the list and delivered the same amount of jaw dropping moments as Red. I was not anticipating who the culprit was and what was happening to the swans and foxes and the revelation and aftermath was just...mindblowing. The ending left me feeling the same way that Red did - anticipating more but satisfied. I don't know if there are going to be other books but this story is just so interesting and fun so I definitely recommend it!

Read my reviews at:
http://extreemeobsessed.blogspot.com/

[Shawna Lumley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book from Entangled for an honest review:

Love Me, Love Me Not is a teen love story with a Romeo and Juliet twist to it. Instead of the traditional Romeo and Juliet though it is with Vilas (swans) and Renards (Foxes). and like Romeo and Juliet there is a blood feud but THAT is where the similarities really end...

Ana Vila can only transform into her swan shape for the first time after she has fallen in love ....and I don't mean familiarity love, loving herself or items, I mean REAL true love, but between the blood feud and life she doesn't have time and the only thing keeping her sane is her BFF Pierce.

Pierce doesn't know what to do he is in love with Ana and has to watch her find love. One faithful night he kisses her and of course she freaks and thinks its because of something else so now he has to show her that he really loves her and SHE has to stop the blood feud before it takes everything away that she loves....including...maybe Pierce

I thought this book had good potential. I felt it was slightly confusing because of the switching back and forth with the two point of views. Once I got past that I thought the book flowed very well.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love me, Love Me Not
By: Alyxandra Harvey
Publisher: Entangled
Source: Netgalley

First I want to thank Netgalley and the publisher in letting me read this. So I have to admit I was surprised by this one, I requested it, and then started to doubt. I mean it was an interesting premise, swans vs foxes.

It had different elements of the Swan Maiden, and a little of Romeo and Juliet. However Romeo wasn't the enemy, he turned out to be the best friend. You know from the description that there is romance, and I can't really say there is a triangle, because I do not believe that the heroine understand her feelings until after she broke it off with the first boy. It was a good read, just enough of different elements, such as action and mystery to keep you interested.

I really liked all the cousins names, I had to laugh at them. I really would like a story from the foxes perspective. They seemed like an interesting family with different magical elements. Ms Harvey is actually a fantastic writer, her descriptions are awesome and it makes for a really good story.

[TJ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Received from: Entangled Publishing, LLC
Received Via: NetGalley.com

THE REVIEW

Why this book?

Not gonna lie I read it because of the cover

What I thought

There is so many problems I have with this book. First off nothing happens until halfway into the book. Second It wasn't fleshed out enough I needed more. I also didn't like the lack of romance we didn't get any until the end of the book. Oh by the way i'm not counting the thing she had with Edward, because everytime he showed up I was just like "go away Edward". Ana was also an annoying character how she acted with the whole Pierce situation made me want to shake her . With that said I did like the magic aspect and Pierce how could Ana not see he was the one for her. I'm sure others will like it this just wasn't for me.

[melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adored the Drake Chronicles and REALLY hope that we get some Vila spin-offs from this first novel as there's tons of cousins.

Ana is a swan maiden. She only gets her wings when she finds love; however, she's pretty awkward toward her crush, Edward. Her best friend, Pierce, silently harbors love for her, but she's so blinded by wanting her wings, she can't see what's in front of her.

The Vilas & Renards (fox shifters) have been fighting a blood feud for as long as any of them can remember, even if they don't know exactly why.

Yes, there is a lot of information in this small novel (characters & lore), but it's well worth reading and I am seriously looking forward to more!

*Digital review copy provided by NetGalley and the publisher.

[Dani (Dani Reviews Things) · Rating 3 out of 5]

See this review in its natural environment, Dani Reviews Things.

I received this book for free from Chapter by Chapter in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Rating: 2.5

I’m not going to lie. I found it a little difficult to read this. I spent half the time confused about what was going on and why, and the other half obsessively trying to figure out which Stratford it was set in, especially since they kept mentioning Shakespeare. Eventually, I figured out it must be Stratford, Connecticut, not the Stratford-Upon-Avon near where I live. You know. Where Shakespeare actually lived.

The book was a quick read and had a few funny moments. While the romance was predictable, the plot wasn’t, and maybe not in the best way. More in the, ‘this is weird – what is going on’ way. I couldn’t figure out what was going on with the plot, which of the many threads of story was supposed to be the main one. When the ending came, I was thrown. Sure, Harvey had left ‘clues’ along the way that Ana figured out, but they seemed thrown in for the sake of the plot, unnatural. While the plot might have made sense if you had an outline beforehand or when looking back at it (i.e. for an editor), the actual reading from beginning to end seemed clunky.



While the kissing was delicious, overall, I didn’t feel the chemistry between Ana and Pierce. It was there, in writing, but it didn’t crackle off the page for me.

He kissed me as though he’d been thinking about this very moment for as long as we’d known each other. As though he was the sea, returning over and over again to the shore.

At least I can say there wasn’t any insta-love, except for the occasional smitten teenage boy ensnared by a swan song. They did have some good moments where I could see they were good friends, and I could see them showing their feelings slowly, I just didn’t feel desperate for them to realise their undying love. Poor Edward was just a stick figure hot guy thrown in to give Ana someone to crush on until she realised her feelings for Pierce.

The magic system was equal parts intriguing and a little odd. Swan sisters (it seemed only women got to have swan magic) had magic hair and could sing to control the wind, as well as heal. (What about the men??? And why weren’t there any male children?) If swans lost their hair or their special cloak (where did they come from?), they lost their magic. Foxes could be male or female, and they seemed to just have tracking magic. It was a really cool concept, but it wasn’t developed as well as it could have been, with imbalances and too many questions left unanswered behind the excuse of “tradition”.


Yeah, I'd be scared of a swan.

The “villains” of the story came out of nowhere, and yet Ana and Pierce reacted like they should have known. Pierce said about one of them that they had been borderline obsessive before something set them off, but we didn’t get enough time before the trigger to know that character enough to make that same judgement. We had to simply take Pierce’s word for it.

In fact, there were so many characters – Vilas (swans), Renards (foxes), random other people – that I struggled to keep them all straight in my head. I couldn’t picture any of them, imagine their personalities. There were too many and not enough effort out in to turn them into individuals. And again, where were the Vilas men and boys? The fathers made a brief cameo at the end, but they were like forgotten shadows. The whole feud thing was silly, and like Ana, I wanted to snap everyone out of it. I totally agreed with the following quote.

It had become an inherited quality, like blue eyes or lactose intolerance, only we had inherited stupidity.

The world building was a mixed bag as well. On the one hand, I liked the small town vibe and surrounding farmland/woods. I also LOVED the idea of a wish tree. But as I said before, I was so confused for half the book, distractedly trying to figure out which country the book was set, torn between Shakespeare and clues that it was most definitely not the UK (like wild turkey and high school students with cars). I’m convinced now that it’s the US, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it was intended to be the UK and just poorly researched. There were also times when I had to go reread a few pages out of bafflement, like when Pierce and Ana found a barn…which was then suddenly a house. Oh, and since when do high school students use words like “thesis paper” in a casual manner? Or spend weeeeeks on an essay?

If it weren’t for the fact that I actually did like Ana and Pierce and wanted to see them happy, and that I wanted to figure out what was going on, I’m not sure I would have been able to give the book the stars that I did. I haven’t read Harvey’s other work, but I’ve been told that her books can be hit or miss. If you’re a fan of her writing, please let me know what your favourite book is, as I can see potential for great stories, but I don’t think this was one of her best.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Magical World Swans vs Foxes

This book was OK. I felt like it had a lot in it but wasn’t long enough to fully explain. So many different characters it was hard to keep up with who was who. Felt like this could have been better.

My favorite character was Pierce and his love for Ana! Wish I could have had some more moments between them though.

[Virna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoy this, but the characters and story are ok.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Versión en español: LOVE ME, LOVE ME NOT  (o como ya saben, mi título alternativo Ámame, no me ames) 

To read all my reviews, please visit Between Books

** I received an ARC copy in exchange of an honest review **

* 4/5 stars *

As you may know —or not—, lately, I’ve read a lot of new authors, and Alyxandra Harvey was not the exception; LOVE ME, LOVE ME NOT is my first read for an Alyxandra’s book —she has others, of course— and I wanted to read this book since the day I saw the cover, then I read the synopsis and I just wanted to read it more; I made the right choice, because I don’t think I’ve read something like this before —I read fantasy, but this book is something else. Fantasy is not my common genre, so I had to stop a few times to search some words or something, due to there was new vocabulary —English is not my first language, so, yep, it wasn’t a non-stop read.

Anyway, LMLMN is a book about swans —no any swans, girls who can turn into swans —omg, first time I’ve read about girls changing into swans! However, for them to become swans they have to… FALL IN LOVE —for the first time, or true love, not something forced.

“Anastasia Vila’s family can turn into swans, but just once she’d like them to turn into responsible adults.”

Ana ’s family has a mystic history, BUT, she’s not like the other women in her family —she wants to be successful and have good studies, of course she wants fall in love and have her wings— but there’s the problem, between her strict, traditionalist family and her studies, she doesn’t have enough time to go out in a date.

Pierce is Ana’s best friend, and who keeps her sane. He’s… sweet, lovely, adorable, a good big brother, and so on! The moments when I had the chance to read in his POV was fantastic —I wanted more. For quite some time, Pierce has realized that his feelings for Ana are not just friendlies, but she doesn’t feel the same —what a shame.

“No one remembers how it started in the first place—but foxes and swans just don’t get along.”

Ana’s swan family has always had an enemy —foxes, or Renard clan. They’ve been in an eternal war —at first, I thought Pierce was one of the Renard family, but not, for a little moment that kind of disappointed me, but I got over it easily. In general, there were many characters, all them different from each other, sometimes it made a little more enjoyable my reading —by the way, she has a big family!

All in all, I liked, and enjoyed reading it, a really good book from cover to cover —even when I had to stop a few times. Also, I think it’s an only one book —or at least for Pierce and Ana’s story. Anyway, I want more of this crazy family, maybe about one of Ana’s cousins —or a book for someone in the Renard’s family, actually, it would be great, because we would know more of their story in all this foxes vs swans’ endless war.

A book with a lot of magic, for those who love fantasy, it a good opportunity to read something new —and there are a few aspects that remind of Romeo and Juliet, so, for those who like romance, and not just the normal best friend love thing —give it a chance!

[Holly Bryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first saw the announcement from Entangled Teen about this forthcoming book from Alyxandra Harvey, I was immediately intrigued. I knew right away that I wanted to read it, so when I saw the invitations for the cover reveal and then blog tour from Chapter by Chapter I jumped at the chance to participate. I’m so glad I did, because I loved the book!

My only experience with the fairy tale of the swan sisters, at least recently, is with Feather Bound by Sarah Raughley. I really liked that book, and I was intrigued by the idea of the women who can turn into swans, but who lose their magic if their feathers are stolen. That limited experience is what led me to be so excited to read Love Me, Love Me Not, and I love how Harvey interpreted the fairy tale in this novella. The characters were all great, and she was able to give them all distinct characteristics and personalities so that I never felt, even in the relatively short space of the novella, that the secondary characters blended together or were superfluous. Each of the cousins and aunts stood on their own in my mind, and I never mixed them up. And of course I loved both Ana and Pierce, her best friend. Okay, I’ll admit it, I had a wee bit of a book crush on Pierce! He was just … adorable, and sweet, and responsible, and strong, and oh so many things that I love in a boy :) I just adored Pierce and the way he treated Ana! I also loved how strong Ana was, how she seemed to be the only sane one in her family, who knew that the continuing feud with the Renards (the foxes!) was all kinds of messed up and needed to come to an end. Ana was a great character, and totally believable in her actions and her feelings.

I will confess that I normally don’t care for novellas (or short stories), because I usually find that they are bare bones and often cold. In other words, stories that needed to be fleshed out more to work, and that should have been full novels. Fair or not, I often feel like the author got lazy or just didn’t know how to really flesh out the story in the right way, leading to a short novella that doesn’t work well. However, that is so not the case with LMLMN! It was really the perfect length for the story that Harvey wanted to tell. I think in large part this is due to the fact that Ana’s best friend, Pierce, already knew about her ability to transform. If we’d had to go through the reveal process, with Pierce just finding out about Ana and her magical family, it would have been a completely different story. I absolutely applaud Harvey’s choice to tell THIS story instead, even if it resulted in a shorter read for me! Truthfully, she was able to eliminate a lot of the angst that you usually find in contemporary YA with that one choice, and I wholly approve of that decision :)

Overall, I give this story 4 stars. I really enjoyed reading it, and although the story was full and complete and there is nothing to indicate that there would be another story with Ana and Pierce, I will readily admit I’d love to read more of them! I would be interested in knowing what’s next for them and their relationship. But then, I might just have to use my imagination to tell that part of Ana and Pierce’s story. And that’s okay!

Thanks to Entangled Teen and Ms. Harvey for allowing me to read an early copy of this great novella, and to Chapter by Chapter for having me on the blog tour!

[Kelly Gunderman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Check out this and other reviews on my young adult book blog, Here's to Happy Endings!

Let me begin this by saying that I really hate writing negative reviews. I mean, I always feel kind of bad about it, but I also don't want to lie, so here we are.

I had such high hopes for Love Me, Love Me Not. Never having read anything else by Alyxandra Harvey, I was excited, because her books have been raved about by so many in the blogging community. However, I really felt let down after reading this book. I see a lot of people saying that it was really original and beautifully written - and while I can agree with it being nicely written, I felt like I'd read parts of this somewhere else...especially the parts about the feuding families. That's when I realized it reminded me so much of The Weight of Feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore. Only, not as memorable or breathtaking.

Ana wants to fall in love. By falling in love, she will be able to transform into a swan, and since she has many family members, she has watched them all claim this ability and she's starting to becoming convinced that it will never happen for her, especially with all the family demands and school work she has to make sure she stays on top of.

When her best friend, Pierce, finally kisses her, she has to wonder - does he really have feelings for her, or is it because she has the ability to use magic, and he might be under the influence of said magic? Also, does she even feel that way about him, or should she hold out hope that her crush will notice her?

Along with all of this, there is a family feud between Ana's family and another, but no one even remembers why it started. However, Ana's character was interesting, as were some of her family members (such as her aunt).

"When your day started with decade-old battle-blood and your aunt signing about making a harp from your bones and your hair, it's probably best just to go back to bed."

There are some amusing aspects of Love Me, Love Me Not that made me smile, so I have to give the book credit on that aspect!

Unfortunately, the love story didn't really feel as believable as I had hoped it would (I was really hoping for a swoon-worthy romance that I couldn't put down), so that kind of threw me off. Maybe I'm just spoiled after reading other books with the same theme, but I think if you haven't read the one that I listed above, you might enjoy this. It was a pretty quick read - I finished it in a day, so it didn't take forever to get through or anything.

Note: I received an ARC copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Poulami · Rating 2 out of 5]

Originally posted on Daydreaming Books.

*I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

I didn't know what to expect from this book when I went in although I heard it was a retelling. Only after I finished reading this book I understood which one it was, I had not read the actual book but I did watch a barbie movie as a kid. :-P

Ana is a swan maiden. She only gets her wings when she finds love. She's desperate to find true love otherwise she has to face drastic consequences. On top of that, they have to continuously fight the Renards, the foxes who creates a problem now and then. The only thing keeping her sane in the midst of all this is her best friend Pierce. But when Pierce kisses her, she's gets confused about her feelings as she thinks it's a byproduct of her magic. But when everything spins out of control and one of her cousins go missing, would she be able to save salvage them all?

The plot was unique but the execution fell flat for me. Nothing much happened in the first portion of the book and then suddenly everything started happening together. I had so many questions but my questions kept on piling up instead of them being answered. Half of the time, I could not understand what the hell was going on. I really wanted more explanation about the swan thingies and their rituals and what would happen if they didn't do it but unfortunately none of them were explained much. That's why, I just didn't feel much invested in the story and I found myself skimming through the pages so that I could finish this book.

There were a lot of characters in this book and too many secondary characters sometimes confused me. I couldn't connect with any of the characters much. Ana was an okay protagonist, she had a crush on of her classmate, Edward and she was so invested on getting hid attention that she didn't notice that her best friend had feelings for her. Pierce was a sweet guy, he was caring and protective of Ana. He was also the one who knew her secret. I liked their friendship but I didn't feel much chemistry between them.

Overall, Love Me, Love Me Not frankly was a confusing read. The plot had potential but it didn't live upto it and I couldn't connect with the characters. The writing was simple, although sometimes it did feel a bit scattered and all over the place. I really wanted to enjoy this book but unfortunately I couldn't, I was very close to DNF-ing it but thankfully I finished it.

Recommend it?

I don't think so!

[Rachel (The Rest Is Still Unwritten) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Entangled Publishing for providing me with an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Find this review and more on my blog The Rest Is Still Unwritten!


Love Me, Love Me Not is a magical and whimsical tale that sees Alyxandra Harvey once more draw fans into a luscious and romantic tale mingling romance, magic and excitement!

Having previously read all of Alyxandra Harvey’s published work, I was excited to dive into Love Me, Love Me Not and once again, Harvey did not disappoint! I found Love Me, Love Me Not was a well told and well-paced novel that deftly wove magic, romance and danger together and introduced readers to some thrilling new mythology. The concept of "swan girls" was very different and unlike a lot of shape-shifting type tales, Love Me, Love Me Not really did explore something I hadn’t seen before.

Love Me, Love Me Not is told through the varying POV’s of Anastasia "Ana" Vila and Peirce Kent. Ana is from a long line of women who are able to turn into swans and who has been patiently waiting for the moment she would fall in love and receive her swan form. Pierce on the other hand is Ana’s literature loving best friend who has been secretly pining for Ana for years and who is the only person outside Ana’s family who know about swan maidens. Ana only seems to think of Peirce as a friend but as that slowly changes and as the blood feud between Ana’s family and their enemies escalate, soon Ana finds herself in danger of not only losing her heart, but her life…..

Personally I really enjoyed Love Me, Love Me Not and found it to be a very enjoyable, easy read. Harvey has clearly thought about her mythology well and I liked these strong and fiery swan maidens. The dynamic between the Vila family members was really nice and I liked their devotion to one another. If I’m being picky, I did notice some similarities in the family dynamic between the Vila’s and the Drake family from Alyxandra Harvey’s Drake Chronicles—but these were only minor similarities; nothing that would make or break the novel for me.

As far as I’m aware, Love Me, Love Me Not is a standalone novel, but I’d really love the chance to explore some of the other characters, including the Renard’s. Ana’s cousins Sonnet, Rosalita & Mei Lin hold promise, as does Liv Renard, a "fox" girl. It would be nice to see Harvey flesh the series out a little bit more, but I’m only speculating (and hoping) here.

Nicely paced, magical and romantic, Love Me, Love Me Not features two likable main characters and I romance that develops well over time. A decent read worth your time!

[Angela ReadingCave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ana was born into a blood feud between shifting families, the Vilas (swans) verse the Renard (foxes) family. As a swan, in order to get her wings Ana has to fall in love. While falling in love may be on everyone else’s mind, Ana just wants to graduate high school. She does look for love, and she does have crushes- she is in high school- it just doesn’t consume her. The blood feud is getting nasty, and the treaty has been violated. Ana’s only save haven has been Pierce. Pierce a human knows what Ana is, he is her best friend. He just also happens to be in love with her. Ana doesn’t think the love is real, she thinks her magic is influencing him. It doesn’t matter though, because the blood feud takes a turn for the worse. Ana must figure things out before they get out of hand. Pierce is right there by her side.

Things keep happening around town. The Renards are blaming the Vilas. The Vilas are accusing the Renards. No one knows yet but they have a common enemy. I loved the interactions between Ana and Liv. Both trying to be the tough one in their respective families. Both failing. The mystery of what the heck is going on was solid. The bad guy’s rational was well logical, I can't say I blame them either.
Ana is such a cute character! She is constantly stepping in when her cousins or her aunts mess up. She wants the treaty to remain and goes out of her way to make sure that both sides are doing what is right. She doesn't whine but instead faces things head on. She is a little afraid to use her magic to influence others, so much so that she tries to avoid people who have been around her when she uses her magic.

Pierce wants to tell her that he loves her. Doing so will change everything, and she is his best friend. He isn’t sure how much longer he can stand by and wait for her to fall in love. His little brother Jackson is up to something, something to do with one of Ana’s cousin. Pierce knows he has to protect Jackson and Ana. Pierce is such as sweet guy. Rare is it that the sweet guy wins the girl, a fact he knows. I love his belief in Ana and her magic.

Love Me, Love Me Not is an adorable read. It is told in dual point of view, Ana and Pierce. Which I love. Being able to see inside both of their souls enhances the reading experience with this tale. If you had a bad day, or just need a pick me up this is the book for you.

http://readingcave.blogspot.com/2016/...

[Jaclyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Good

I've never read anything about swan shifters though I've heard of the folktales, so that part really intrigued me. This was a cute story about Ana and her family of swans. They only turn into a swan if they fall in love so this is largely a romance story as well. There is also a family feud here which added a lot of action, intensity, and mystery to the story.

I enjoyed the characters a lot. This was told through Ana's POV and alternated to Pierce's POV. Pierce is Ana's best friend and he knows all about her family's secrets. He is a great guy and quite gentlemanly, always trying to shield Ana even though she's the one with the magic. The magic in the story is fun. There's magic brought on by their singing, magic in their long blonde hair, and dancing at midnight to recharge their magic. The foxes were also good characters. I enjoyed the sassy Liv that Ana just can't get along with. I would read a story from her POV as well.

There's a lot happening. Swans' hair, cloaks, and even swans themselves are disappearing. There are also foxes being trapped and fox tails being taken. Naturally, this causes the feud to ramp up a lot. It ended with a lot of action and wrapped up nicely.


The Bad

There are a ton of side characters, especially in the two feuding families, and I had a hard time keeping everyone straight. I also would've liked to have seen even more personality fleshed out for those characters. While the main characters were strongly written, I would've liked to have seen more even from those Aunts and Cousins that were mentioned often.

The Romance

The romance was very cute. Pierce is Ana's best friend and he's in love with her. Yet, he helps Ana try to win Edward's attention so that she can get her wings. So there is a bit of a triangle here, but it works very well.

Conclusion

Love Me, Love Me Not is a cute, fun read. It's a short book and interesting the whole way through. There is quite a bit of action and the unique addition of swan shifters. I also enjoyed the family feud with the foxes and how Ana really wanted to stop carrying on with their ancestor's rivalry. Recommended.

*Sent through Netgalley for honest review

"When your day started with decade-old battle-blood and your aunt singing about making a harp from your bones and your hair, it's probably best just to go back to bed."

[Miranda · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 / 5 Fangs

This book was definitely a fun and quick read. I though Harvey did a great job at taking an old tale and putting her own modern twist on it.

I really liked the main character, Ana. I thought she was a strong and caring person. She was a little oblivious when it came to the romance department, but most teenage girls are. I really liked Ana's best friend, Pierce. Pierce was adorable and extremely loyal to Ana. I loved reading from his POV. I really connected to his character due to the fact that he loves to read. There were a lot of other characters in this book, and it was a little overwhelming sometimes. It took me a long time to remember who was who in this book, but I eventually got it down!

I thought the plot of this book was a extremely interesting. The book was action packed! I felt like there was always something going on, which was exciting. I thought Harvey did a great job at describing the action scenes and blending in magic to the action. However, the book was a little hard to following in the beginning. I had a hard time getting into the book at first because I couldn't really get a grasp as to what was happening.



However, as the book went on, I felt like things were clarified so everything was easier to understand. I ended up really enjoying the "swan shifter" portion of the book.

I thought the romance was really sweet in this book. Pierce and Ana made a really cute couple. I was glad the romance wasn't rushed, even though it was obvious from the beginning that Pierce and Ana were meant for each other! I would love to read more about the adorable romance between Pierce and Ana.

Some parts of this book felt a little rushed, and I felt like some chapters ended at weird spots. However, I really enjoyed this book as a whole! The ending was really exciting and it left me feeling happy. I though this was a fun and light read.

3.5 / 5 Fangs

*This ebook was given to me in exchange for a honest review. *

MrsLeif's Two Fangs About It
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[Moriah Chavis · Rating 3 out of 5]

*This review will also appear on A Leisure Moment*

**I received an eARC of this book via NetGalley from Entangled Teen in exchange for an honest review**

I’ve been a fan of Alyxandra Harvey’s book since middle school. The bookstore that I found the first book in The Drake Chronicles in, Hearts At Stakes, isn’t even open anymore. But to be fair, independent bookstores and chain bookstores didn’t stand a chance in that town, so it’s no surprise. I jump at the opportunity to read her new stuff and honestly had such high hopes for Love Me, Love Me Not.

It was okay. It took me quite a while to get into the book. I picked it up and put it back down multiple times. I found it difficult to connect with the main character, Anastasia Vila. After a while, though, I got used to her voice and liked her, even though I didn’t connect with her completely. She was feisty and independent and determined to fall in love so she could get her wings. Her love for her family drove her forward more than any blood feud ever could. Harvey did a fantastic job of creating a new main character and establishing a unique voice.

My favorite character in the book was Pierce. I didn’t understand why Ana didn’t want to be with him, why she would choose Edward over him. Edward had nothing on Pierce, in my opinion, and even though the end of their relationship was anticlimactic, it felt right. Ana and Pierce had always been friends, but from the beginning I wanted them to be something more. As a result, when Ana pushed him away, she frustrated me. I would love more of this world in large part because I want more Pierce, and I’m glad he told part of the story.

The feud between the Renards and Vilas was the main driving force of the story. I would have liked to know more about it, actually. Since this is a standalone, at the moment, some of it felt rushed, trying to explain a feud that had gone on longer than anyone could remember. If the story were to continue, I would like to know more about the family of foxes and how they’re independent of the swans.

If you’re a fan of Alyxandra Harvey, I suggest giving this book a shot. It wasn’t my favorite (I’m not sure anyone can compare to Nicholas Drake in my heart), but it proved her storytelling ability still rings true.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought that this story was very unique in the way that Alyxandra Harvey used names for the characters and referenced it to Mythology and included some of Shakespeare type blood feuds. Very interesting in the way that she does this. I thought that it made for a very interesting read and I am glad that I picked this one up.

Anastasia (Ana) is looking for love so that she can shift into her swan form for the first time. Finding love for the first time makes this happen. While there is a huge blood feud going on between Ana's family, the Vila's against the Renard's, Ana's aunts and cousins seem to always be feuding with someone. The Renard's are a family that turns into foxes and with the Vila's being a family that turns into swans, these two just don't get along. Ana is busy with school and everything else that she has going on and thinks that she will never be able to find her first love to be able to shift. Ana is busy chasing her crush Edward, but he is not showing too much interest. Ana has a good friend, Pierce, that is neither a Vila or a Renard and has a crush on Ana that she does not see. Ana is too busy chasing Edward to see what is right in front of her own eyes. All of the Vila's have different ways of dealing with making people fall in love with them and one of the unique tactics they have that can help them is voice magic. I thought this was brilliant and would never have thought of it myself. Great twist to the story!

I sort of got confused at some points because of the alternating POV, but once I got back on track with everything, it was okay. When Pierce kisses Ana one night to her surprise, she thinks that it was just a mishap and that there was nothing there but just a kiss. Pierce now has to try and show her that there was so much more to the kiss than it being just a kiss. He also has to show Ana that she has to put an end to the blood feud before it takes everything away from her, maybe even Pierce that has just confessed his true feelings for her.

Overall this was a great read that left me so glad I took a chance on it. Thanks Alyxandra Harvey for a good read and I can't wait to see what you have in store for us as readers next!!