Sick Kids in Love

Author: Hannah Moskowitz
Genre: Teen
Type: e-book
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Entangled Publishing
First Published: November 5, 2019
Opening Lines: What is your favorite place in New York?

Book Description from GoodReads: 
Isabel has one rule: no dating.
It's easier--
It's safer--
It's better--
--for the other person.
She's got issues. She's got secrets. She's got rheumatoid arthritis.
But then she meets another sick kid.
He's got a chronic illness Isabel's never heard of, something she can't even pronounce. He understands what it means to be sick. He understands her more than her healthy friends. He understands her more than her own father who's a doctor.
He's gorgeous, fun, and foul-mouthed. And totally into her.
Isabel has one rule: no dating.
It's complicated--
It's dangerous--
It's never felt better--
--to consider breaking that rule for him.

My Rating: 4 stars

My Review: From the title you may expect a The Fault Our the Stars kind of tear-jerker but this is not that kind of read. Told with some humour and an interesting, diverse cast of characters, this is a sweet romance between two teens who live with chronic illnesses. 

This story has many poignant scenes that often occur within life's smaller moments. It's within these moments that Moskowitz enlightens readers about what it's like to live with a chronic, and often invisible disease. We see how their families and friends interact with them and how the two families handle the illnesses differently. There's a lot of love but there are also misunderstandings and assumptions and Moskowitz gets to the heart of these issues.  

You either have to be overcoming [your illness] or you have to be completely disconnected from it. God forbid it be an important part of your identity 

that you’re just living with.

While I loved the issues Moskowitz raises, there were some aspects that didn't sit well with me. I wanted more closure with Isabel's relationship with her mom and unfortunately, I wasn't a big fan of Isabel. Sasha? He was awesome but she grated on me a bit. But I appreciate how Isabel's character was used to raise issues related to living with an invisible illness: the fear of people thinking she's 'faking' her illness, not being 'sick enough' to be considered ill and society's view of ill people in general. 

While at first glance this seems like a heavy read, this is more of a feel good story that will give readers a lot to think about and hopefully a better understanding and awareness of what it's like to live with a chronic illness. Written with humour and heart, Sick Kids in Love will educate readers instead of making them grab the Kleenex box.  

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Entangled Publishing for my complimentary digital copy of this title, via NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review.