Review: A Kiss in the Dark - Cat Clarke

When Alex meets Kate the attraction is instant.

Alex is funny, good-looking, and a little shy - everything Kate wants in a boyfriend.

Alex can't help falling for Kate, who is pretty, charming and maybe just a little naive . . .

But one of them is hiding a secret, and as their love blossoms, it threatens to ruin not just their relationship, but their lives.

Passionate, moving and gripping, A Kiss in the Dark will make you feel first love all over again.

Visit Cat Clarke's website for more information

Review:
I'm a huge fan of Cat Clarke's writing, she always creates such realistic teenage characters and her stories never fail to pack a punch. I think A Kiss in the Dark might just be her best book yet which is really saying something!

I'm afraid that this review is going to be deliberately vague because this is the kind of story that would be incredibly easy to spoil and I would hate to ruin anyone's experience of reading it. There are so many things I want to talk about when it comes to this novel and it's killing me that I can't discuss them.

Alex and Kate are attracted to each other from the moment they first meet, they have the same interests, enjoy spending time together and slowly but surely they fall in love. In a lot of ways they are perfect for each other but Alex has a secret, one that has the power to destroy their relationship if Kate ever finds out the truth. The reader actually finds out what that secret is fairly on in the story and because the first half of the book is told from Alex's point of view we get to see just how much keeping that secret plays on their mind. Alex didn't set out to deceive Kate but what starts as a small misunderstanding between them soon snowballs into something so huge that Alex has no idea how to fix things.

I spent half of the book just waiting for the truth to come out, you know Kate is going to be devastated and you're hurting on her behalf but you can't help but feel sorry for Alex even when you're wishing that they could have been honest with each other from the very beginning. After the big reveal the point of view switches so you can see exactly how hurt Kate was by Alex's betrayal. It was at this point she does something incredibly stupid as a way of getting revenge on Alex and although I was incredibly angry at her actions I couldn't help but wonder how I would have reacted in her situation. Kate quickly starts to realise how one small lie can snowball way beyond anything you'd have imagined and I think that probably helps her to see things from Alex's point of view. The real question is whether she will do the right thing by the end of the story or will she see her revenge through to the bitter end.

A Kiss in the Dark is a gut wrenching read, I was so emotionally invested in both of these characters and it's very hard to imagine that the outcome of this relationship is going to be anything but heartbreaking which makes even the good times they spend together rather bitter sweet. This is the kind of book that makes you ask uncomfortable questions and I loved it for that. I would like to take a copy of this book and place it in the hands of every teenager I come across, there is a lot we can all learn from Alex and Kate's story and I applaud Cat Clarke for writing such an incredibly emotional book.

Source: Purchased

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