Saturday, May 4, 2019

This Is Not a Love Scene by S.C. Megale

Synopsis (via Goodreads): Lights, camera—all Maeve needs is action. But at eighteen, a rare form of muscular dystrophy usually stands in the way of romance. She's got her friends, her humor, and a passion for filmmaking to keep her focus off consistent rejection...and the hot older guy starring in her senior film project.

Tall, bearded, and always swaying, Cole Stone is everything Maeve can't be. And she likes it. Between takes, their chemistry is shockingly electric.

Suddenly Maeve gets a taste of typical teenage dating life, but girls in wheelchairs don’t get the hot guy—right? Cole’s attention challenges everything she once believed about her self-image and hopes for love. But figuring this out, both emotionally and physically, won't be easy for either of them. Maeve must choose between what she needs and what she wants, while Cole has a tendency to avoid decisions altogether. And her failing lungs might not wait for either.

"Everyone [is] a pool noodle, sinking and thrashing out for another's noodle to stay afloat."
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product. Warning! There are some small spoilers regarding the content of this book, but the information is relevant to the review.

I honestly don't know where to start with this one. I have some major issues with the story, but I can also see what the author was trying to convey, even though I don't agree with how it was presented. Maeve has muscular dystrophy and is confined to a wheelchair, but she tries to be as independent as possible. However, Maeve was not a likeable person. 

First of all, I don't feel like Maeve respected herself or others, and she craved male attention. Even between her parents, she preferred her father's help over her mother's. They seemed to have a better relationship, but I thought she unfairly judged her mother's actions. It was clear her mother cared, just not in the way Maeve wanted. She also sought out older men and made connections with them. She referred to them as her OMFs (Old Male Friends), and would send them flirty messages and touch them in a way that made it seem like she was interested. She got a kick out of making older men smile at her, want her even, when she had no intention of reciprocating those feelings. Also, a lot of these interactions happened before she was eighteen, which makes them highly inappropriate. 

Secondly, Maeve was very sexist. She preferred the attention and help of men over women, and always compared how the two interactions would vary. "IF SHE WERE A GUY: 'Yes, sir. Can you overnight express me to your bed by any chance?' BECAUSE SHE'S NOT: 'I can do it myself, thanks.' She nodded and walked off. I can never tell how standoffish I sound. But it's her fault for not being a guy, right?" She does this the entire book, especially when a female tries to help her in any capacity. She would brush off their good intentions, and think about how a male would have been better or more helpful.

Thirdly, Maeve was a shitty friend. She often comments on how frequently her friend Mags has to turn down male advances, and even admits to being jealous of the attention. It's obvious Mags doesn't like being hit on by random dudes, and it's something that really bothers her. Maeve is oblivious and really insensitive when it comes to her friend's feelings. Mags made a comment about a man creepily rubbing her back, and Maeve just thinks about how much she likes back rubs. 

The love interest was barely a character. Cole would saunter in somewhere, act completely uncomfortable around Maeve, and then he'd leave. He seemed to be more communicative when they sexted, because that's pretty much all they did, and would barely speak when they were together. I'll admit that he was helpful when they played putt-putt, but that was also one of the few times they met without him rubbing one out. Most of their interactions were for the benefit of his penis. I'm all for Maeve exploring her sexuality, and really appreciate sex-positive books, but I wish it had been with someone who actually cared about her. Instead, this douche canoe that can't look at her, jerks off on her wheelchair while his other hand in her pants. He can barely look at her, but he's okay with touching? Maeve was a consenting adult, and she made it clear that she wanted to do these things with him, but the interactions really bothered me. She should have wanted more for herself. She settled for the first person to show her interest, even though his interest was mostly for selfish and sexual reasons. At one point he said, "I don't know how to like you." Seriously? He couldn't even care enough to remember that she had MD or what that meant. 

KC is a random side character. They've supposedly been friends since kindergarten, and no one thought it was weird that they'd never been to his house. He's always shady about where he gets things (costumes, bowling shoes, etc.) and no one really questions it. Suddenly, he confesses feelings for Maeve, and they all learn he's in a dark place. It didn't fit into the rest of the story, and his depression should have been discussed more. Also, once they realized things were bad, they should have involved an adult. 

Speaking of involving an adult, there were a lot of situations where one was needed. Instead, Maeve tries to handle everything on her own, which only made things more complicated. She should have told her parents when her photograph was used without her permission, and she should have told them about KC. I wish Maeve's parents had been way more involved in her life. Yes, they take care of her, but they also drop her off at a park in the middle of the night and tell her to call them when she's ready to go home. They ask very few questions about what she's doing, or who she's doing them with. Yes, Maeve is an adult, but she's still in high school. She also has medical needs that not everyone is equipped to deal with. 

Everything, and I mean everything was a dirty joke or thought to Maeve. Nothing was safe, not even her food. "...sauerkraut with social anxiety and sausages that couldn't quiet get it up." She was crude and careless. There's a difference between letting someone know what you want, and being sexually aggressive. 

I was happy the author wanted to write about a character with MD, and show that she was capable of living her life just like everyone else. Maeve had dreams and goals she wanted to achieve, but she wasn't a nice or likable character. Having a disability didn't mean she could treat people however she wanted, but she took advantage of their kindness and thought the world was happy helping her.

As you can see, I have a lot of issues with This Is Not a Love Scene, and I'm not even going to touch the ending. Yes, sure, it's what Maeve wanted, but ugh. She deserved so much better than that. Cole admitted that he couldn't give her what she wanted (the future part, because he was happy to share his dick in various ways), and she was totally okay with that. I'm not sure Maeve understands what love is, because it definitely wasn't what she had with Cole. 

I think Maeve's character is an insult to women everywhere, and should not be seen as an example to follow.

14 comments:

  1. Oh, I don't think I dare to read this one. If I see what kind of person Maeve is, I would be annoyed by her the whole book long!

    Great review, though :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. She was a pretty frustrating character! I disliked how she treated woman and seemed to idolize men. She constantly compared how the two interactions would vary in her mind, and she was always willing to accept more from men.

      Delete
  2. The idea of OMFs creeps me out! Great review, I loved seeing what annoyed you and why.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. She's flirty on purpose to give them hope, and then keeps them around through emails and texts. Quentin, and old DEA agent at a nursing home, even calls her occasionally. She knew they were interested in her attention, and I disliked how she abused their feelings, and how she often made dirty comments directed at them. It was all really weird!

      Delete
  3. So disappointing to hear that this one didn't live up to your expectations. I have had this one on my radar, but this character sounds like one that would really annoy me as well. Such a shame because we need more books with characters who have disabilities.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree! I love that more and more characters with disabilities are being represented in books. I think there are a lot of people that will be able to relate to their stories, and others that will gain insight from their perspectives. However, when those characters are unlikeable and unrelatable, it makes it hard for people to care about what they're trying to say.

      Delete
  4. Maeve doesn't sound like a character that I would like at all.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was really hard to read the book from her perspective. She's constantly criticizing other women, and is quick to make inappropriate and crude jokes. Yes, she wants men to know she's available and willing to be sexual, so she's aggressive to let them know she can be. However, it didn't come across the right way. I had a lot of issues with how she handled herself.

      Delete
  5. I am staying far away from this one. I've seen some reviews about this one but hearing that she has "Old Male Friends" just freaks me out. No thanks! Fantastic review!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The author made it seem like Maeve having relationships with older men was perfectly normal. It's not! It's incredibly creepy. I don't know it Maeve just wanted their attention, or if she actually felt something for them, but it really bothered me. They would email her about boys, while also asking if they needed to prep their shotguns and stuff. Like, they had feelings for her, but it was weird... I honestly don't know how to describe what was going on, only that it shouldn't have been. Her careless flirting with older men made them feel wanted, and she liked the attention.

      Delete
  6. I can't even begin to tell you how much I agree wholeheartedly with every single point. Rarely does a book anger me but this was just downright awful. It should have been called Maeve is desperate for a fuck because a few scenes of filmmaking doesn't distract from this being a terrible read. I'll be posting my review up this week as well and it's almost identical. The last time I felt this angry because of a book is when I read Hush Hush. Phenomenal review Linds, couldn't have said it better myself.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's been ages since I've had this many negative feelings about a book. I really wish the author had focused more on Maeve's desire to direct movies, and thought that aspect of the story was somewhat interesting, but we really don't see too much of that. There's some brief filming at the start of the book, but then everything else revolves around the Happy Campers lady, Cole, KC, and Maeve's determination to have sex and do hand stuff.

      I hated that she constantly criticized woman just for being women. She compared everything a woman did, and imaged how a man would have done it better. It was all about sex to her, which was insulting and ridiculous. It felt like a huge slap in the face to women everywhere, especially to those that have fought so hard to be seen as equals.

      Delete
  7. Yikes! What a book, what a character. I can see what you mean about the author wanting to show a different side of MD, but agree that the way she went about it was completely wrong. Maeve sounds like the most horrid POV to follow, and I really hope that girls out there do not see her as a figure to follow. Sorry to had to endure that character's perspective. Thank you for the honest review!

    Joy @ Thoughts By J

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't care that Maeve wanted to be sexually active, but she was overly aggressive. She wasn't just speaking her mind, she was being offensive and derogatory. I understand that she wanted to let guys know that she was able and willing, but there had to be a better way for her to do that. Her crude comments throughout the book were awful, and I really hope people don't think they need to act like Maeve to get what they want. Everyone can find love and happiness, and settling for someone that can't even admit to liking you, it not the way to go.

      Delete

Click the "Notify me" box if you want to be notified when someone responds!

“Stuff and nonsense. Nonsense and stuff and much of a muchness and nonsense all over again. We are all mad here, don't you know?”
― Marissa Meyer, Heartless