How Hard Can Love Be? (The Spinster Club Series #2)

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It’s a common theme in this book. Any time a cheerleader is mentioned it’s in a negative light. Amber is literally “white feminism” in one character who uses the idea of feminism only when it’s convenient for her. This is shown blatantly whenever she asks herself why she’s not bothered by her own friend (Lottie) acting sexually but hates when Melody does it (hint hint Amber, it’s because Lottie is your friend and Melody likes the boy you like who you have none for A DAY.)

It’s repetitive but also can give a fresh point of view about what it means to deal with it every day of your life. Especially being a teenager on medications, when all you wanna do is “be normal”. The answer is, simply, yes. I'm probably going to annoy someone here, but I hated Amber's mam. I understand how hard alcoholism can be, for the person suffering, and their loved ones, but I felt like Amber's mam always had an excuse, or would blame someone else. The main reason she didn't want to see Amber for so long was because it could push her over the edge, and she treated Amber like crap when she was in California. She knew how much Amber hated her step-family, but she was content to let her suffer as long as it didn't effect her. Not the best example of parenting. The only time I really liked her was at the very end, and even then it wasn't much. I wish I could join the Spinster Club even though I am happily married because I wholeheartedly agree with a lot of the three girls’ logic. I think this is the true meaning of feminism-everything that is printed in this book because I think a lot of people mistake feminism as anything that shuns men’s vital role in women’s lives.Bourne talks about feminism so openly and truthfully in her books and if you ever doubted the intelligence, ability or passion of teenage girls read her books and you never will again. --Muchbooks reader review on Guardian Children's Books Inspired by what she saw, she started writing teen fiction, including the best-selling, award-winning ‘Spinster Club’ series which helps educate teenagers about feminism. When she turned thirty, Holly wrote her first adult novel, 'How Do You Like Me Now?', examining the intensified pressures on women once they hit that landmark.

The ableism and fat shaming in this book was astonishing. There’s one scene in which a man in this book was listing off reasons on why having a crush on Erik from The Phantom Of The Opera was weird and wrong and his NUMBER ONE reason was that Erik is disfigured, do I need to say anymore? As for the fat shaming, there’s a kid in this book who’s fat and his fatness is literally mentioned almost everytime he’s in a scene in ambers mind and it’s not in a positive way. So Amber, why’s it okay for you to think these things about this child? Because you befriended him out of pity and somehow that makes it ok for YOU to fat shame him? Yikes. Amber and Lottie both CONSTANTLY hate on other women throughout this book, but especially amber. There’s this big thing in this book with Amber hating this girl Melody for legitimately no other reason other than the fact that Melody likes a boy that amber likes, a boy amber has known for a day. Great feminism.Like book 1 (Am I Normal Yet?), How Hard Can Love Be? had the good balance between cute and serious. This is Amber's book, and when I read Am I Normal Yet?, I was wondering what her story would be about because we were barely given any clue about Amber's life, except how shaky her family is, so I was curious to delve deeper into that and that's exactly what I got. It dealt with pretty deep subjects: alcoholism and abandonment. Also, just like in Am I Normal Yet?, the book discussed feminism, but in my opinion, it was more discussed in Am I Normal Yet? and I honestly love Holly Bourne's take on feminism. This book did a very piss poor attempt at Native American representation. The character is literally introduced as having “Olive reddy skin”... when did Holly Bourne miss the memo that it’s not ok to refer to native Americans skin color as “reddy”?