Going in to this, I was hoping for a quick, fun, summery read, and while I do think it had those characteristics, I ended up feeling quite underwhelmed. As a protagonist Lily felt plausible and the conversations around body image would be brilliant in the hands of someone struggling with their own body, however that’s where I feel like this book’s accomplishments end.
I think what it boils down to is that Melt My Heart was just an incredibly bland book; the author made an attempt to discuss issues such as fat phobia and racism head-on and while I do think the book is empowering with regard to body image, everything else felt very superficial and two-dimensional. Throughout, Lily noticed xenophobic posters being put up in her town, but despite wanting to do something about it, we never really get an explanation as to where they came from or what it could mean for the town and therefore the issue is never really hashed out or resolved.
Title: Melt My Heart
Author: Bethany Rutter
Type: Fiction
Published: 2020
Pages: 289
TW: Homophobia, Fat Phobia, Racism, Xenophobia, Infidelity
“One summer to get my head around all the ways my life is going to change.”
Review overview
Summary
Melt My Heart is a coming-of-age romance set in a seaside town in England. Faced with the daunting prospect that she will be leaving for university in September, Lily is anxious about her future. However she will be spending the summer selling ice cream with her best friend Cassie, so things could definitely be worse! When she meets Cal, a boy from New Zealand, she thinks this might be her chance at romance before leaving home, but it gets complicated when she realises it’s her sister’s crush. Daisy – Lily’s twin sister – has always been perfect in every way and while Lily is happy with her body she can’t help but feel people compare them and think she comes up short. With results day looming, and decisions to make, Lily has a lot on her plate and not long to figure it all out.
