Review 5/5 Stars ⭐⭐⭐️️️⭐⭐️
For Fans of Heartstopper, Fairy Tales, & the Hopeless Romantics.
And They Lived by Steven Salvatore is about two guys who fall in love at an art college. Chase: a determined animation artist & Jack: a writer and poet.
I picked this up because I love Body Positivity Romance, Fairy Tales, & the last name of Chase is Arthur which also happens to be my name! I went to a performing and visual arts high school so I deeply resonated with this book.
The meet-cute was also beautifully written.
Jack is a beach-body, sun-kissed guy. Chase is a chubby, nerdy artist. They meet at a rainfall while jumping off a cliff into the waters on the first day of college. Goals! This romance book also focused on the theme of found family. But one of my favorite themes in this book is the mental health representation. You get to see the main characters go to therapy and learn coping skills.
The main story is Chase learning to believe in himself and it was brilliantly written. We get to see Chase’s character development from a shy anxious guy to a liberated non-binary official artist.
The author, Steven Salvatore, notes in the acknowledgments resources for mental health. This was such a meaningful addition. It can help so many people. He specifically shares about CBT, or cognitive behavioral therapy. This therapy focuses on learning how to change your mindset to a more positive outlook.
Salvatore lets us know we’re going to be okay as long as we believe in ourselves. His advice to reframe our intrusive thoughts made this book one of my favorite reads. I felt safe and seen with this book!
Watch the video version of this review on Tiktok @artyfelizbooks
Arty Feliz 