June 6, 2023

The Search for Love is Universal

After a lifetime of searching for someone like herself in a book, Holly Smale wrote one herself.

The Search for Love is Universal

After a lifetime of searching for someone like herself in a book, Holly Smale wrote one herself.

If ‘art is a mirror held up to nature’, then I have spent a lot of my life searching for my reflection and finding very little. While books have always been what I turned to for comfort and escapism – to see the world through other lenses – I have also been left feeling a little like a ghost, desperately ripping down dust-sheets but seeing nothing. And so the conviction that I was alone, and possibly ‘broken’, became more pronounced with every page I turned.

When I was diagnosed as autistic in my late 30s, that belief began to shift. I am simply wired differently, and – as the shame slowly melted away – my attention turned back to the page. If I had failed to find many women like me in books, perhaps I could write one. Thus Cassie was born. Like me, she would struggle with human connection and communication; she would find relationships difficult, emotions confusing and her environment sensorily overwhelming. Like me, she would be considered ‘weird’ and frequently ‘unlikeable’ and would struggle to find her place in a world that held her permanently at arms’ length.

But I didn’t want to write an ‘issues’ book. I wanted to write a joyful, fun story, albeit one with a slightly less usual protagonist. At its heart, this book is about what we all experience: a basic human desire to connect with the people around us, and ultimately to ourselves. Cassie uses time travel – in a very autistic way, looping, repeating, hyper-focusing – to do what we’ve all found ourselves wishing we could do at some point: undo our mistakes, rewrite our histories and edit our own lives. She may do it in a slightly unconventional way, but the search for love is universal. And this is what Cassandra In Reverse has always been about: love, in all its different forms. Love for each other, as humans, despite our differences.

We deserve books that reflect us all, and with Cassie I found a way to rip down the dust-sheet. Whether you’re autistic or not, this is a story that ultimately encourages you to be yourself and celebrate the beauty in our individuality.

None of us are truly alone.

"I quite literally told anyone who would listen about this book."

📷+💬: @lorraineslibrary
The Three Lives of Cate Kay and its love stories alway brighten our day. 🌈☀️
You know and love The Last Thing He Told Me. Now it's time to get ready for its sequel: The First Time I Saw Him, available January 2026!
Celebrating the first day of summer with some of our hottest reads ☀️ What’s the perfect book to kick off the season with?
"As I came to understand my path as that of a writer, I realized that my family didn’t have much in the way of material things to pass down, but had stories, had representations of the life we lived together on this earth, and folks before me had representations of the life they lived and survived so that I could be so privileged to be here to tell you all about it…and that for me is the legacy."

Thank you, @delana.r.a.dameron, for sharing Redwood Court with the world and reminding us why it's important to tell stories. Experience the beauty of Redwood Court at our link in bio.
When a book you adore gets a companion ✨ 

If you loved Seven Days in June and everything it celebrates, you’re in for a treat. In Audre & Bash Are Just Friends, @tiawilliamswrites revisits the world of Seven Day in June and gives Audre the main character treatment. Start reading to find out why first love stories never lose their magic.
Inspired by this sweet moment of nostalgia in Tom Lake to take the time to appreciate both the past and present this morning. ✨
Listen up book lovers, we’ve got a new podcast brewing, and you won't want to miss it.

Reese's Book Club is excited to announce, Bookmarked, the podcast that goes behind the scenes with your favorite stories, characters, and authors. Books are stacked high, tea is piping hot. You in? 

Press play every Tuesday starting June 24th, available on the @iheartradio app, @applepodcasts, or wherever you listen.
Our plans today? Locking in with our newest pick, The Phoenix Pencil Company, and a latte! 💙 What's your go-to drink to read with?