Love is the Drug by Alaya Dawn Johnson

Love is the Drug took me a long time to finish. I am normally a speed reader and go through things fairly quickly. I consider the fact that it took me so long a complement to Alaya Johnson. This story is very layered and intricate, and full of every element of a suspense novel you could ask for. There is a influenza outbreak. There is a black girl with a scientist mother who disapproves of anything that might prevent her daughter from fitting in with the white upper crust. There is a mysterious forgotten night after a drugging by a nefarious CIA agent who thinks our Emily Bird knows more than she says she does. There is love and transformation, because it is still geared towards young adults. But I very much appreciated the way the love affair was handled. Emily awakens through this terrifying time into Bird, a tough, self-accepting woman who knows what she wants, who she wants, and how to get what she wants. If she can get away from the CIA and her mother, that is. The end was satisfying and was clearly written well enough to make my heart clench a little when I thought it was headed a different way. I would definitely recommend this book for those who love a little suspense and a solid story.