Interdit d'aimer

I wish I could experience mutual love with someone. I have had many crushes while at high school but, either I've got a thing for women who don't like me or I've blown all my chances with them. The girls are always in their packs, and are hostile to outsiders. Because I possessed no magical fountain of knowledge on how to attract women, I did the best I could with the hand I was dealt. For me, you create your own light at the end of the tunnel.

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A novel based on a young man, Lewis Todd, and his search for love. As someone with Asperger's Syndrome, Lewis is extremely shy around girls he fancies, however the school ball is coming up and he feels compelled to take a girl with him.

Over the course of this novel, Lewis struggles to grapple with the reality of being in a relationship and realises how much work it is - it's not just cuddles on the bench at school. Lewis acknowledges that he needs to talk more, open up about himself, and through this process not only meets new people but starts to wonder if he really is the person he thought he was.

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My name is Liam Arbuckle. I also have Asperger's Syndrome, and this has made it really hard for me to form meaningful relationships with people. I decided to write this novel so that others could be put in my shoes for a day, a month - however long it takes for you to read this. I've never written romance before, and this has been a new experience for me.

The title "interdid d'aimer" is French, and in English it translates to "Forbidden to Love." While I do not speak a word of French, a lot of people on the spectrum do possess a love of learning languages. I also wholeheartedly believe that people like myself have been forbidden to love. Over 90% of those on the Spectrum will never find a significant other. That sounds pretty forbidden to me.