In the Still of the Night

Expected Publication: March 3rd, 2015

My Best Everything

By: Sarah Tromp

Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

ISBN-13:  9780316324786

You say it was all meant to be.  You and me.  The way we met.  Our secrets in the woods.  Even the way it all exploded.  It was simply a matter of fate.

Maybe if you were here to tell me again, to explain it all one more time, then maybe I wouldn't feel so uncertain.  But I'm going back to the beginning on my own.  To see what happened and why.

Luisa "Lulu" Mendez has just finished her final year of high school in a small Virginia town, determined to move on and leave her job at the local junkyard behind.  So when her father loses her college tuition money, Lulu needs a new ticket out.

Desperate for funds, she cooks up the (definitely illegal) to make and sell moonshine with her friends, Roni and Bucky.  Quickly realizing they're out of their depth, Lulu turns to Mason: a local boy who's always seemed like a dead end.  As Mason guides Lulu through the secret world of moonshine, it looks like her plan might actually work.  But can she leave town before she loses everything - including her heart?

Review

     Lulu Mendez has always counted on the fact that her parents would pay for her college tuition.  So when after graduation she finds out that her Dad has made a risky investment and lost the money they would have used for her tuition, Lulu is desparate for a way to make money and finally get out of town.  When an unused copper still for making moonshine comes into the junkyard where she and her friend Roni work, to be left there in storage, it feels like a sign.  Lulu convinces Roni and Roni's boyfriend Bucky to give making and selling moonshine a try.  In the backwoods of Virginia, it seems like a sure bet to make some easy, fast money - illegal or not.  Not knowing where to even start, Lulu convinces Mason, a mysterious local boy from a notorious bootlegging family, to help them with the intital setup and process.  But the more time Lulu spends with Mason, the closer they get to falling completely in love with each other.  Can Lulu get out of town as planned and if she does, will her heart still be intact?

     So, this book is written as a letter from Lulu to Mason, after everything has already happened.  I spent the whole book wondering if she was writing to him from college, if he was the one who had left town, or if Mason had died.  One of the three is correct, but I'm not going to tell you which one it was.  Suffice it to say, I didn't quite know what to expect from a book whose whole premise is about making illegal liquor to fund a college education!  Lulu doesn't have the best life, with an agoraphobic mother who can't even go on the front porch anymore and a father who is never home.  Not to mention, no one seems to understand her need to leave town and go to college.  Her best friend Roni just wants to get married to her high school boyfriend Bucky.  In the first scene of this book, a drunk Lulu meets up with Mason and pukes in his motorcycle helmet and he gives her a ride home.  Not exactly love at first sight.  This book definitely represents the fact that Mason has been raised to live, breathe, and love the business of moonshine.  The fact of his love/hate relationship with alcohol was a really realistic portrayal and I enjoyed that the author didn't take the easy road out.  I don't want to say much more, because this book doesn't come out for another seven months.  I will say I was practically crying by the end and this book is definitely a highly emotional coming-of-age, first romance story.  And a unique one at that.

VERDICT:  4/5  Stars

*I received this book as part of Around the World ARC Tours, run by the lovely Princess Bookie.  No favors or money were exchanged for this review.  This book's expected publication date is March 3rd, 2015.*

Merch Girl Tour - Review, Excerpt and Giveaway!!!

Title: Merch Girl

Author: Rebecca Lewis

Date of Publication: May 1, 2013

Genre: Contemporary YA romance; Music

Blurb:

Seventeen-year-old Lacey Kind doesn’t have the guts to talk to cute boys, isn’t a size two, and would rather stay home and listen to music than go to a party. But in the summer before her first year of college, she ends up thousands of miles away from home, in the back of a tour bus, underneath the half-naked body of the hottest teen rock star in the country.

When Lacey and her best friend Trina sneak into a Boston nightclub to see their favorite band, they not only get to watch their rock gods perform for the first time, but score a chance to meet the band too. Lacey’s heart races as she comes face-to-face with her idol, nineteen-year-old lead singer, Logan Shire.

The girls charm their way into being hired to sell merchandise on Lansdowne’s first summer tour. As “merch girls” Lacey and Trina quickly find themselves transported from their ordinary, suburban life to an exhilarating few months on the road. But they soon realize that life on the road isn’t always a smooth ride...

Goodreads link: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17703969-merch-girl

Purchase links: Amazon | B&N | Smashwords | Kobo | iBooks

About Rebecca Lewis

Rebecca Lewis is the author of the Young Adult novel, Merch Girl, and a lover of all things music! She's been writing stories since middle school and penned her first fanfic about a semi-popular boyband in 1997. Her passion for music and writing brought her to Boston University, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science from the College of Communication. During her college career, she interned for various record labels in Boston and New York City, sold merch for local bands, worked at record stores, and did a whole lot of grassroots marketing. She currently resides in Florida with her husband and puppy.

Blog: http://rebeccajlewis.wordpress.com/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/Rebecca_Writes

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rebecca-Lewis-Author/408824785861600

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/RebeccaLewis

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/rebeccalauthor

Excerpt

I rubbed my hand soothingly against my throbbing forehead. I’d never experienced a hangover before, but I guessed this was what it felt like. I opened my eyes slowly and saw the low ceiling above me  and the curtain hanging by my side. Strange, I had no recollection of getting into a bunk. I cautiously pulled the curtain back and poked my head out to find an empty hallway. I maneuvered my way out of the bunk and realized I was only wearing Logan’s t-shirt and my underwear. His soft cotton tee felt nice against my skin, and still smelled like him. I breathed in the scent, which brought a rush of memories from last night back into my mind. Good memories, really, really good memories. 

Review

     I absolutely love reading anything to do with music, rock stars or the entertainment industry.  I'm actually a bit of a freak about it sometimes, to be quite honest!  So I was pretty excited to read another book about regular girls touring with their favorite rock band (it didn't hurt that this is the first one I've seen from the merch girl angle of things).  Do we ever really think of the people behind the merch tables when we're at venues, big or small?  If you're honest with yourself, the answer is not really - bordering on never.  Lacey and Trina are BFFs who just graduated high school and are ready to spend their last summer together before college.  Lacey is quiet, shy and unsure of herself.  Trina is boisterous, brimming with confidence and never shy about leading the charge on anything.  When they get the unforseen opportunity to meet up and coming band Lansdowne (their favorite, over which they're complete fangirls) things spiral from there.  The girls end up becoming friends with the guys and getting hired to be merch girls on their first tour.  With sparks flying between Griffin and Trina & Lacey and Logan, the summer is heating up.  But can secrets on the part of the girls and the guys, plus scheming from mean girl Jenna stop things before they even start?

     Maybe it's just because I've never really been a crazy, balls to the wall fan of any particular band in my life.  I kind of missed the window for boy band crazy, fangirl shenanigans by being too young during the NKOTB, Backstreet Boys, and N'Sync era.  And I'm not really into the newer boy bands, like One Direction.  I was kind of in-between.  Yes, I had posters on my wall.  But I didn't go to concerts, cry, scream and overall lose my mind over my favorite bands.  That said, Lacey and Trina are better characterized better than your average, screaming fangirls from the crowd.  We get to see into their brains and learn that they really do like the guys for who they are.  Also, though the relationships are a little too I love him just-because, instalove for my taste I appreciated the tumult of both relationships.  Neither of them was perfect and we are constantly reminded that all of them are just immature teens/twenty-somethings, who are still finding their way.  I don't want to give any real spoilers, so all I will say is that there were a couple of twists involving Trina & Gabe's relationship and Lacey's interactions with fangirl Devin that were unexpected.  Overall, a cute fluffy and slightly angsty rock 'n roll romance, definitely more suited for actual teenagers (or more naieve/less jaded adults).  I could barely suspend my disbelief sometimes.  A fun romp, but I am definitely NOT the target audience.  

VERDICT:  3/5 Stars

*I received an ARC from the author and tour host for the purpose of this blog tour. No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book was published May 1st, 2013.*

DON'T FORGET TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY BELOW, FOR A CHANCE TO WIN AN EBOOK OF MERCH GIRL!!!!!!!!

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Go On Now, Take It

Published:  December 1st, 2013

Another Little Piece of My Heart

By: Tracey Martin

Harlequin Teen

ISBN-13:  9781459254749

What if your devastating break-up became this summer's hit single?  In this rock-and-roll retelling of Jane Austen's Persuasion, music can either bring you together or tear you apart.

At her dying Mother's request, Claire dumps Jared, the only boy she's ever loved.  Left with a broken family and a broken heart, Claire is furious when she discovers that her biggest regret became Jared's big break.  While Jared is catapaulted into rock-star status, another piece of Claire's heart crumbles every time his song plays on the radio.

The summer after her senior year, it's been months since the big break-up, and Claire is just trying to keep her head down and make it through a tense trip to the beach with her family.  But when Jared shows up, and old feelings reignite, can Claire and Jared let go of the past?  Or will they be stuck singing the same old refrain?

Review

     Let me just tell you right now (in case for some reason, you didn't already catch on from my other ramblings and related posts: I AM A COMPLETE JANE AUSTEN-OBSESSED FREAK!  For some people this would be equivalent with Austen purism and they wouldn't touch re-tellings or posthumous sequels with a 10-foot pole!  I am not a purist and adore the chance for more of some of my favorite characters in classic literature.  What made this book doubly impossible to pass up was the fact that it was a retelling of Persuasion - my favorite of Austen's novels, now that I've grown older.  Maybe it's because I relate almost completely with poor Anne Eliot and her miserable life spent in service of others.  Not everyone can be an Elizabeth Bennet or an Elinor Dashwood.  Some of us suffer serious heartache for our happiness!  So color me excited that this was supposed to be teenaged, modern versions of Anne and Wentworth! 

     I did enjoy a lot of things about this book.  I liked the fact that it was set during the summer, in a beach town.  It was a lot easier to have it be during that season - especially in modern America, with all the restrictions on the time and energy of today's teens.  I really enjoyed seeing how Claire (Anne) handled the loss of her college fund.  At least she wasn't afraid to go out and get her hands dirty to try and save some money for school (not that her family at all encouraged her in this)!  The writing was gorgeous at certain points and the descriptions of Claire's feelings after the break up were definitely spot on - take it from someone who knows.  My biggest issue was the characters.  With the reader limited to first-person point of view (Claire's) and we don't get any insight into what Jared, her Dad, her sister or her cousins are feeling or experiencing.  As a result of how closed our window into Claire's world is, us readers really only get to know her and her side of the story.  Also, Claire makes some REALLY stupid mistakes.  She has an inability to tell anyone 'no' and it almost causes her to have a serious issue, that could completely ruin her life!  All because she can't tell someone "no" at the least, "NO FUCKING WAY" at the most!!!  

     I could understand Claire's reasons for breaking up with Jared, but I agree with some other reviewers that have stated that Claire loved to victimize herself and paint everyone else as the villains.  Jared really drew the short end of the stick in this book.  The way the reader is introduced to him is as an asshole who asked his girlfriend to choose between her dying Mom who had cancer, and him.  Then he ran away in a hissyfit when she chose her family!  Plus he wrote a bunch of songs about what a bitch she is and how materialistic she is.  I'm supposed to root for Claire to get back with this guy?  Also, Claire's cousin is interested in him and Claire says NOTHING TO HER.  She doesn't tell her he's her ex-boyfriend or what an asshole he is.  Instead she just seethes and plays the martyr of the situation.  It annoyed me quite a bit.  By the end, I was won over (mostly) by Jared.  But I spent the majority of the book NOT invested in the romance, which is a problem for a book that is completely centered around romance/romantic angst.  The songwriting and singing bits were fun and I truly enjoyed them.  However, overall this book was fun but not very substantial or anything I will reread.  More of a summer beach read than anything.  In other words, classic Harlequin (even if it is the teen imprint)! :D

VERDICT:  3.5/5  Stars

*I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, Harlequin Teen, via NetGalley.  No money or favors were exchanged for this review.  This book was published December 1st, 2013.*

You've Got Mail

Expected Publication:  December 24th, 2013

Roomies

By: Sara Zarr & Tara Altebrando

Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

ISBN-13:  9780316217491

It's time to meet your new roomie.

When East Coast native Elizabeth receives her freshman-year roommate assignment, she shoots off an e-mail to coordinate the basics: television, microwave, mini-fridge.  That first note to San Franciscan Lauren sparks a series of e-mails that alters the landscape of each girl's summer -- and raises questions about how two girls who are so different will ever share a dorm room.

As the countdown to college begins, life at home becomes increasingly complex.  With family relationships and childhood friendships strained by the change, it suddenly seems the only people that Elizabeth and Lauren can rely on are the complicated new boys in their lives...and each other.  Even though they've never met.

Review

     Elizabeth (called EB by her friends) is really excited to finally be leaving for college in just a couple short months.  So when she gets her roommate assignment, EB shoots of an e-mail to figure out who's bringing what.  Lauren on the other hand is less than thrilled with having a roommate, as she had originally requested a single.  Coming from a home with five younger brothers and sisters, all Lauren wants is to go to Berkeley and get some peace, quiet and freedom.  When EB contacts her Lauren is busy working, being babysitter to her siblings and trying to keep her friendships afloat even though she doesn't have time to be involved with all the technology her friends use as a lifeline - especially her best friend Zoe.  At first the girls get off on the wrong foot, but when they really start responding to each other both EB and Lauren come to rely on one another as sounding boards - and friends.  With complicated guy and family situations can EB and Lauren make the right decisions and manage to become the people they need to be?

     I really enjoyed reading this book!  I went into it expecting it to be a pretty good read, but braced for disappointment.  It takes a really great writer to work with a partner and not come up with a mediocre book.  It's all about the flow and style of the narrative being smooth, while still having distinctive characters, etc. so that not everything sounds exactly the same.  EB is an only child who lives with her Mom, after her Dad walked out on them when she was five.  Turns out he was gay and didn't want to pretend anymore.  Not that her Mom is perfect either, having affairs with married men and always being gone from the apartment.  Everything is changing with E.B.'s friends too, who are all staying close by for college.  She breaks up with her boyfriend who is pressuring her for sex, only to find herself attracted to a landscaping client's son.  Lauren is the opposite, trying to figure out her romantic feelings for her co-worker Keyon, searching Goodwill for antiques they can flip, babysitting her five siblings and working for money she's going to need at college.  I could appreciate EB's inability to admit how she felt, her mixed feelings towards her Mom (who she loves, even if she is distant and doing the morally wrong thing more often than not).  I identified with Lauren's struggle to separate her identity from her place in the family.  Both girls were written extremely real.

     That old saying that it's easier to talk to a stranger is really well demonstrated in this book.  Neither girl really knows how to connect at first, but they can't talk about their problems with anyone else.  So they unload on each other.  But both of them are conflicted about becoming friends that way, before they've ever even met each other.  They still kind of resent each other as well, for being so involved.  EB even retaliates when Lauren looks up her estranged Dad's art gallery in San Francisco and finds out something hurtful.  Lauren decides to tell EB anyway and the anger gets focused on her instead.  The romantic relationship between Lauren and Keyon was very 'first love' in it's hesitation and shy newness.  It was nice to have such an innocent relationship in a YA book.  I did like EB's relationship with Mark, but it felt really whirlwind and insta-love to me.  Yes, his character was awesome.  But I felt like the "I love you" mentality was way unrealistic.  Overall, this is a book about friendships (old and new), family, romance and learning how to balance them all while dealing with the change of growing up.  I really enjoyed it and would highly recommend it, whether you're already a fan of Zarr or Altebrando, or both even.

VERDICT:  4/5  Stars

*I received this book as part of Around the World ARC Tours, run by the lovely Princess Bookie.  No favors or money were exchanged for this review.  This book's expected publication date is December 24th, 2013.*

Alone and Dancing, You Know It Baby...

 

Published: March 1st, 2013

Things I Can't Forget (Hundred Oaks # 3)

By: Miranda Kenneally

Sourcebooks Fire

ISBN-13: 978140227

 

 

Kate has always been the good girl. Too good, according to some people at school—although they have no idea the guilty secret she carries. But this summer, everything is different…

This summer she’s a counselor at Cumberland Creek summer camp, and she wants to put the past behind her. This summer Matt is back as a counselor too. He’s the first guy she ever kissed, and he’s gone from a geeky songwriter who loved The Hardy Boys to a buff lifeguard who loves to flirt…with her.

Kate used to think the world was black and white, right and wrong. Turns out, life isn’t that easy…

 

Review

 

     Kate has always done the right things and kept a close relationship with God.  But she has done something that she isn't sure she can ever forgive herself for, let alone ask God to forgive her.  When she goes to be a counselor at Cumberland Creek summer camp, Kate is feeling lonelier than ever after losing her best friend and having her beliefs put into question.  But when she meets Matt, another counselor she used to know as a kid, things start looking up.  Kate just might be falling in love for the first time.  While desperately trying to make up for what she did, Kate just might learn that it's okay if others believe differently than you, it's a part of life.  Can she keep her relationship with Matt, even when he wants to go faster than she does?  And can she make it up to all the people she's hurt in the past?  Either way it will be a summer to remember...

     I went into this one kind of wary, because while I didn't hate Catching Jordan, I didn't love it either.  Stealing Parker read a lot better for me, and I went into this with some hope I could maybe love it.  This book came awful close to accomplishing its goal!  Kate, while religious to a fault, was nothing but sincere even when she was wrong.  And that made a serious difference.  Kate is naïve, kind, funny and thoughtful.  She just has a hard time realizing that its okay for people to have beliefs that are different from hers, because she's been taught otherwise her whole life.  She has a big problem with hypocrisy and with the amount of it going on at camp, I totally sympathize with her.  I personally don't believe in abortion, but do believe in a woman's right to choose so I could understand the agony of helping another person get the procedure, especially when you believe it's against you God's wishes.  The romance with Matt was sweet and they had so many 'awwww' moments that I was in danger of smiling my face off.  Even though I wasn't super in love with Miranda's previous books, I did enjoy the candid and realistic way she dealt with sex and love and what it means to teenagers.  This book was no different, except she finally portrayed a girl who decided to wait instead of giving herself to the boy (which was a change for me in YA fiction as I don't read much Christian YA where it occurs more often).  I liked the way Kate managed to slowly win Parker's trust and become friends, when previously she had stayed away from her (scared her 'sin' would cause Kate herself to stray) and Parker thought she was being a judgmental bitch.  They still were two very different girls at the end of the book, but their friendship was a nice fit.  My least favorite thing was how Kate treated the friend who had the abortion (not that the friend was very understanding either).  But I understood how she could originally go in that direction, believing as she did.  Overall, a really good contemporary YA novel that deal with romance, belief, friendship and the difficulties of growing up.  I highly recommend it.

 

VERDICT:  4.5/5  Stars

 

*I received this book as part of Around the World ARC Tours, run by the lovely Princess Bookie. No favors or money were exchanged for this review. It became available for purchase March 1st, 2013.*

You Break It, You Buy It

Expected Publication:  May 21st, 2013

The Book of Broken Hearts

By: Sarah Ockler

Simon Pulse

ISBN-13:  9781442430389

 

Jude has learned a lot from her older sisters, but the most important thing is this: The Vargas brothers are notorious heartbreakers. She’s seen the tears and disasters that dating a Vargas boy can cause, and she swore an oath—with candles and a contract and everything—to never have anything to do with one.

Now Jude is the only sister still living at home, and she’s spending the summer helping her ailing father restore his vintage motorcycle—which means hiring a mechanic to help out. Is it Jude’s fault he happens to be cute? And surprisingly sweet? And a Vargas?

Jude tells herself it’s strictly bike business with Emilio. Her sisters will never find out, and Jude can spot those flirty little Vargas tricks a mile away—no way would she fall for them. But Jude’s defenses are crumbling, and if history is destined to repeat itself, she’s speeding toward some serious heartbreak…unless her sisters were wrong?

Jude may have taken an oath, but she’s beginning to think that when it comes to love, some promises might be worth breaking

Review

 

     Jude is the youngest of four sisters and after watching two of the others get their hearts broken by Vargas boys, she swears an oath that she will never date a Vargas boy!  Now in the summer before her freshman year of college, romance is the farthest thing from her mind when she crosses paths with Emilio Vargas at the motorcycle shop.  Jude knows it's probably not a smart idea to hire him to fix her ailing Father's vintage bike.  But as she gets to know him better, Jude begins to think that maybe he's different from his brothers and cousins - maybe a romance with a Vargas can last.  Jude's Father steadily declines and when a particularly bad episode brings home her sisters to help make a tough decision, will Jude fall in line and let them decide her heart or will she start making her own choices for once in her life?  I think when I went into this book I expected the normal 60/40 balance of family/romance that is present in Ockler's last two books.  But honestly, I kind of wanted her to just drop the romance and focus on the family story unfolding!  I really loved the relationship between Jude and Papi.  They had something special and I understood Jude's need to have that with her Dad, especially since his mind was detriorating and her older sisters had way more time with him to make memories.  Early onset Alzheimer's is a sad and horrific disease to witness, and even more heartbreaking through the eyes of a family member being affected.  The romantic will-they/won't-they between Jude and Emilio did serve as a tension release I suppose, but it unfolded in a very cliched and predictable way.  The personality of her sister Mari (short for Mariposa) was the most present in the actual plot, other than brief mentions.  And she was least hurt by the Vargas boys, so maybe that's why I couldn't get behind the vague family feud.  Also, Emilio's semi-tragic history gave him some depth, but I never felt like I had enough of an idea about who he was to root for him to get the girl.  The way he treated Papi was bautiful though and that alone would make him my dream guy.  By the time Jude finally decided that her sisters couldn't make all her decisions and decided to be with him, I just didn't care anymore.  But I cried when Jude and Papi were talking during one of his lucid moments about why she needed to let the family put him in a care facility.  Also the scene with Papi's motorcycle ride smashed my heart to pieces.  Jude's loyalty to her family, mixed with the desire to be her own person is extremely relatable and I enjoyed this book a lot.  However, it would have been even better without the lukewarm romantic encounters.  I'd recommend this to fans of Ockler's previous books for sure, but expect something slightly different than usual.

 

VERDICT:  4/5  Stars

 

**I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, via Edelweiss. No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book's expected publication date is May 21st, 2013.**

Your Own Enemy

Published: June 5th, 2012

A Midsummer's Nightmare

By: Kody Keplinger

Poppy

ISBN-13: 9780316084222

Whitley Johnson's dream summer with her divorcé dad has turned into a nightmare. She's just met his new fiancée and her kids. The fiancée's son? Whitley's one-night stand from graduation night. Just freakin' great.

Worse, she totally doesn't fit in with her dad's perfect new country-club family. So Whitley acts out. She parties. Hard. So hard she doesn't even notice the good things right under her nose: a sweet little future stepsister who is just about the only person she's ever liked, a best friend (even though Whitley swears she doesn't "do" friends), and a smoking-hot guy who isn't her stepbrother...at least, not yet. It will take all three of them to help Whitley get through her anger and begin to put the pieces of her family together.

Review

     Whitley Johnson is definitely ready to get away from everyone and everything by going to college.  But first she's spending the summer hanging with her Dad, away from her shrewish Mom.  But then everything is ruined when her Dad springs on her the fact that he's engaged!  To a woman (Sylvia) with two kids, and moving out of his condo.  Oh yeah and Sylvia's son, Nathan, is her one night stand from graduation!  Whitley spends the summer partying hard and doing everything she can to let Sylvia and her kids know that she views them as interlopers.  Somewhere along the way she manages to get herself a best friend and a new family that cares about her.  How can Whitley make things right with her Mom and Dad, if they want to pretend the bad things never happened?  Can she decide to be a better person that she ever imagined, by leaving the past behind?  So, I feel like every one of Keplinger's main characters are slutty, loner, damaged girls.  It seems to be a trend in her books.  Maybe I had a hard time relating to Whitley because of casual way she treated sex and how she was always drunk.  And yeah, she had a really bad relationship with her Mom, brother and Dad.  But most people don't use those things as the answers to their problems.  Not to mention the pretty shitty way she treated her soon-to-be step-sister Bailey for almost the whole book.  The romance with Nathan was well-written and believable, but the way he kept liking her even after she treated him like crap and totally crushed him with angry words kind of baffled me.  Before reading this book I never realized just what a nice Midwesterner that I am at heart.  I just don't get this kind of behavior.  I did like Whitley though and was glad that she got her happy ending - nice Midwesterner or not, I definitely know how much parents can screw you up! :)

VERDICT:  3.5/5  Stars

* *No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book is now available in stores, online, or maybe even at your local library.**

Don't Flirt With Me, You're Creepy...

Published: June 12th, 2012

Flirting In Italian

By: Lauren McBride

Delacorte Books For Young Readers

ISBN-13: 9780385741354

Four girls. One magical, and possibly dangerous Italian summer. Family mysteries, ancient castles, long hot nights of dancing under the stars . . . and, of course, plenty of gorgeous Italian boys!

Review

   Eighteen year old Violet is getting ready to go to university in the fall, but there is something she needs to know before she leaves - whether or not she was adopted.  After seeing a painting at the museum in which the girl is practically identical to her, Violet sets out on a quest to find out who the girl is.  The trail leads Violet to Italy.  For a cover story, she tells her Mum that she wants to learn Italian culture, art, history and language over the summer to prepare better for university.  Signing up for a course that will be taught by an Italian woman at her Villa home in the Italian countryside, Violet sets off to discover who she really is.  While there she befriends the other girls taking the course: two Americans, Kendra and Paige, and a fellow Brit, Kelly.  The girls are initially at odds, but they bond over mutual dislike of their teacher Catia's bitchy, evil daughter Elisa.  While trying to learn about the painting, Violet balances her studies, problems involving her new friends and the boy next door to the Villa, Luca.  He is sending her very mixed signals romantically, but Violet can't help but be attracted to his volatile personality.  But things may not be looking up, as it seems someone will stop at nothing to keep Violet from the truth of her birth - even if it means killing her...  This book started out very promisingly.  A light-hearted, summer adventure with mystery, romance and some good times with new friends.  I got a lot of that, but the mystery of the painting really intrigued me as well.  While being annoyed that Violet couldn't JUST ASK her Mum whether or not she was adopted, I did appreciate the need for it as a plot device.  The part that pissed me off was that Henderson inserts a mystery, then ignores it for most of the book.  Than, at the end of the novel, she gives a half-ass cop-out ending that hints at a rather unsatisfactory ending to the truth of Violet's roots.  Plus, a book that could have ended well in one volume suddenly spawns a sequel.  The idea of Violet belonging to the family that was insinuated REALLY pissed me off.  It was unnecessary, unlikely and utterly disgusting to my sensibilities (this coming from someone who managed to stomach the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy!).  Not recommended unless you love to be disappointed.

VERDICT:  2/5  Stars

*I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book was published June 12, 2012.*