May 09, 2012

Review: The International Kissing Club by Ivy Adams

The International Kissing Club
Author: Ivy Adams
Publisher: Walker & Company
Publication Date: January 3, 2012
Pages: 400
Source: Galley from NetGalley/Publisher

Piper, Cassidy, Mei, and Izzy have been best friends their whole lives. And they've always agreed on one goal: to get out of tiny Paris, Texas, and see the world. The school's foreign exchange program seems like the perfect escape: Piper will go to the original Paris; Mei will go to China; Cassidy will go to Australia; and Izzy, unable to afford the program, will stay at home. To add spice to their semester away, and to stay connected to their best friends, the girls start The International Kissing Club, a Facebook page where they can anonymously update one another and brag about all the amazing guys they're meeting. After all, these girls are traveling abroad: amazing guys abound at every turn! But sometimes fun, flirty vacation flings turn into more serious romances, and sometimes you don't return from abroad the same person you were. Will the girls' relationships-and their friendships-be able to survive?

Review: I thought this book was really cute for the most part! I mean, first of all, who wouldn't wanna be a foreign exchange student?? That would be so cool! Meeting new people, learning about a new culture, exploring a whole new country! I would love that! Personally, I'd be like Piper and go to Paris because I absolutely love Paris! But Australia sounds pretty cool too! I really liked the whole International Kissing Club Facebook page! Not because of the whole kissing as many guys as you can thing, I thought that was weird. I mean, it thought it was so cool that they each met a guy that they could openly talk about with the entire group but not have to give away names or anything. I thought the whole points system for how many guys you kissed was weird though. I honestly like the girls that only got their three points for the one guy they met and really spent their time with. Having a meaningful friendship/relationship with one guy is way better than kissing a ton of different guys, even if your in a different country.

The girls! They all were pretty cool and unique in their own way but I think out of them all I liked Cassidy the most! She seemed the most level headed most of the time and actually thought things through more than the others. She also seemed to be the most loyal friend out of the four, especially after the big blow up between Piper & Izzy! I really disliked how everyone turned against Izzy when she didn't mean for anything that happened to happen. Piper acted like she did everything on purpose. I've been in that spot where your friends turn against you for something stupid that wasn't even supposed to happen. So I really felt for Izzy, because what Piper did to her was really unfair. I also thought it was really messed up that Piper constantly complained about her problems and always tried to make the conversation about her when she wasn't the only one with problems. She acted like the world revolved around her and it didn't. That was extremely unfair to Izzy! She needed someone to talk to and Piper just blew her off and didn't even care. That's why I liked Cassidy the most because she was actually there for all her friends when they needed her. I was really happy that they worked out their problems but I felt like most of the drama between them wasn't needed. Don't even get me started on Germaine! She was just a manipulative jerk! She didn't need to cause half the drama she did but she did anyways just because she thought she was better than everyone else. I thought this book really described high school really well, populars always picking on the non populars and then manipulating them into turning against each other. It felt really familiar. Overall, I thought this was a good contemporary!

4 Stars!

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March 30, 2012

Review: Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles

Chain Reaction (Perfect Chemistry #3)
Author: Simone Elkeles
Publisher: Walker Books
Publication Date: August 16, 2011
Pages: 308
Source: Hardcover/Library

Luis Fuentes has always been sheltered from the gang violence that nearly destroyed his brothers’ lives. But that didn’t stop him from taking risks—whether he’s scaling a mountain in the Rockies or dreaming of a future as an astronaut, Luis can’t stop looking for the next thrill.

Nikki Cruz lives her life by three rules—boys lie to get their way, don’t trust a boy who says “I love you,” and never date a boy from the south side of Fairfield. Her parents may be from Mexico, but as a doctor’s daughter, she has more in common with her north-side neighbors than the Latino Blood at her school. Then she meets Luis at Alex’s wedding, and suddenly, she’s tempted to break all her rules.

Getting Nikki to take a chance on a southsider is Luis’s biggest challenge, until he finds himself targeted by Chuy Soto, the new head of the Latino Blood. When Chuy reveals a disturbing secret about Luis’s family, the youngest Fuentes finds himself questioning everything he’s ever believed to be true. Will his feelings for Nikki be enough to stop Luis from entering a dark and violent world and permanently living on the edge?

Review: *Includes some spoilers, though I tried to keep them to a minimum* OMG!!!! For me this was the best of the three books!!! I couldn't stop reading this!!! Like seriously, I was even ignoring my boyfriends texts until the end of a chapter just cuz it was so hard to put this book down.I was experiencing so many emotions while reading this book! I mean I was grinning like no freakin' tomorrow at some points, laughing so hard at others, and then I was crying or in complete shock. I seriously could not get enough of this book! I loved finally getting to here Luis' story. I mean we always got tid bits of him in Alex & Carlos' stories but we never got to learn a whole lot about Luis. I really enjoyed seeing how he was different and the same as his brothers. I also cant deny that I did enjoy seeing Alex, Brittany, Carlos & Kiara in the book as well! It was awesome seeing what was happening in their lives in the background of Luis' story. Luis... I don't know whether to classify him as a good guy or a bad guy. Lol. I mean yeah, he was just like his brothers in the way of looking for the next thrill, chasing after the girl and dealing with the gang but on the flip side, he had a conscious right from the start. He tried hard to get good grades, he didn't try as hard as his brothers to hide from his feelings, and he didn't want to be a part of the gang for the most part (until all the sudden events in the second half of the book) unless he had to be. And Nikki... I felt really bad about what she went through at the beginning with losing a baby. I mean yeah, she was only 15, but still, that kind of trauma doesn't go away, and it really affects your future.

Nikki and Luis!!! AHHH! I seriously loved them together!!!! I mean, I couldn't help but smile every time something good happened between those too. I was even smiling when they were fighting after they broke up and all of the truth came out because after that they really didn't have any secrets between them anymore and it would just make their relationship that much stronger when they got back together. I totally related to Nikki in a way. With all that had happened in her past I could completely understand her trust issues and why she was always so scared of relationships, especially since Luis did seem like a player when they first met. But even though he acted like it, I could tell right from the beginning he really wasn't. It bugged me a little that Nikki waited so long to finally trust Luis. I mean there was so many times way before she finally decided to completely trust him that he put himself completely out there for her and she blocked him out and shut him down. And omg! Luis! She kept doing that when his life was going downhill, which made things ten times worse for him! Especially with what he learned, that the guy he always thought was his father really wasn't. That must have sucked so much for him!!! He felt betrayed by his brothers and his mom and then on top of that Nikki cuz of how she was acting. He was so alone when he found that out. I felt so bad for him!! I was so glad that things worked out in the end for him and Nikki (even though what Nikki had to do to save Luis and his brothers at the end sucked big time). And omg! The epilogue! I was shocked at finding out the Fuentes brothers had a new step-dad. A certain someone I wasn't expecting (even though I should have seen it coming from the story). Overall the book was great, if you haven't read this entire series, I suggest you do so!

5 Stars!

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October 20, 2011

Review: Rules Of Attraction by Simone Elkeles

Rules of Attraction (Perfect Chemistry #2)

Author: Simone Elkeles
Publisher: Walker & Company
Publication Date: April 13, 2010
Pages: 324
Source: Paperback/Library

When Carlos Fuentes returns to America after living in Mexico for a year, he doesn’t want any part of the life his older brother, Alex, has laid out for him at a high school in Colorado . Carlos likes living his life on the edge and wants to carve his own path—just like Alex did. Then he meets Kiara Westford. She doesn’t talk much and is completely intimidated by Carlos’ wild ways. As they get to know one another, Carlos assumes Kiara thinks she’s too good for him, and refuses to admit that she might be getting to him. But he soon realizes that being himself is exactly what Kiara needs right now.

Review: I absolutely loved this book! It was amazing! Let me start off with I always love a good story with a bad boy. Carlos seemed so tough on the outside when on the inside he really does have feelings and he really does care. I hated when he got busted for drugs that weren't even his. I mean he already had to move to the US from Mexico away from most of his family. While he was just trying to adjust he had that happen to him. It totally wasn't fair.

The whole thing with Kiara was so interesting. Carlos really didnt like her at the beginning, so much that he intentionally tried to piss her off. I loved the payback Kiara got on Carlos with the cookies in the locker. That was freaking awesome. I found it ironic though that after Carlos got busted for drugs he ended up having to live with Kiaras family. The person he was trying to hard to piss off ended up being the person he had to stay with. I really liked that he slowly opened up to Kiaras family and let them in. I also enjoyed seeing Carlos hang out and bond with Kiaras little brother Brandon. 

I also liked reading about Carlos' struggle with his feelings for Kiara. She knew she loved him way before he figured it out himself. He was so busy dwelling on the fact that he didn't want to get left again (because that's all people in his life did was leave him) that he wouldn't give Kiara the chance to prove him wrong about it. I loved the end though when he finally breaks down and realizes his feelings for her and gives her a chance. :)

I would definitely recommend this to to others. Especially if you liked Perfect Chemisty or Simones' Leaving Paradise series.

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