Pointe

Title: Pointe

Author: Brandy Colbert

Standalone

Number of Pages: 333

Date Read: 7/18/15

Genre: Realistic Fiction, Contemporary

Synopsis (Found on Goodreads.com)

Theo is better now.

She's eating again, dating guys who are almost appropriate, and well on her way to becoming an elite ballet dancer. But when her oldest friend, Donovan, returns home after spending four long years with his kidnapper, Theo starts reliving memories about his abduction—and his abductor.

Donovan isn't talking about what happened, and even though Theo knows she didn't do anything wrong, telling the truth would put everything she's been living for at risk. But keeping quiet might be worse

My Review:

This book was ok. 

I found it to be a bit boring and dragging at times. The story is about Theo who is a ballerina. She has an eating disorder and she tends to choose the wrong guys to date. When she was 13 her best friend Donovan disappeared and that changed her whole world. However, in the present, Donovan was found and is now back with his mother, two houses down from Theo's house. The man who took Donovan has close ties with Theo as well. The whole book is her dealing with her feelings about the suspect, Donovan, her ballet, the guy she wants now and an important decision she has to make. 

I don't really think much of Theo. I can take her or leave her. I didn't like or dislike her as a character. I disliked some things that she did but as a character she was just eh. I think the book would of been better with a different main character. Theo has had a hard childhood in terms of getting involved with someone she shouldn't have. I felt bad for her and the situation she was in in her past. The worst part was, even in the present, she didn't think the situation she was in in the past was something wrong. She only realized it after she spoke to one of her friends about what happened and they told her that what happened was serious. I don't get how she didn't realize what happened to her was serious. Theo is also a very dedicated ballerina. She trains very hard and her dream is to dance in New York with a company. What I did find weird was that on her down time she smoked cigarettes, pot and drank frequently, which is damaging her body. She also has an eating disorder which the reader can see but Theo doesn't think her eating habits are a problem. Then there's the guy which I knew that situation would blow up and not in a good way. I didn't feel bad or sympathy for Theo for the mistakes she made in the present because she chose to do them while knowing they could end badly. She set herself up to be hurt. I do feel sympathy for the things that happened to her in the past. 

So the whole book is all about Donovan's return but we don't see or hear from Donovan until the very end of the book. WTF with that? He has one scene and he doesn't even say anything in it. I was annoyed at this because the synopsis made it seem like he was going to be the center of the story, not Theo's feelings about him and whatever. I was disappointed with that. 

Also the book had no real plot at all. It was just Theo's day to day life, her thoughts and feelings. To boot it was the same things over and over again. I dunno I just wasn't really into the book. The only reason I finished it was because I'm the last thing I have to do to finish a reading challenge was read a book that started with P. Otherwise I don't think I would of finished it. 

Rating: C

The Night Dance

Title: The Night Dance

Author: Suzanne Weyn

Series: Once Upon a Time

Number of Pages: 193

Date Read: 7/9/15

Genre: Fairy Tale Retellings

Synopsis (Found on Goodreads.com):

Under the stars, in a secret world…

Rowena, the youngest of twelve sisters, loves to slip out of the castle at night and dance in a magical forest. Soon she convinces her sisters to join her. When Sir Ethan notices that his daughters' slippers look tattered every morning, he is certain they've been sneaking out. So he posts a challenge to all the suitors in the kingdom: The first man to discover where his daughters have been is free to marry the one he chooses.

Meanwhile a handsome young knight named Bedivere is involved in a challenge of his own: to return the powerful sword, Excalibur, to a mysterious lake. While looking for the lake, Bedivere meets the beautiful Rowena and falls for her. Bedivere knows that accepting Sir Ethan's challenge is the only opportunity for him to be with Rowena forever. But this puts both Bedivere and Rowena in a dangerous situation…one in which they risk their lives for a chance at love.

My Review:

This was a cute version of the Twelve Dancing Princesses fairytale.

In this book each chapter is told in a different character's point of view. The main characters are Rowena, the youngest of the twelve sisters and Sir Bedivere, one of King Arthur's knights of the round table. 

What I liked a lot about this book is that the story takes part of the original tale and adds elements of the King Arthur legends into it. Sir Bedivere is the last night of the round table, the lady of the lake and Morgan le Fay are characters, Merlin is mentioned, and the book includes the last battle and death of King Arthur against Mordred. I thought that was such a cool idea to infuse these two tales together and I enjoyed reading it. 

I liked Rowena. She was a fiery girl who longed to be outside the walls her father built to keep his 12 daughters inside. She enjoys exploring the forest when she finds a way out of the walls and she also has some magical power. She falls instantly in love (this is the only kind of insta love I can tolerate because it's a fairy tale book) with Sir Bedivere. I also liked Sir Bedivere a lot as well. He is a very honorable man and keeps up with his knightly code of conduct even after Arthur and all the other knight's deaths. He made a promise to Arthur before he died to return excalibur to the lady of the lake for him and he holds himself to that promise no matter what. He also falls instantly in love with Rowena. 

Aside from the Arthurian elements the story follows the fairytale of the twelve dancing princesses pretty closely. The only thing I can think of off the top of my head is that instead of a king the sister's father is a knight, so they aren't princesses. But they're still pretty high in rank. 

I enjoy this fairytale series because they are cute quick little reads.

Rating: B

Play

Title:  Play

Author: Kylie Scott

Series: Stage Dive, Book 2

Number of Pages: 294

Date Read: 5/18/15

Genre:Romance, Love, Erotic, New Adult, Contemporary

Synopsis (Found on Goodreads.com)

Mal Ericson, drummer for the world famous rock band Stage Dive, needs to clean up his image fast—at least for a little while. Having a good girl on his arm should do the job just fine. Mal doesn’t plan on this temporary fix becoming permanent, but he didn’t count on finding the one right girl. Anne Rollins never thought she’d ever meet the rock god who plastered her teenage bedroom walls—especially not under these circumstances. Anne has money problems. Big ones. But being paid to play the pretend girlfriend to a wild life-of-the-party drummer couldn’t end well. No matter how hot he is. Or could it?

My Review:

This book was awesome. I loved it. Not as much as the first one though but it was still great all the same.

This book is centers on the drummer of the band Stage Dive, Mal Ericson and his romance with Anne Rollins. 

I love Mal. He is hilarious. I loved him from the first book. His personality is just so out there, silly and contagious. He made me laugh. He's always the life of the party and out to have a good time. There is also a sensitive, loving and serious side to Mal even if he doesn't share it often. In the book Mal is going through some rough times and his solution is to have a fake pretend girlfriend. What he doesn't plan on is having the fake girlfriend turn into the real thing. Mal isn't that good with relationships and he messes up with Anne a few times but he really does care for her. He is loyal to her and very protective. He is good looking too but blondes and long hair aren't really my thing. 

I liked Anne too, to an extent. I liked how much of a bookworm she was. She had a crush on Mal since she was a teenager listening to his band so meeting him and actually being in a relationship with him is her dream come true. She is very loving, caring and loyal to Mal. She wants to make him feel better when he's sad/upset. Mal kinda came on strong and invaded her life but Anne just rolled with it. She had a very hard childhood and I admire her stepping up and taking care of her sister, Lizzy and her mom. I didn't really enjoy how clingy she was to Mal, how she behaved towards Ev sometimes (who I love) and how sex starved she was. I mean Ev and David had a lot of sex in the first book but I didn't get the sex starved vibe from Ev. All Anne could think about was sex and how her body reacted to Mal even at the most inopportune times like when she was with his parents. I mean come on, keep that s*** in check and stop acting like a horny teenage. Jeez

I really did like their romance. Mal and Anne's interactions were at times sweet and often hilarious. Mal really is a character and he stole the book. 

I can't wait to read the next book in the series. 

Rating:

A+  

Passion

Title: Passion

Author: Lauren Kate

Series: Fallen, Book 3

Number of Pages: 420

Date Read: 4/20/15

Genre: Angels, Demons, Fantasy, Paranormal Romance

Synopsis (Found on Goodreads.com)

‘Every single lifetime, I'll choose you. Just as you have chosen me. Forever.’

Luce would die for Daniel. And she has. Over and over again. Throughout time, Luce and Daniel have found each other, only to be painfully torn apart: Luce dead, Daniel left broken and alone. But perhaps it doesn’t need to be that way . . . Luce is certain that something – or someone – in a past life can help her in her present one. So she begins the most important journey of this lifetime . . . going back eternities to witness firsthand her romances with Daniel . . . and finally unlock the key to making their love last.
Cam and the legions of angels and Outcasts are desperate to catch Luce, but none are as frantic as Daniel. He chases Luce through their shared pasts, terrified of what might happen if she rewrites history. Because their romance for the ages could go up in flames . . . forever. 

My Review:

So this is the third book in the Fallen series and I liked it a lot better than "Torment". 

In this book Luce goes back to see her past lives with Daniel. The book is told in alternating chapters between Luce and Daniel. Luce witnesses their lives while Daniel is searching their past lives for her.

I really liked reading from Daniel's POV because the reader can finally see how Daniel feels about Luce and their situation in his perspective. The reader also sees other meetings that Luce can't access because those areas are not part of her past lives but are part of Daniels. We see an angel meeting in Greenland in 1100. We also get to see what happened to make Cam turn bad which took place in Jerusalem in 1000 BCE. We also get to see what happened right before the fall of the angels and what Daniel said to cause him to fall with the others who sided with Lucifer. We still don't know much of Luce's part in the fall but I guess that will come up in the last book. 

Sometimes I think Luce really is stupid. I mean I don't know how many people warned her not to interfere with her and Daniel's past selves because any little thing could rewrite history and change her future. Of course she ignores everyone's warning and ih half of the past lives she either tries to save her past self and interact with her OR she interacts with the past Daniel who thinks she is the Luce that belongs in that time. Of course in her real life, Luce can kiss Daniel all she wants and she tries to do this with the past Daniels who are more wary of physical contact because of the curse. Then there are times when she goes 3D which is not something I will spoil. It just flabbergasts me at how easily she disregards everything everyone warns her about. Yes I get that its upsetting that she sees her deaths and I get that her seeing Daniel's grief and despair is heartbreaking but what she doesn't get is that all this stuff HAPPENED already. There are really close calls where she almost messed up badly but of course, Daniel comes after she leaves the past life and fixes everything. She is just so frustrating and I wanted to punch her many times. 

I really enjoyed reading about the past lives though. It was very interesting to see the different countries, time period and the different Luce's and Daniel's. For example Luce was a nurse in one life, a princess in another and yet something else in another. Daniel was an actor, artist, general and so on as well. It was cool to see the clothes they wore, how they looked and how Luce was different in every life time. It was also sweet to see the true love between Daniel and Luce in all their lifetimes. They really love one another so much that they keep choosing to be with each other even though there is always a horrible end. Their endless love is touching. 

There was a new character introduced by the name of Bill is the gargoyle who was Luce's guide on her journey through her past lives. He was funny at times and seemed to care about Luce and her "quest". He was also the one who gave Luce background on every life when she was dumped in it by the announcer and he always dressed her in the appropriate attire. When she went out into the past life he would also give her advice, hints and generally stay with her to watch over her. By the end of Luce's journey though, his demeanor changed and he was constantly talking smack to Luce about her and Daniel's love as well as pushing her to do things she may not want to do. 

The book leaves off with the gang of Angels and Demons back in the present coming up with a plan to avert a new crisis. 

I am very excited to read the last book "Rapture" and finally see how everything ends. 

Rating:

A 

Promise of Shadows

  :

Title: Promise of Shadows

Author: Justina Ireland

Standalone

Number of Pages: 371

Date Read: 6/1/14

Genre: Mythology, Paranormal, Fantasy

Synopsis (Found on Goodreads.com): 

Zephyr Mourning has never been very good at being a Harpy. She’d rather watch reality TV than learn forty-seven ways to kill a man, and she pretty much sucks at wielding magic. Zephyr was ready for a future pretending to be a normal human instead of a half-god assassin. But all that changes when her sister is murdered—and she uses a forbidden dark power to save herself from the same fate.

Zephyr is on the run from a punishment worse than death when an unexpected reunion with a childhood friend (a surprisingly HOT friend) changes everything. Because it seems like Zephyr might just be the Nyx, a dark goddess made flesh that is prophesied to change the power balance. For hundreds of years the half-gods have lived in fear, and Zephyr is supposed to change that.

But how is she supposed to save everyone when she can’t even save herself?

My Review:

This book was ok.

I liked all the greek mythology in the book, how the gods played a role in the book as well as other creatures of mythology, like oracles, dragons, harpies and so on, being present. 

Basically the story is about Zephyr, who is a harpy who ended up killing a minor god. She is put on trial by the olympians and sent to tartarus for eternity. Zephyr is able to wield "dark" or "Shadow" magic/powers which makes her dangerous to the olympian gods who use "bright" magic. Hera, in particular, wants to enslave everyone who is not a god, like harpies, medusas, etc. who are called vaettir. Vaettirs are the creatures who have human blood in them and are half human, half mythological creatures. Some are bright vaettirs using the bright magic (aether) while others are shadow vaettirs using the shadow magics (erebos). Hera wants to enslave the bright vaettir and kill the shadow vaettir. Shadow vaettir are considered to be unnatural. Anyways, Zephyr is supposedly the promised dark or shadow champion called the Nyx, whose is very powerful with erebos and who is destined to defeat Hera and lead the shadow vaettir to victory in a battle/war. Sound confusing? Well it is.

A lot of the mythology that had to do with the aether and erebos magic, was confusing and I had to re-read the explanation parts of the story to make sure I knew what was going on. Some parts where the characters talk about the rift, the other realms, how the realms were split up and which creatures/gods can live in which realm were also confusing and hard to keep track of. I did like the world building though and the descriptions of the different realms themselves. As far as I can tell, in the book, there is the underworld with tartarus and the elysian fields, the aetherworld and the mortal realm. I appreciate the author sticking as closely to the greek mythology as she could and incorporating it into the story without changing much. I'm a huge fan of mythology and I love it when authors stay as close to the stories/gods/creatures as they can. 

I wasn't too fond of Zephyr. She was one of the more realistic characters that I have read about thought. She is always afraid and chooses to run away instead fight. She is completely unsure of herself and doesn't think she is the nyx. Hell, she doesn't WANT to be the nyx. She rather hide under the covers than be the one who is destined to save everyone. She is constantly afraid that she won't be good enough or that she will mess up. She is not the strongest or the smartest or the best and she knows it. I like this in her character because it shows that she is flawed. She's not perfect, not pumped up to be the chosen one and not running to be the hero. You don't see too many characters like Zephyr and even though I didn't like her personally, I liked her character traits. However sometimes her whining got to be too much and I was like "grow a pair already". I just felt like especially near the end she whined to much and her thoughts/sayings were cliche. I was ehh about her in the beginning but then she really did something that pissed me off and I just ended up not liking her for the rest of the story. I was more invested in the plot and couldn't give a whim about what happened to her. She just rubbed me the wrong way. A more likeable character with Zephyrs character traits would of been welcomed. 

On to the other characters. I liked Cass. She was ancient (as in from ancient Greece) and a bad ass. She kept Zephyr alive in Tartarus and she was not afraid of anything. Blue was ok, nothing special. Tallon, who was the main love interest was ehh. Very broody and "dark", no pun intended. He was hot one minute for Zephyr then cold the next. He would make her laugh, then not talk to her for a week. I was so over him. 

The romance was very annoying. I just didn't have the time for it or the patience. I mean Zephyr is about to face a goddess, Hera, QUEEN of the GODS no less, and all she can think about is kissing Tallon. Please. This was a case of insta love. Tallon and Zephyr were childhood friends, didn't see each other for years and then the first time they lay eyes on each other again, they were in love. Sure. Zephyr tried to deny it but I wasn't buying it. The romance would of been ok if Tallon and the thought of him didn't consume Zephyr all the time. Bad things happened, she was off to fight a battle, she was the "chosen one" and all she could think of was Tallon and kissing him. I just couldn't so it. The book would of been so much better without the romance. 

I loved the action that was in the book. I love that the book opened up with Zephyr already in Tartarus, digging a hole and being rained on with shit. Literally. It was a completely different opening to a book and I loved it. There were many fights, many chase scenes and best of all many monsters! I do have to add that the ending was a little rushed for my taste. I mean the entire battle that the whole book leads up to was only one chapter and everything happened way too fast and not like I expected. The ending could of been tweaked to be better. But all in all it was not a horrible read. I liked it but not loved it. 

Rating:

C+   

Poop Happened

Title: Pooped Happened

Author: Sarah Albee

Standalone

Number of Pages: 160

Date Read: 4/19/14

Genre: Non-Fiction, History

Synopsis (Found on Goodreads.com)

Did lead pipes
cause the fall of the Roman Empire?

How many toilets were in the
average Egyptian pyramid? 


How did a knight wearing fifty
pounds of armor go to the bathroom?

Was poor hygiene the last straw
before the French Revolution?

Did Thomas Crapper really invent
the modern toilet?

How do astronauts go
in space?

History finally comes out of the water-closet in this exploration of how people's need to relieve themselves shaped human development from ancient times to the present. Throughout time, the most successful civilizations were the ones who realized that everyone poops, and they
had better figure out how to get rid of it! From the world's first flushing toilet invented by ancient Minoan plumbers to castle moats in the middle ages that used more than just water to repel enemies, Sarah Albee traces human civilization using one revolting yet fascinating theme.

A blend of historical photos and humorous illustrations bring the answers to these questions and more to life, plus extra-gross sidebar information adds to the potty humor. This is bathroom reading kids, teachers, librarians, and parents won't be able to put down!

My Review:

This book was hilarious, gross and informative. Its about..you guessed it, the history of what people did with human poop. The book gives the history of how people lived from prehistoric times to modern times and what they did (where they put it before toilets) with all peoples poop over time. You also get a history of the different diseases people got from poop and contaminated drinking water. This book gives gross facts about how people lived in filth for centuries. It also gives you a bit of history on people who made advances in sanitation/hygiene (called Hygiene heroes), information about all the disgusting jobs people actually did that has to do with human excrement and sewage as well a bit of history on toilets. One thing I love about this book is that it points out things about the how people in the past lived that you otherwise would of never thought about and as you read it you're like "OMG yeah where did people put all they're poop?" You see all these movies set in the middle ages or the Renaissance that make life look wonderful and look like a great time period to live in. Um no.. not after reading the truth of how people lived. This book shows how something so simple nowadays, going to the bathroom, was a majorly disgusting problem in history. Of course in movies you see the great balls and parties and ladies in their fine dresses but you never see any scene with someone using a chamber pot or an outhouse which is how people used the bathroom for centuries. You never see scenes with a cesspit or sewage filled streets which is how real people lived. I'll take the modern times anyday. 

The book is funny so its not as if you're completely grossed out when you read it. Rather, the author took the time to actually research this topic of what people did with their waste. And if you think about it, its really an important question and you come to realize that human waste causes a lot of health problems and diseases if not disposed of properly. Its crazy how one persons poop in the wrong river can cause contaminated water that can cause a disease that kills thousands of people. I found this book to be very interesting and it truly makes the reader appreciate their modern flush toilet. The toilet is truly a great invention and is taken for granted. Now my answer for the ever popular question, "What is one thing you can't live without?" is: my toilet.

Rating:

A+  

Queen of Hearts: The Crown

Title: Queen of Hearts: The Crown

Author: Colleen Oakes

Series: Queen of Hearts Saga, Book 1

Number of Pages: 205

Date Read: 2/16/14

Genre: Retellings, Fantasy

Synopsis (Found on Goodreads.com)

Not every fairytale has a happy ending.
This is the story of a princess who became a villain.
***
A Father’s Betrayal. A Kingdom with a Black Secret. A Princess Slowly Unraveling. 

As Princess of Wonderland Palace and the future Queen of Hearts, Dinah’s days are an endless monotony of tea, tarts, and a stream of vicious humiliations at the hands of her father, the King of Hearts. The only highlight of her days is visiting Wardley, her childhood best friend, the future Knave of Hearts — and the love of her life.

When an enchanting stranger arrives at the Palace, Dinah watches as everything she’s ever wanted threatens to crumble. As her coronation date approaches, a series of suspicious and bloody events suggests that something sinister stirs in the whimsical halls of Wonderland. It’s up to Dinah to unravel the mysteries that lurk both inside and under the Palace before she loses her own head to a clever and faceless foe.

Part epic fantasy, part twisted fairy tale, this dazzling saga will have readers shivering as Dinahs furious nature sweeps Wonderland up in the maelstrom of her wrath. 

Familiar characters such as Cheshire, the White Rabbit, and the Mad Hatter make their appearance, enchanting readers with this new, dark take on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

My Review:

I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was great. I loved how it just has to do with Dinah's, who is the future Queen of Hearts, story with no Alice traipsing and disrupting Wonderland. The story is about Dinah's early years and this book as well as the rest of the series will show readers how Dinah becomes the angry violent Queen of Hearts that yells "Off with their head" that we all know. 

I love Dinah. She is spunky and adventurous. She tries hard for her father's affection even though she never gets it. She is very intelligent, skilled, loyal and loving. She does have a temper, like her father, and she will manipulate others to get her way. She can also be mean and short with people. Dinah's life is not as easy as we'd expect. Yes she is a princess and the future Queen but her home life is awful. She has a father (the King of Hearts) who hates her, a brother (The Mad Hatter) who is mad, a mother who died when she was 10 and a bastard sister who he father outwardly loves and shows affection for. Her father is a class A jacka**. There seems to be no reason (at least not in this book) for his extreme hatred of his daughter and heir. He is very nasty to her and is physically and mentally abusive. I wanted to throttle him. He is a war king who would make a better army commander than a King. It seems that whenever we encounter the King in this book he is always angry for one reason or another. And he takes that anger out on Dinah, who despite his repeat abusiveness still longs for her father's love and approval. As the story progresses we can see Dinah becoming stronger and more powerful like a Queen should be. Dinah does not accept her half sister and is outwardly rude to her, which I really don't blame her for. 

There are a few other character that I loved. I loved Dinah's tutor Harris who is essentially the white rabbit. He is described as having a lot of checked outfits and white hair. One of the first things we hear his say is "We're late, very late!" Harris is a kind man who loves Dinah very much and is many ways is her real father tho not by blood. Harris raised her and taught her like his own daughter. He is a very sweet man. I also loved Dinah's brother Charles who is the Mad Hatter. Charles was born mad and is an expert at creating hats. He loves all things hats and his hats are coveted by everyone in wonderland. He had two colored eyes which I find strange and fascinating. When he speaks, its in riddles and sentences that don't make any sense. However it's clear from the interactions between the siblings that Charles loves Dinah dearly as much as she loves him. I also liked the hornhoov animal Morte. He has his own personality which is fierce but he also befriends Dinah and helps her in the end. 

While I hate the King I don't know how I feel about Cheshire (the king's adviser) or Vittiore who is Dinah's half sister. I want to hate Vittiore but I find that I really can't because when we see her she always looks so miserable and unhappy to be in the palace despite the King fawning over her. She is a really sad character and I hope we get to learn more about her in the next book. I'm not sure I like Cheshire. He is both mean and nice to Dinah, showing her secret passages one minute and scolding her the next. All I know is that as of now, his smile makes my skin crawl. Maybe I'll change my opinions about him later on in the series. 

I really like Wardley, who is the stable boy, training to become the Knave of Hearts and who is Dinah's love interest. Wardley is very loyal to Dinah and dislikes the king's treatment of her although he does admire the king's battle skills. Its clear that Dinah is in love with him but the reader is not sure of his feelings toward her. Of course he loves her as a friends, protects her and helps her but he never really show romantic feelings towards her, at least not yet. I'm not sure he sees her as more than a friend yet and I want these two to get together. I was and am still scared that Wardley loves/likes Vittiore which would be devastating!

The world of Wonderland is describe wonderfully (haha) and there are many references to "Alice in Wonderland" even if things are not identical in the two books. I have to say I loved the prologue. Its just oozes power and suspense and gives a glimpse of Dinah as the Queen from Alice's wonderland. I will admit that the action was long coming but when it finally came is was great and suspenseful. Parts of the story are horrific and gory while others are sweet. I highly recommend this book and I can't wait for the second book!

Rating:

A+  

Premeditated

Title: Premeditated

Author: Josin L. McQuein

Standalone

Number of Pages: 324

Date Read: 1/16/14

Genre: Realistic Fiction, Mystery

Synopsis (Found on Goodreads.com)

A week ago, Dinah’s cousin Claire cut her wrists.

Five days ago, Dinah found Claire’s diary and discovered why.

Three days ago, Dinah stopped crying and came up with a plan.

Two days ago, she ditched her piercings and bleached the black dye from her hair.

Yesterday, knee socks and uniform plaid became a predator’s camouflage.

Today, she’ll find the boy who broke Claire.

By tomorrow, he’ll wish he were dead

My Review:

This book was ok. It wasn't over the moon good but it was entertaining. 

The basic plot is that Dinah is out to get and ruin Brooks Waldens life. She is doing this because she believes that he is the reason for her cousin's suicide attempt which landed her in the hospital in a coma. Dinah goes to extreme lengths to avenge her cousin. She completely makes over her self~ she was what I guess you call punk with black hair, tats and piercings and turns herself into a barbie doll prep school "drone". Armed with her cousin's letters outting Brooks she goes to his prep school with intent to destroy him. Of course nothing ever goes to plan and there's a slight mystery to who Brooks actually is. 

I like Dinah. She is determined, spunky, rude and focused. She seems angry all the time but really she is just trying to make sense of what happened to her cousin who she loves dearly and she is trying to avenge her by obliterating the cause of her pain. I must say the things Dinah and her friends come up with to ruin Brooks were funny and things I never would of though of. Whereas I would have gone to Brooks and punched him in the face and kill him outright, Dinah settles for subtle little tortures that will cause a lasting effect on his life and will make him suffer. Dinah wants Brooks to suffer like her cousin did. Of course Dinah is not patient with waiting for her little tricks to work but she forces herself to. Dinah has hard a kind of weird life with her mother. Her father is a great guy but her mother is a class A crazy. I wanted to punch that women because she was nuts and self-absorbed. Dinah is not just a heartless soul but actually has remorse when she does these things to Brooks because she gets to know him. She has a constant battle inside her, wondering if what she's doing is right because the Brooks she gets to know is completely different from the Brooks Claire knew. Hence the small mystery. 

Just wanted to throw it out there that every time I read Dinah's name all I could think of is the song~ "Dinah won't you blow your horn!. Someone's in the kitchen with Dinah!"

I liked Brooks also. He was a great guy who genuinely cared about Dinah. Even though he is supposed to be the bad guy, he grows on you. Throughout the book you can see how good of a friend he is to Dex and Chandi by talking care of Chandi through her hard time and by being able to control Dex's wild behavior. Brooks has his own problems as well. Hi smother passed away and his father is very strict, hard and unbending when it comes to Brooks holding up the family name and honor. Brooks is a very caring guy and tries to help people as much as he can. He becomes freaked out when all the things Dinah does to him starts happening because he doesn't know who is doing it. He is there for Dinah in her worst moments even when she turns of him. If you really think about it all Dinah is going on is her cousin's letters and has already decided that Brooks is guilty without ever having speaking to him and getting his side. Which is technically not fair. 

The other characters were good also. Tabs is Dinah's friend and she is hilarious with her drug cupcakes and spunkiness. Dinah's other friend Brucey is hilarious with his old movie quips and his super geniusness (is that a word lol?) at computers, which causes Brooks a lot of trouble). Dinah's uncle Paul is nice guy, who loves and treats Dinah like a daughter. 

Then there is Dex. He's the guy you can;t help but like even though he does shitty things. He is not a trust fund baby and is in the prep school because of a scholarship so you can say he resents the other kids in the school who come from money. He is sweet to Dinah and is funny. He can be considered the class clown. He also has a nasty streak when it comes to Chandi and can be physical with girls, including Dinah. 

There was a subtle romance in the book that in no way took center stage over the plot. Most of the story had to do with Dinah's revenge and her inner turmoil at whether she's doing the right thing. 

Rating: 

B