Book Review: Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles is a great summer read. It is light and romantic and full of drama and suspense, but it's not so heavy that you walk away feeling drained. At first, I thought it was going to be a sort of modernized Romeo and Juliet, but it's not really. I mean, it has a similar plot in some ways, but the romance between the two main characters feel absolutely electric and sustaining in a way that Romeo and Juliet's does not. (Sorry to R & J fans everywhere; I think that they had a major case of lust, not love.)

This story is told from the perspective of the two main characters, Alex and Brittany, in a back-and-forth fashion. Alex is a Mexican-American gangster. For real. He's tough and rough around the edges. He's a total bad boy, and I found myself falling in love with him.

Brittany is the opposite. She's totally blanca (my limited Spanish should be apparent) and holds herself to the image of perfection that she and her family have worked so hard to maintain.

Both teens have reputations to uphold. Both are popular in their own circles. Both are headstrong and opinionated and have problems that aren't visible on first glance.

So, when Alex and Brittany are paired together in chemistry, their fiery personalities collide. At first, they battle against each other, but under the flames lies a hidden truth: They have incredible chemistry, and not in the book sense.

I can't wait to read the next book in this series, The Rules of Attraction. Simone Elkeles is a great author; I'm happy to have discovered her!

Book Review: Along for the Ride

I've now read more Sarah Dessen novels than any other YA author. I've never been disappointed by a Sarah Dessen novel, and I'm happy to report that her newest title, Along for the Ride, does not break this trend.

This is a perfect summer read. I read it from my picnic table while getting a bit of a tan. It was a near-perfect experience. I felt like I was truly transported to the setting of the novel, which is a small seaside community. Far, far away from my driveway and the mountainous region I live in.

This story focuses on a summer in the life of a teen girl named Auden. Weird name, huh? Not for the child prodigy of two university professors and published authors. Auden is named after the poet W. H. Auden, and this fact is only the beginning of her isolation and awkwardness with her peers. She is closest to her mother, a negative and condescending person who uses Auden to get info about her ex-husband.

And then there's Auden's father. Almost as soon as she arrives at his beach cottage for a summer visit, he disappears into his office to finish the novel he's been working on for a decade. In almost every situation in the book, Auden's father is childish and self-absorbed.

A surprising brightness in Auden's life comes in the form of her young, chipper stepmother. Auden (and I) don't expect to care about this woman, but she is one of the most sympathetic characters in this novel. She is a new, overwhelmed mother and a business woman. And her husband, Auden's father is an overgrown child. I feel for her.

It's not long before Auden, normally a driven-to-study recluse, starts to change her patterns and opens up her mind and heart to the people around her. I love that she makes friends, but not easily. She is very socially awkward and seems to not understand the normal rules of engagement. Despite this fact, she finds that she has more in common with the people of this small town than she ever thought possible.

And, yes, there is a romance. And heartbreak. And friendship. And Auden is not the same after her summer at the beach.

A perfect read for a day at the beach, the lake, or at your picnic table. It's summer in a book!

Check out a video where Sarah Dessen explains her inspiration for this novel.