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05
Jun

A Midsummer’s Nightmare by Kody Keplinger

June 5, 2012 by · 23 Comments

Title: A Midsummer’s Nightmare
Author: Kody Keplinger
Publisher: Poppy
Pages: 304 pages
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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.

5stars

Whitley Johnson is the epitome of a girl with daddy issues. She’s out of control, wild – she drinks too much, she’s less than careful with boys. Basically, she’s a mess. On the night of her high school graduation, a one night stand ends in her not even remembering the poor boys name…

And she doesn’t think of it again, until her father Greg – a local celebrity because of his anchorman job – comes to pick her up for their summer together.

Her parents have been divorced for six years, and Whitley looks forward to the summers. Greg’s more like her best friend than her father, only this summer things have changed. Greg has a new girlfriend.

…and his new girlfriend isn’t just that.

She’s his fiancé.

And she has two children of her own. Adorable thirteen year old Bailey. And the same boy whose face she found when she woke up the morning after graduation.

Nathan.

Let’s pause for a minute; I need to sigh a little.

I knew Kody had the ability to make me swoon – hello, Wesley Rush – and I admit that in her last novel, I never quite connected with the characters. But I did this time! Even though Whitley’s a mess, and she annoyed me a bit with her behavior, she’s a teenage girl. She had a lot to learn, and she couldn’t do that without first making a lot of mistakes. In the end though, I felt sorry for her. I felt her pain and though I couldn’t identify with her (because my parents have been married for almost forty years), it’s not hard to imagine how hard her situation was.

Plus, with a cute geeky nerd like Nathan around… *sighs again*

I really loved him, even though he did act out a few times, his intentions were good. He cared about her, and he wanted her to care about herself. That’s swoon right there.

I was so excited about the return of Harrison Carlysle, and of course, Wesley and Bianca and the Hamilton references. It made me want to re-read The DUFF immediately.

All in all, this book was a quick and satisfying read. I smiled, I laughed. I got angry and annoyed. But it’s something I think everyone who enjoys a flawed character who has some growing up to do will enjoy.

So what are you waiting for? Go get your copy right now!

Or you can win one from us! But that’s not all! We have a complete set of Kody’s books for one lucky reader thanks to the folks at LB/Poppy! To enter, leave a comment here and tell us your favorite recent (or all time) book boy!

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30
Aug

Shut Out by Kody Keplinger

August 30, 2011 by · 25 Comments

 

Title: Shut Out
Author: Kody Keplinger
Publisher: Poppy (Little, Brown)
Pages: 273
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Summary: Most high school sports teams have rivalries with other schools. At Hamilton High, it’s a civil war: the football team versus the soccer team. And for her part, Lissa is sick of it. Her quarterback boyfriend, Randy, is always ditching her to go pick a fight with the soccer team or to prank their locker room. And on three separate occasions Randy’s car has been egged while he and Lissa were inside, making out. She is done competing with a bunch of sweaty boys for her own boyfriend’s attention.

Lissa decides to end the rivalry once and for all: she and the other players’ girlfriends go on a hookup strike. The boys won’t get any action from them until the football and soccer teams make peace. What they don’t count on is a new sort of rivalry: an impossible girls-against-boys showdown that hinges on who will cave to their libidos first. And Lissa never sees her own sexual tension with the leader of the boys, Cash Sterling, coming.

Inspired by Aristophanes’ play Lysistrata, critically acclaimed author of The Duff (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) Kody Keplinger adds her own trademark humor in this fresh take on modern teenage romance, rivalry and sexuality.

 

3.5 stars

 

 

I was such a huge fan of Kody’s debut novel, The DUFF that I literally could not wait to get my hands on this book. The day it arrived, I dropped everything to read. As usual, it didn’t last long.

And I liked it. I liked it a lot. But I didn’t love it. Not like I wanted to. Part of the problem (for me) is that I cracked this open expecting to find another Wesley Rush, and while Cash Sterling was great…he’s no Wesley. I know it’s probably wrong of me to compare the two, but how can I not?

That being said, I did like that Keplinger took a story that’s pretty well known and put her own spin on it to make it work in the here and now. She once again explored a topic that, while some parents might not want to accept it, is definitely at the forefront of teenager’s minds:

Sex.

Just like with The DUFF, Keplinger does an excellent job of portraying a high school girl. She brings to the forefront for readers what it’s like to feel that girlish insecurity we’ve all felt. And how we sometimes feel pressured because of that insecurity into doing things we might not be ready for.

The way the girls (and the guys) come together in the book, how they bond and grow and learn is something every teenager should read. But this thirty-something wanted some more time on the pool table, not even gonna lie.

I knew a boy just like Cash Sterling when I was in high school. Unfortunately, I also knew one just like Randy, too. That’s one of the things that’s so great about Shut Out–it’s authentic. I felt like I knew these characters, like I could be right there plotting to win the war along with them.

Did I love this book as much as I loved the DUFF? No. There really is no comparison to Wesley Rush for me, but I liked Lissa as a character more than I liked Bianca. I know that the purpose of this isn’t really to compare the two, but I had to tell you that, just in case. I also wavered on my rating and really wish I could give half stars, because if I could, I would give it 3-1/2 stars. I didn’t want people to flip out and see only 3 stars though, because I slightly more than like it, but I don’t love it.

There is, in my opinion, a huge hole in the plot that I cannot discuss because it would be giving away way too much. But, it definitely left me scratching my head and making me wonder if I had misread something. I didn’t, but I suppose it could have been misinterpretation on my part. Whatever, I know that you’ll stop reading my reviews after seeing this rambling chickenscratch.

Other than that, though, I thought everything else was right on: growing up and being out of control, where you sit in the cafeteria after a breakup, support and friendship where you least expect it. It was good.

From the friendships to the rivalries to the “uhmahgawd does he like me” feeling, Keplinger definitely gets this genre and this group of people, and I really enjoy her style. Her characters have depth and realistic dialogue. Plus, it’s hot and has a little throwback to The DUFF in the form of Harrison Carlyle. Add in a little NSYNC and Cosmo representing their Bible, and it’s win in my book. I think you should read it :)

Shut Out comes out in the US on Tuesday, September 5!  Want to be one of the first Fictionees to read it?  Guess what?  We have TWO, that’s right, TWO copies to give away!  To enter, just leave a comment on this post!

 

Giveaway ends on Thursday, September 1 at Midnight EST!  We will announce winners on Friday, September 2!

 

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24
May

The DUFF by Kody Keplinger

May 24, 2011 by · 3 Comments

 

Title: The DUFF: (Designated Ugly Fat Friend)

Author: Kody Keplinger

Publisher: Little Brown/Poppy

Pages: 288

Summary: Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn’t think she’s the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She’s also way too smart to fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her “the Duff,” she throws her Coke in his face.

But things aren’t so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him.

Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out Wesley isn’t such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she’s falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone.


 

I really loved this book. Yeah, it’s a little bit cliche…but that’s because it’s real. It’s high school. It’s kind of hard to be original sometimes.

You read the summary, right? So you don’t need me to tell you what it’s about. So, what can I tell you?

I loved it. Oh yeah, I already said that. Let me move on to say I also loved Bianca. She’s a no-nonsense girl full of snark (my favorite), and she doesn’t take shit from anyone. Especially not Wesley Rush. The relationship these two share is anything but perfect. In fact, the first time they see one another in the book, she throws soda in his face. Which he totally deserved.

Somehow, though these two end up in a relationship neither of them expected… Several of their shared moments had me laughing out loud, or trying to cover up a sniffle. Okay, and there may have been some panting (pool. table. POOL. TABLE.).

One of my favorite quotes:

“Spanish, huh?” he said, glancing down at the scattered papers as he grabbed them. “Can you say anything interesting?”


“El tono de tu voz hace que queria estrangularme.” I stood up and waited for him to hand over my papers.


“That sounds sexy,” he said, getting to his feet and handing me the stack of Spanish work he’d swept together. “What’s it mean?”


“The sound of your voice makes me want to strangle myself.”


“Kinky.”


As you can see, Bianca is a strong, tough little cookie (on the outside). And Wesley? He’s an ass (also on the outside). But damn, he’s a hot one. And he knows it, too. If you’re someone who doesn’t enjoy books/stories that feature boys who aren’t perfect, this one probably isn’t for you. But, if you like your boys with a little bad in them, then I think you’ll love this. Cassandra Clare said it best when she compared his character to the likes of Chuck Bass from Gossip Girl. (I don’t care what anybody says, Chuck Bass is hot.)

These two make an explosive pair. And when they begin to realize how much something they thought would be easy has become complicated, things will get a little rough. But if you’re anything like me, you’ll find yourself pulling for this DUFF and her happy ending with the bad boy.

You can read The DUFF now!

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