Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles

I've said this before but it bears repeating: Simone Elkeles' Perfect Chemistry novels are pure bookcrack to me: fast-paced, tension-filled and utterly entertaining. I cannot begin to tell you how much I have been dying to get my hands on her latest book, Chain Reaction, which follows the youngest Fuentes brother, Luis. Especially since I was able to meet the hilarious Ms. Elkeles at the RT Book Fair last April. She mentioned then that she had set up Luis as a good boy who falls for a 'bad' girl - and I have been anxiously awaiting the story ever since.

As the youngest of three brothers Luis Fuentes knows what he wants in life: to someday work for NASA as an aerospace engineer. Which means he's got to work hard at school and stay far, far away from any kind of trouble like his two brothers got into. Luis is all set to see his dream come true when his mother decides to move back to Fairfield, Illinois which means Luis is now surrounded by memories of his past - and the Latino Blood gang. Also there to distract Luis is the prickly Nikki Cruz who, despite her Mexican heritage, wants absolutely nothing to do any guy from the south side of Fairfield - especially Luis.

Oh Luis! How I was hoping to fall for your story! Instead, I came away from Chain Reaction feeling as if the book had only been half-way written. Like I had ended up with the cliff notes version. It's almost as if in the midst of all the family secrets revealed, dangerous gang fights, and tying up of loose ends that Ms. Elkeles forgot to finish developing Nikki and Luis to their fullest potential. The story simply felt too stilted and predictable to be satisfying. Which doesn't make sense at all because Simone Elkeles proved with Perfect Chemistry and Rules of Attraction that she is genius at taking a formulaic story (bad boy meets good girl, sparks fly) and making it special. Neither of her two previous novels could ever be classified as campy or contrived, but that's the vibe I got from Chain Reaction.

For example (but without going into spoilery details) I have NO idea how Luis could ever think he needed to 'stick close' to the LB gang in order to 'protect' his family. Really? Doesn't he already have two prime examples in the form of his brothers Alex and Carlos on Why It's Always Smarter To Stay Away From Gangs? He's supposedly the smart Fuentes brother but all I saw was one stupid choice after another. And aside from one or two honest confessions, it seemed like the boy spouted lies continually - especially to Nikki, which frustrated me to no end. Numerous times she tries to explain to him that lies are a definite deal-breaker yet Luis continues to keep the truth from her. And in the end, it doesn't really matter to her! I suppose lust (since I never saw them develop any sort of real relationship) can make up for a lot of things. That's just one of my frustrations with Nikki and Luis as a couple.

Sadness. I wanted to love this book so much more than I did. I guess I'll just have to go and comfort myself with a much needed rereading of Perfect Chemistry.

series reading order:
~ Perfect Chemistry - my review
~ Rules of Attraction - my review
~ Chain Reaction

Because Everyone Likes a Second Opinion:
Books Complete Me review
Confessions of a Bookaholic review
The Irish Banana Review

book source: review copy from the publicist

RT Book Fair Recap

As I mentioned last week, two Saturdays ago I was lucky enough to attend the RT Book Fair down in Los Angeles. With over 300 authors in attendance, you can imagine what a madhouse it was, but it was MY kind of madhouse - stuffed full of booklovers and authors with everyone generally having a good time and lugging around sacks of books. Just check out the size of this place!

I was joined for the day by my good book friend Becca and we both got to meet many, many awesome authors - including:

Julie James (middle)- who, oh my, could seriously be any one of her characters. The woman is gorgeous and very, very nice. We both got our copies of Just the Sexiest Man Alive signed and went away with happy smiles.

Sarah Rees Brennan (right)- Frankly I was extra excited about meeting Sarah and may have wound up babbling like a fool just a little bit while talking with her. True to form, Sarah was more than willing to share spoilers for the upcoming The Demon's Surrender but since I couldn't bear to hear them, she did tell us the story about the time she tried to dye her hair pink like Mae, only to have it turn out a startling green. Also, she was extra generous with the swag and I even scored an alternate first chapter of The Demon's Lexicon with the author's commentary. Excellent reading.

Ann Aguirre - So happy to meet this prolific writer. Ann was even extra nice when I gushed like a goon over her latest YA novel, Enclave. Although I was a bit sad to not see any of her Jax books on display...

Simone Elkeles - So don't look at this picture too long, it's a wee bit fuzzy. Probably because Ms. Elkeles was super expressive and hardly sat still while we were talking. The best part about meeting Simone was hearing all about her trouble while writing Chain Reaction - the third Perfect Chemistry novel which follows the youngest Fuentes brother, Luis, who is..wait for it..a nice guy. Simone said she had no clue how to write a male character that wasn't a jerk who falls for the good girl. Needless to say, I'm even more intrigued now to see how she ended up pulling it off.

Patrick Rothfuss - I have no idea why I didn't get a picture of this awesome author, but for some reason I totally forgot. Probably because I was to busy being incredibly fangirlish at the moment [but you can see him complete with crazy hair here in a picture from the Dear Author's recap]. I adored his book The Name of the Wind and even purchased another copy there just so I could have him sign it since mine was currently on loan to a friend. He was a bit like a fish out of water among so many romance authors and even agreed that it was a little odd to be one of the few men without a rippling six-pack wandering around (courtesy of the Mr. Romance competition).

Linnea Sinclair (right) - As funny in person as she in her books. My favorite author moment? She kept pointing out all of her cats that were used on the covers of her novels.

I didn't get pictures of them, but I also met Kelley Armstrong and Claire Dunkle while catching glimpses of many, many others. All in all, it was a fantastic event - one I wish I had been able to attend more of. But here's the lovely stack of books I got signed:

Annnndd.... Here's the massive amount of swag I came home with. Now, I'm going to be giving some of this away later on when books are released, but I do have a bunch of romance author swag to pass on right now. So if anyone is interested in a bunch of romance bookmarks, teasers etc. drop me a line at mmillet at gmail dot com and I'll send it off to you. First email gets it folks. Taken!

Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles

Small town life can be peaceful, even idyllic but for Maggie Armstrong or Caleb Becker, their quaint hometown of Paradise, Illinois has come to mean nothing of the sort. Their lives were forever changed the night Caleb, drunk, got behind the wheel of a car and hit his twin sisters' best friend, Maggie, and then fled the scene of the crime. For the past year, he's grimly paid for his mistake in juvenile prison but to Maggie, Caleb's debt to her is far from paid. In the past year, she's had surgery after surgery to reconstruct her leg, leaving her with some nasty scars and an awkward limp. Once popular and athletic, Maggie is now a freak, a loner and bitter. Hoping to return to his former life after being released from jail, Caleb returns to find his family a hollow shell and his once easy friendships, forced. Neither are ready to face the reality or the consequences of that awful night one year ago but it's not easy to hide in a small town like Paradise. The past, even one as painful as Caleb and Maggie's, has a way of catching up with you.

Wow. I am fast becoming enamored with everything Simone Elkeles. After interviewing here on the bloggy last month (and loving her personality), I became curious about her other novels and decided I needed to track them down immediately. And boy, am I ever glad I found Leaving Paradise. From page one, Ms. Elkeles had me captured with descriptions of Caleb's anxiety over leaving juvie and Maggie's desperation to get out of Paradise. Leaving Paradise was again told from alternating POV chapters between Maggie and Caleb, like her Perfect Chemistry novels, which might have sealed the deal for me. This is actually one feature that I am coming to desperately love about Ms. Elkeles' books. She shifts so flawlessly back and forth between her male and female characters that it makes the novel simply fly by. Both voices fairly explode off the page in honesty and vibrancy. I'm beginning to think this technique is becoming a favorite of mine because it can subtly underscore the differences between such disparate characters like Maggie and Caleb without ever making direct comparisons. I'm all about a little subtly going a long way.

Leaving Paradise is a distinct departure from Simone Elkeles' fun and flirty Perfect Chemistry world. That's not to say that their isn't a hint of very real danger in Perfect Chemistry (there is) but Leaving Paradise was more of a emotionally taxing read. Maggie and Caleb have been dealt a pretty raw deal, which has left them extremely frustrated with their circumstances and feeling powerless to change them. Understandably, the struggles Maggie and Caleb face are some truly scary hurdles. Forgiveness. Self-acceptance. Trust. All very delicate topics that were handled with such straightforward honesty in this gut-wrenching book. And yet there were moments of humor and joy - just don't expect the entire book to be one big happily ever after. Because truthfully, the ending absolutely tore me up. I'm not kidding when I say it's one that will wring your heart a million times over and then leave you hoping, hoping for a better future for Maggie and Caleb. Because if anyone deserves it, those two do.

series reading order:
~ Leaving Paradise
~ Return to Paradise (September 2010)

Because Everyone Likes a Second Opinion:
Angieville review
Pure Imagination review
Reviewer X review
Sophistikatied Reviews review
The YA, YA, YAs review

Simone Elkeles Winners!

And the winners are...

Jill of the O.W.L. Blog who asked for Rules of Attraction

&

Becca who asked for Perfect Chemistry

Congrats to both ladies!! I've sent you both emails, so please be sure to send me your address within the next 48 hours. And a big thank you once again to Walker Books for sponsoring this giveaway! 

Interview with Simone Elkeles & Giveaway!

With some extreme giddyness and more than a small dash of excitement, I'm pleased to welcome the always hilarious author Simone Elkeles. I became a supreme fan of her work after stumbling across Perfect Chemistry last year and have been eagerly awaiting the sequel, Rules of Attraction ever since. Simone's here today to celebrate the recent release of Rules of Attraction (which I loved) and to dish on her books and characters. Welcome Simone!

First off, how do you pronounce your lovely name?

Simone is (Sim-own) and I always tell people Elkeles is “Not Elk-uh-more, it’s Elk-uh-less!” Or you could do it as El-kel-ess. Seriously, it’s not easy on the tongue to say Elkeles. Everyone gets it wrong, so I’m used to it.

I’ve seen before that you weren’t necessarily planning on writing a ‘sequel’ to Perfect Chemistry. What made you decide to write Rules of Attraction after all?

Ever since I wrote Perfect Chemistry, I thought it would be amazing to write about all three Fuentes brothers. When I sold Perfect Chemistry, though, I wasn’t sure I’d get to write a trilogy or even a sequel/companion novel. When my editor Emily Easton at Walker said that fans definitely wanted another Perfect Chemistry novel and weren’t ready to let my characters go, I was so excited. I didn’t want to have Brittany and Alex be the main characters because their story was already written – I wanted to let Carlos and Luis have their own stories. I’m so happy to announce that it will be a trilogy, so all three brothers can have their own story!

In your opinion, what makes Carlos and Kiara work so well as a couple?

They like challenges, and they both challenge each other. Kiara surprises Carlos, which is what he needs in a girl. And Kiara needs a guy who is going to pull her out of her shell. Carlos definitely does that!

Do you feel like you connect more with certain of your characters than others? As an author, how much of your own personality do you put into your characters?

There is definitely a part of me in every character I write. To be honest, I have a sarcastic attitude and connect more with the snarky and sarcastic side of my characters more than anything else. I totally “get” my male characters. I allow them to be rude jerks at first – which totally entertains me as a writer. By the end of the book, though, that attitude has been squashed because they are totally humbled by falling in love with the right girl. Yes, it’s fiction ha, ha. Amy from the How to Ruin books is more like me than any other character. On the other hand, Maggie was the toughest character for me to write, because she’s the total opposite of me. In the sequel (Return to Paradise), we get to see a totally different side of Maggie.

What’s it like to write a book with two distinct and unique voices? Both Perfect Chemistry and Rules of Attraction alternately switch between a male and female narrator. Do you ever find yourself having a hard time switching gears?

I love switching point of view between chapters. It lets me give my readers insight into both my hero and heroine and what they’re thinking. I don’t have a hard time switching, but maybe that’s because I’m switching from male to female characters. Sometimes I feel I have writers ADD because after a while I have a hard time focusing on a chapter and have the urge to switch. It’s refreshing to change gears and switch to another character.

Do you listen to music while you write? Is there a Rules of Attraction soundtrack?

I don’t listen to music while writing, but I do have a Rules of Attraction soundtrack that will be posted probably this week (it's up now)! Go check it out. The soundtrack for Perfect Chemistry is already posted there.

Is there a particular book (or movie for that matter) you wish you had written?

I loved the movie The Cutting Edge. It’s an amazing romance and every time I see it I find more things to love about it. It’s a classic romance. I also cry every time I watch Rudy. It’s not a romance, but it’s an amazing story about success due solely to heart and perseverance. If that movie doesn’t teach you that anything is possible if you work hard enough at it, nothing will!

What books do you find yourself recommending over and over and over again?

I loved Flipped, The Hunger Games, Rainbow Boys, and Wicked Lovely a ton!

So many books come out each year, but are there any in particular that you are really looking forward to reading?

I’m really looking forward to the third book in the Hunger Games series.

Are you currently working on another project? And if it’s the next Perfect Chemistry novel, what can you tell us about Luis?

I just finished Return to Paradise, the sequel to Leaving Paradise. Now I’m doing research for the third Perfect Chemistry novel. It will be about Luis, Alex’s youngest brother. Luis is a good boy who doesn’t live with the angst that his big brothers have always lived with. Luis is smart, funny, and has big dreams. When he falls for the wrong girl, Luis enters a dark world he’s never known to try and save her from herself. Just when he thinks he’s got life all figured out, Luis learns some disturbing news about his family that destroys his positive outlook on life. Will that Fuentes bad boy streak come out with a vengeance and lure Luis to live on the edge like his new girlfriend and his own father? Oh, I can’t wait to sit down and write it! The sequel to Leaving Paradise is coming out in September and the third Perfect Chemistry novel is coming out in 2011!

Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by Simone! I was more than a little giddy at the chance to chat with you about your books! And for some strange reason I'm suddenly feeling the strong urge to go and track down The Cutting Edge...

***************

Thanks to the marvy folks at Walker Books for Young Readers, I have a copy of both Perfect Chemistry and Rules of Attraction to giveaway to a couple of lucky readers. For a chance to win one of these truly awesome books, just tell me who your favorite bad boy/good girl couple from literature (or film) is. Please be sure to leave me a way to contact you if you win and which book you'd prefer if picked. Sorry, but this contest is only open to residents of the US. Giveaway is open until Sunday, May 16th 23rd at Midnight.

Sorry, giveaway is CLOSED.

Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles

To start things off, I will just go ahead and label Simone Elkeles' latest (and most outstanding) YA novel Rules of Attraction as grade A quality bookcrack. When I explained this phenomenon to the hubby he said: "so you liked it and now you're craving more, but it just doesn't have any nutritional value?" Exactly so.

Rules of Attraction starts off with a bang: readers of Perfect Chemistry will immediately recognize Carlos as Alex's hot-headed, thrill-seeking younger brother who is ready and eager to make his mark. After losing his job and falling into trouble with a gang in Mexico, Carlos suddenly finds himself in the white-bread, upper-class high school in Boulder, Colorado and it's the last place he ever wanted to be. But Carlos is ready to make the best of things: he's happy to spend his days flirting with co-eds while bunking with his brother at the university until a search at school reveals a stash of drugs in his locker. With the threat of juvie hanging over his head, Carlos is forced to attend an after-school program for at-risk youth and agrees - under duress - to move in with one of Alex's old college professors in hopes of helping him to 'straighten' out.

But wait. There's more. *rubs hands together deviously*

Kiara Westford loves her family, her best friend, the great outdoors, and most of all the vintage car she is restoring. But she doesn't exactly love her shy, good girl persona. For her senior year, she's decided to step out of her shell where step number one is to volunteer to show a new student around Flatiron High. Who turns out to be none other than too-cool-for-you Carlos Fuentes. The two mix about as well as oil and water; wherein Carlos leaves Kiara eternally frustrated and maybe both a bit amused after each exchange. But just when she's decided to wash her hands of this hunky bad-boy for good, Kiara discovers that her professor father has decided to invite Carlos to live with them after his most recent brush with the law. Oh boy.

Undeniably, Rules of Attraction was a page-turner. I am a sucker for the good girl/bad boy scenario and although I was nervous it wouldn't be played out as well as in Perfect Chemistry, I was in for a pleasant surprise with Carlos and Kiara. Their seemingly simple story could easily have come across as campy and predictable but nothing of the sort occurs - Simone Elkeles is extremely talented at what she does. Her dialogue is snappy and engaging, her pranks perfect, and her characters! Her characters are utterly unforgettable. Both are believable as teens from vastly different worlds, struggling to understand each other. Kiara especially is made of some tough stuff. Having been setup as a shy wallflower, she could have easily been dominated by Carlos' larger than life personality - but no, Kiara holds her own, giving as good as she gets in an inspiring, girl-power kinda way. And the attraction between these two? Sizzling. Scorching. Have a fan ready. Like I said, it's some good bookcrack.

And I just can't finish without mentioning this truly striking cover. It has got to be one of my most favorite of the year in fact. The barely contained movement and the stillness of passion are just so lovely. And kissing in the rain? Sa-woon baby. What makes it even more special is that it captures a real-live moment from the novel itself! How astounding (and refreshing) is that?!

series reading order (sorta):
~ Perfect Chemistry - my review
~ Rules of Attraction

Because Everyone Loves a Second Opinion:
Angieville review 
A Good Addiction review
La Femme Readers review
Sharon Loves Books and Cats review
The YA YA YAs review

book source: ARC provided by the publisher, Bloomsbury

Cover Alert: Rules of Attraction

A ginormous thank you to Chelle over at Tempting Persephone for posting the cover of Simone Elkeles' newest called Rules of Attraction, sequel to the oh-so fabulous Perfect Chemistry. I'm so in love with this cover. All that implied movement - come on, kissing in the rain from a car? so cool - I just know this will be another fantastic ride. But GAH!! How can I wait until next April to see what Ms. Elkeles has planned for Carlos?!

Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

At Fairfield High, where you happen to have been raised matters a great deal. If you were lucky enough to be born on the north side of town, you live in a mansion, wear designer clothes, are most likely lily-white and either cheer or play football. On the other hand, if you ended up living on the south side of town, you live hand to mouth in a cramped apartment with your family and probably one of your brothers (or sisters) has been 'jumped' into the Latino Blood gang. Worlds apart and expected to mix on a daily basis at school without consequences.

Yeah, right.

Brittany Ellis can't wait for senior year to start, she's captain of the pom-pom squad and is dating the gorgeous football captain, Colin. Everyone thinks she has the perfect life - but on the inside she's constantly stressed about her perfection-driven mother and handicapped sister.

Alex Fuentes has had to be the man of his family for a long time. He joined the Latino Blood gang to protect his mother and two younger brothers and now wields his bad-boy rep like the weapon it is. Unlike many of the other gang members, he's stayed away from drugs and works hard at school even if he knows he's never going to escape his life of violence. But he's made his choice and he's not afraid.

Neither Alex or Brittany are prepared for their chemistry teacher to assign them as year-long lab partners who are required to submit a final project together. Both expect one thing from the other person and what they get has to be the furthest possible thing from that. Lots of verbal sparring matches, pranks played, and honest emotions shared take these two to a relationship more real than anything they've ever come across in their entire life. Not to mention some truly undeniable teenage sexual tension leaving both super-confident teens completely unsure of themselves. *grin* I don't miss high school one bit...

So many aspects in this book of two cultures clashing could have gone wrong but they were handled so well, I didn't even notice. Number one on this list could have been Alex's involvement with the LB gang. This element could have come across as contrived or even comical, but to my complete surprise the LB's scared me silly. Most of the teenagers in the gang I just felt sorry for (with the one exception of Alex's ex Carmen. Carmen? That girl with her stiletto boots and long red fingernails would have had me running for the hills), but the older Original Gangsters had me seriously considering the consequences of Alex's choices.

After having recently finished Jennifer Echols' Going too Far (loved, loved), I was looking forward to the switch from good boy/bad girl to good girl/bad boy. All I can say was that it was done to perfection in Simone Elekes' Perfect Chemistry. Brittany retained her good girl shine without ever becoming annoying and Alex had so many hidden insecurities and dreams that I couldn't but help love his bad boy swagger. I know it's the cliched West Side Story plot all over again, but this time, it's totally up to date and unbelievably well written. And I do have to note, out of the many epilogues I've read - most extremely cheesy - this one was so needed and just so endearing sweet and funny, it totally rocked. I think I read it at least three times. Okay, maybe four.