A smoothly written, standard-issue romance.
Piper’s family has been suffering since the 2008 recession, so Piper needs both a scholarship to an exclusive Washington, D.C., prep school and that school’s Bennington Journalism Endowment so she can go to Columbia.
Piper has one goal in life: to become a journalist. The white girl has edited her public high school newspaper for two years but starts off with boring, routine assignments when she transfers to Chiswick Academy. Piper instantly resents the privileges and corruption enjoyed by the wealthy students. Her goal of winning the Bennington scholarship seems blocked, as the editor of the school paper is also a contender for the prize and won’t give her any good assignments. She meets drop-dead handsome, paparazzi magnet Raf, son of the Spanish ambassador to the United States. She thinks that if she can become an insider with the students who abuse their diplomatic immunity, such as Raf, her exposé will win her the scholarship. Through her friendship with him she gathers enough damaging evidence to destroy his reputation, but predictably, she also finds herself attracted to him. Raf clearly feels the same and makes her his girlfriend in defiance of his father. Readers will have no difficulty guessing much of the subsequent plot, but only die-hard romance fans will believe the final resolution. Piper’s family’s economic woes, her work at the Yogurt Shop, and her on-the-spectrum little brother help to keep things real amid the romantic fluff.
A smoothly written, standard-issue romance. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-236856-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2016
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
Exactly what the title promises.
A grieving teen’s devotion to romance films might ruin her chances at actual romance.
Liz Buxbaum has always adored rom-coms, not least for helping her still feel close to her screenwriter mother, who died when she was little. Liz hopes that her senior year might turn into a real-life romantic fantasy, as an old crush has moved back to town, cuter and nicer than ever. Surely she can get Michael to ask her to prom. If only Wes, the annoying boy next door, would help her with her scheming! This charming, fluffy concoction manages to pack into one goofy plot every conceivable trope, from fake dating to the makeover to the big misunderstanding. Creative, quirky, daydreaming Liz is just shy of an annoying stereotype, saved by a dry wit and unresolved grief and anger. Wes makes for a delightful bad boy with a good heart, and supporting characters—including a sassy best friend, a perfect popular rival, even a (not really) evil stepmother—all get the opportunity to transcend their roles. The only villain here is Liz’s lovelorn imagination, provoking her into foolish lies that cause actual hurt feelings; but she is sufficiently self-aware to make amends just in time for the most important trope of all: a blissfully happy ending. All characters seem to be White by default.
Exactly what the title promises. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6762-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
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