Archive for February, 2009

Confessions of a Serial Kisser by Wendelin Van Draanen

Published February 10, 2009 RAC , Realistic Fiction 3 Comments
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Genre:  Realistic Fiction

Age Level:  13 and up

# of Pages:  294 p.

RAC Book:  yes

Evangeline is going through a difficult time as her parents have recently separated due to her father’s infidelity and she cannot bring herself to even look at him let alone talk to him.  Her best friend, Adrienne, is very supportive but is also very involved at school and is therefore not around as much as Evangeline would like.  After reading one of her mom’s romance novels Evangeline decides that what she needs is a true “crimson kiss.”  In order to find her perfect kiss she begins going around kissing random people and soon gets a reputation.  As rumors swirl about her she must decide what it is she is really looking for and how she can center herself before spinning completely out of control and losing everyone she cares about.

This story is about a girl who is struggling with her parents’ separation and finds herself trying to look for things in life that she thinks she wants.  In the end, she discovers that she does not even really know what she wants and she must face some of the difficult situations she has been trying so desperately to avoid.  The main situation being that she refuses to speak with her father even after his repeated attempts to communicate.  The story is entertaining and will be popular with teenage girls.

Kiss Me Kill Me by Lauren Henderson

Published February 3, 2009 Mystery , RAC , Realistic Fiction 8 Comments
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Genre:  Realistic Fiction

Age Level:  14 and up

# of Pages:  260 p.

RAC Book:  Yes

Scarlett Wakefield goes to an exclusive private school called St. Tabby’s where she has two best friends and aspires to be an Olympic gymnast.  She is shocked when one day the elite group of girls in the school asks her to join them for a party.  She immediately drops her best friends in favor of this new group which causes a permanent rift.  When she is at the party she ends up kissing one of the most popular boys in school and he unexpectedly dies of an allergy attack.  No one is able to understand why he had this reaction and why he did not have his epinephrine pen on him.  She soon becomes blamed even though there is no proof that she did anything wrong.  Her life becomes so miserable that she is forced to move away and go to the private school her grandmother is headmistress of.  As she relives that horrible day when Dan died she cannot seem to stop punishing herself.  One day she receives a mysterious note in which she realizes that there is much more to this incident than she knows and she is determined to find out what it is.

This story is interesting and captures the reader’s attention from the beginning.  Anyone can identify with the feelings Scarlett has throughout the book.  The mystery element also becomes intriguing as most readers will not know right off what actually caused Dan’s death.  The only issue with the story is that the ending is unsatisfying and feels unfinished.  Whether a sequel is planned or not does not excuse the fact tht the ending feels too abrupt.

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