Speed Date: The Truth About You and Me by Amanda Grace

The Plot: Madelyn Hawkins is relishing the experience of taking college courses while still in high school, enjoying the freedom it represents to be going to the local community college rather than to her old school where her dad teaches. So, to her it seems like fate when her first class, Biology, happens to be taught by a young and handsome professor, and she keeps running into him.

Madelyn knows it's wrong to be flirting with Bennett, he's her teacher and he thinks she's at least 18, rather than 16. But Madelyn is giddy with her new found freedom, her crush to speak out... and the more she waits, the harder it gets. 

First Date: Oh, so this whole book is one big letter to Bennett. Not sure how I feel about that. Madelyn keeps interrupting to fill in with back story saying "Remember when..." or "You said...". Not particularly fun.

Second Date: I am officially weary of this style, also shocked by how little seems to happen in this book. Honestly. I've read MG books where 12 year olds have more chemistry than Bennett and Madelyn. 

Third Date: That's it? for real? Why do I feel like I just wasted my time? Right... Because this is anticlimactic as hell,. that's why.

Relationship Status: Why do I do This To Myself?

All right, I was kind of excited to read The Truth About You and Me, I thought it might be interesting, studying this whole age difference thing, maybe the guy really loved her and it was all tragic, or maybe he was a creepy manipulative bastard and this was an Issue Book but nope.

The Truth About You and Me is the book where nothing much happens and everyone gets away scoot free. A big part of the problem is the way the story is told, through letters and flashbacks, so you know that it's all happened already, there is no sense of urgency, and then it just turns out that nothing interesting or important happened anyway. Like, at all. 

What's a Book Speed Date, you ask? It's a quickie review--about 150 words or so--of any genre book (variety is the spice of life, after all).

If you want to join in or just read other speed date reviews, check out The Book Swarm

Book Review: Getting Caught by Mandy Hubbard and Cyn Balog

Love this Cover!

At First Sight: Once upon a time, Jess Hill and Peyton Brentwood were the best of friends. But everything changed when they entered high school and now the only thing that links them, aside from their shared past, is the prank war that has been raging between them for almost four years. 

There are few rules to the war, the most important being that it only ends when one of them gets caught, and as senior year enters the homestretch, Peyton and Jess are racing to out-prank each other before its too late. 

On the side, Peyton is on a single-minded race to get into Harvard - which has been her dream since she was in the third-grade - and get out of her house where she's the overachieving black-sheep of the family. 

And Jess is just trying to get to the end of high school, without a fixed plan in mind and doing little else other than work at a Pet Store and try to out-prank Peyton. Until her forever crush, Dave, starts showing some interest in her. 

Second Glance: Getting Caught is an ebook-only book by Mandy Hubbard and Cyn Balog - which I got all the way back in September of last year*, and I feel bad it took me this long to read, not only because of the time but because I actually ended up loving this story. 

When the story opens it's just after winter break of senior year, and Jess and Peyton are as different as two girls can be. Jess is a loner and a rebel and has an "I don't care attitude" and Peyton is a bit of a neurotic mess, an all around 'perfect' student and it's hard to imagine these two were ever friends but, as the story progresses, you see how much of their past they shared. 

And I thought it was very realistic how their friendship deteriorated so fast, how one misunderstanding lead to another and then it just took off. I think the book is very honest about that because when you are 14 and so vulnerable everything feels so big and it's easy to get carried away, and that's in part what happens to Jess and Peyton until they reach a point where their war is kind of the only thing that makes sense to them. 

The pranks were evil but creative, so I'm giving the authors props for that. These two girls really knew how to hurt each other. And I also appreciated that, while both of them were angry at each other, they sounded so different and approached their anger in different ways.

Getting Caught is a short book (about 200 pages) that packs a punch. It covers so much time for it's length and I really felt like I got to know both Peyton and Jess. And I really liked both of them - though I do have a favorite. 

Bottom Line: I found Getting Caught to be a fun, addictive type of read. I read it all in one afternoon because I just wanted to know what had happened between Peyton and Jess and how everything was going to end. And I loved how it ended. I thought it was a lovely read. 

1/2

*Thanks to Mandy Hubbard for the chance of reading this story :) 

You Wish by Mandy Hubbard

Kayla's sixteen birthday is so not going as expected. First, her mother is forcing a Sweet Sixteen party on her (a party geared to make her mom look good, since she's an event planner), and then her best friend Nicole decides to go on a date with her boyfriend (promising to arrive just an hour late, tops!).

On a whim born out of anger at the whole situation, Kayla makes a wish before blowing the candles, she wishes all her wishes came true because they never do.

Next thing she knows her life is upside down: there is a pink pony in her backyard, a guy named Ken is following her around, and her childhood friend Ann (as in Raggedly Ann The Doll) shows up, all wild red hair and unfortunate clothes. Every day, one of her pasts wishes comes true, even as she scrambles to find a way to stop it, because Wish 15 simply cannot happen!

Wish 15 was that Ben Mackenzie would kiss her. Ben, the one guy who shares her warped sense of humor, who sits next to her during math... Ben who is dating her best friend Nicole.

Oh! I loved You Wish! Kayla was so easy to relate to - she's cynical, and tends to mock stuff she secretly wants but knows can't have, she's loyal to her best friend, even though their friendship is struggling lately. And her wishes were so believable, they were really stuff that any girl would have wished for at some point or another. I could see her grow and change from the first page to the last, and that was just so wonderful to see, and I loved how unflinching she was at her own shortcomings once she realizes she backed herself and her life into certain corners.

Ben, Ann and even Ken were such great characters too. Ben was dreamy, I would have totally crushed on him when I was 16, he's such a normal, easy going guy - talented and cute but normal. Ann was awesome, she said and did the things I would expect my confidant teddy bear to do if he ever came to life, I loved her. And Ken was always good for some laughs.

I had a bit of a problem with Nicole... she wasn't the best of friends during this story, but I'll take Kayla word that she's a better friend than shown. Over all, I totally recommend You Wish.

Favorite Quote: "My happiness doesn't rely on other people. It doesn't depend on them needing me, wanting me, approving of me. It's inside me, just where it was when I was little and My Little Pony reigned supreme. (...) Somehow I lost the power to be happy, but I'm taking it back. Starting today. Today, I choose me." - Kayla
2/3