Review - Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

Title: Perfect Chemistry
Perfect Chemistry #1
Author: Simone Elkeles
Publisher: Walker Books
Publish Date: December 23, 2008
Paperback 360 pages

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The first book in any series is always the best simly because of the freshness and awe of the new ideas and plot. This is definitely the case in Simone Elkeles Perfect Chemistry series.

Two defining personalities end up shoved together in school and though all things point to "never gonna happen," Brittany and Carlos learn very quickly being from the opposite side of town doesn't mean there can't be attraction. Brittany is a good, hard working student. She is working on being perfect. A good boyfriend, a kind person and trying to hide secrets from her own personal life. Partnered with Alex, a gang member, Mexicano who is tough and doesn't minx words, she is struggling to stay out of trouble. Just being his science partner is getting her in trouble with the local Mexicana girls at school. Alex then agrees to a bet with his friends that will not only endanger Brittany more, but might show Alex a side of himself he has never seen before.

I loved this romantic story. It is a bit like a fresh take on Romeo and Juliet, though the ending may (or may not) be different. I will not tell. It is wonderfully woven of two opposites that desperately want to just be who they are, but society and culture won't allow it. In order to protect what they want, they must do what they need. Coming from a Hispanic background, I just loved this book. It was what real life looked like to me when I was growing up. No matter what, no matter who, maybe, just maybe good will prevail all else.

Summary -
A fresh, urban twist on the classic tale of star-crossed lovers. When Brittany Ellis walks into chemistry class on the first day of senior year, she has no clue that her carefully created “perfect” life is about to unravel before her eyes. She’s forced to be lab partners with Alex Fuentes, a gang member from the other side of town, and he is about to threaten everything she's worked so hard for—her flawless reputation, her relationship with her boyfriend, and the secret that her home life is anything but perfect. Alex is a bad boy and he knows it. So when he makes a bet with his friends to lure Brittany into his life, he thinks nothing of it. But soon Alex realizes Brittany is a real person with real problems, and suddenly the bet he made in arrogance turns into something much more. In a passionate story about looking beneath the surface, Simone Elkeles breaks through the stereotypes and barriers that threaten to keep Brittany and Alex apart.

Review - Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles

Title: Chain Reaction
Perfect Chemistry #3
Author: Simone Elkeles
Publisher: Walker Books
Publish Date: Aug 16, 2011
Hardcover, 308 pages

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I stopped reading this book and picked up another book, then ho hummed my way back to the book only to realize I had already downed three quarters of the book. Oops! This book was the last installment in the series and apparently I liked it way more than I realized.

By now, I have come to really enjoy the lightness. I like that they cover racial issues and love being difficult enough to require work. It is nice to have such different stories and yet a feeling of familiarity. The characters have this quality where I don't want to like them, but they grow to become people I find fun and attractive. In the end, I am rooting for them to have a great budding relationship.

Check out my other reviews of Simone Elkeles books -
Leaving Paradise

Summary -
Luis Fuentes has always been sheltered from the gang violence that nearly destroyed his brothers’ lives. But that didn’t stop him from taking risks—whether he’s scaling a mountain in the Rockies or dreaming of a future as an astronaut, Luis can’t stop looking for the next thrill.

Nikki Cruz lives her life by three rules—boys lie to get their way, don’t trust a boy who says “I love you,” and never date a boy from the south side of Fairfield. Her parents may be from Mexico, but as a doctor’s daughter, she has more in common with her north-side neighbors than the Latino Blood at her school. Then she meets Luis at Alex’s wedding, and suddenly, she’s tempted to break all her rules.

Getting Nikki to take a chance on a southsider is Luis’s biggest challenge, until he finds himself targeted by Chuy Soto, the new head of the Latino Blood. When Chuy reveals a disturbing secret about Luis’s family, the youngest Fuentes finds himself questioning everything he’s ever believed to be true. Will his feelings for Nikki be enough to stop Luis from entering a dark and violent world and permanently living on the edge?

Review - Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles

Title: Leaving Paradise
Author: Simone Elkeles
Publisher:
Publish Date:
Paperback, 303 pages

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I am quickly becoming a HUGE fan of Simone Elkeles. I have read two of her books and am excitingly waiting the next book to be ready at the library for me. I was worried about reading this book and being disappointed. Nicely, I wasn't at all. I really loved this one. It was just wonderful.

I loved this book. I fell in love with it. I thought the horrible incidents that were dealt to both Caleb and Maggie are things no one should have to deal with and yet, they did. I am afraid to speak too much about this book as I may reveal the ending of this book, but I highly recommend it. It was a quick and easy read, but so worth it. I think one of the reason I like Simone Elkeles so much is that she develops all characters around the main characters so well that they too stand out.

It is also a clean book for teenagers to read. Even though it deals with drunk driving, it is done tastefully and not revealing too much too early for those still trying to making choices. Very easy book to discuss with your fellow teenagers.

Summary -

Nothing has been the same since Caleb Becker left a party drunk, got behind the wheel, and hit Maggie Armstrong. Even after months of painful physical therapy, Maggie walks with a limp. Her social life is nil and a scholarship to study abroad—her chance to escape everyone and their pitying stares—has been canceled.

After a year in juvenile jail, Caleb’s free . . . if freedom means endless nagging from a transition coach and the prying eyes of the entire town. Coming home should feel good, but his family and ex-girlfriend seem like strangers.

Caleb and Maggie are outsiders, pigeon-holed as "criminal" and "freak." Then the truth emerges about what really happened the night of the accident and, once again, everything changes. It’s a bleak and tortuous journey for Caleb and Maggie, yet they end up finding comfort and strength from a surprising source: each other.