Review: A Midsummer's Nightmare by Kody Keplinger

 Source: Received a copy of the book from Hachette Book Group Canada for an honest review.

Publisher: Poppy

Release Date: Already released.
Number of Pages: 304 (Hardcover)

(Goodreads Link.)

Blurb from Goodreads:

Whitley Johnson's dream summer with her divorcé dad has turned into a nightmare. She's just met his new fiancée and her kids. The fiancée's son? Whitley's one-night stand from graduation night. Just freakin' great.

Worse, she totally doesn't fit in with her dad's perfect new country-club family. So Whitley acts out. She parties. Hard. So hard she doesn't even notice the good things right under her nose: a sweet little future stepsister who is just about the only person she's ever liked, a best friend (even though Whitley swears she doesn't "do" friends), and a smoking-hot guy who isn't her stepbrother...at least, not yet. It will take all three of them to help Whitley get through her anger and begin to put the pieces of her family together.

Filled with authenticity and raw emotion, Whitley is Kody Keplinger's most compelling character to date: a cynical Holden Caulfield-esque girl you will wholly care about.

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Prior to reading A Midsummer's Nightmare, I had yet to meet a Kody Keplinger book that I didn't love...and A Midsummer's Nightmare was no different! I was quickly caught up in Whitley's story, and in her life and didn't stop reading until I'd finished...even though I had class later that day. :P

I'm always amazed with the characters that Kody Keplinger writes. They have flaws, but are people that you can relate to; ones that you understand and are able to get to know through their stories.  Whitley is incredibly flawed, but you can't help but sympathize and connect with her. Even if your life is nothing like yours, you can understand where she's coming from.

I also love how realistic her characters and dialogue are. One of the things I always notice when reading one of Kody's books is the fact that their conversations are so authentic. They're ones I that I can imagine having with my friends, or overhearing on the bus or in the class, and I find that so refreshing! Too often, you'll read something that looks great on paper, but if you read it out loud, the dialogue sounds so weird...but with her books, they fit seamlessly with what people actually say....or at least what people within her characters' age groups would say. :P Since the dialogue is so realistic, I find that it adds a lot of authenticity to the characters, too, and I love that. I really enjoyed Whitley as a character. She goes through a lot in A Midsummer's Nightmare, and I really enjoyed seeing her change as the story progressed...I also loved that characters from The DUFF popped up in this one...it was awesome!! :D I'm a huge fan of character cameos. ;)

I adored the romance in this book, but I think that the progression of the characters was the aspect that I enjoyed even more. Yes, I totally LOVED any romance that I got, but I especially loved seeing Whitley and Nate help each other through things. :)

I loved A Midsummer's Nightmare, and I'd recommend it to all contemporary fans, especially ones who enjoy flawed, yet appealing narrators...and who like romance, there's that, too. Also, I'm pretty sure all Kody Keplinger fans will love this one just as they've loved her previous books. ;)

Have you read A Midsummer's Nightmare, or any of Kody Keplinger's other books?
Thoughts???

Review: Shut Out by Kody Keplinger

Source: Received an ARC from Hachette Book Group Canada for an honest review.

Publisher: Poppy
Number of Pages: 273 (Hardcover)

Release Date: September 5, 2011

(Goodreads Link.)

Blurb from Goodreads:

A contemporary reimagining of the Greek play, "Lysistrata," in which high school senior Lissa decides it's time to end her school's ridiculous sports rivalry once and for all by starting a hook-up strike.

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I read The DUFF before reading Shut Out, so I wasn't surprised when I read it...couldn't put it down, and absolutely fell in love with it!

Kody Keplinger has a way of writing characters that are so realistic that you genuinely feel like you've met them and personally know them, after reading about them. Her dialogue is fresh, completely realistic, and when I read it I'm constantly left thinking things like: "I'm pretty sure I've actually HAD that conversation with my friends before." She has a way of weaving a story which seems like it would be simple, but when it's all put together it creates one powerhouse of a story. If you haven't read a book by Kody Keplinger yet, you're completely missing out!

I'm a reader who loves her characters. If I don't like the characters, I generally don't like the books. In Shut Out, I never had that problem at all. Lissa, the main character, was insecure, yet she was full of sass. She had a douche (excuse my use of the word douche...it just happens to be one of my favourite words to use when complaining about guys...it can also be substituted for jerk if you prefer) of a boyfriend, and I was seriously so proud of Lissa for how she handled the different situations that Randy put her through. So freaking proud...I may have even actually said "You go girl!" while reading. :P

Now onto the yummy and awesome-tastic Cash, who was so awesome I just added a -tastic when describing him. He was smart, about most things anyways, and just all around amazing. The chemistry between Cash and Lissa was so amazing, and I found myself gushing over every single moment that they were together. I loved that Cash was more than just a jock too. He's a soccer player...which seems like it shouldn't be a big deal, but in Lissa's school, it is. Instead of there being rivalries with other schools, they have a rivalry within the school. The soccer and football teams endlessly torment each other, and it even leads to violence. It's even gotten to the point where the players don't even remember why their whole rivalry started.

Now onto the whole idea of the book itself. It's loosely based off of the Greek play "Lysistrata" by Aristophanes where the women of Athens are getting so fed up with the violence going on around them during a civil war that they decide to go a sex strike, which is led by Lysistrata. Now, I haven't read this play, but after reading Shut Out, I definitely want to. Lissa hadn't actually read Lysistrata, it's Cash who initially introducing the play to her (I know! He's smart too...seriously awesome-tastic I tell you!). She starts the whole hook-up strike because she's fed up with her boyfriend, Randy, placing more importance on the rivalry than he does on their relationship. She's also fed up with the violence after a soccer player gets injured after one of the football teams "harmless" pranks. Lissa manages to get a bunch of the girls on her side, and she leads them, just like Lysistrata did, and she helps keep them from caving in to their boyfriends. Then the boys start fighting back.

I absolutely loved Shut Out, if that wasn't already obvious. I loved the idea, the way it was written, and the characters. This story was hilarious, and I encourage everyone to read it! I really don't think you'll be disappointed!

If you want to get yourself a copy of Shut Out, it comes out on September 5th. :)

Happy Reading!!!

♪♫ Ambur