Play Me- The Final Chapter

On the way back home from Eddy's random roadtrip to Florida, he's talking with Gina. Somehow he gets distracted and gets in a car crash. He's rushed to the hospital and then is taken home. This sudden car crash flips Eddy's spoiled life unpside down and changes him for the better.

Play Me- Part 4

Just when everything was going mighty fine, Eddy explodes. He's tired of the drama with the Tin Man, who's been leaving nasty comments on Eddy's youtube page. And then his friend who's hitting on his girlfriend and the extra time they've been spending together. He gets so upset so one day that Lucinda is working on a project with Joe, he cheats on her with slutty Sonya and a trip to the movies, he confesses everything to Lucinda. So clearly, Lucinda is upset. She wants Eddy to trust her but now she can't even trust him. Of course, getting this far into the relationship, being all lovey-dovey with eachother, this is a MAJOR issue! Eddy is angered! He goes to pick up Gina and go on a LONGGG drive to Florida. Where his mom is. You see, Eddy's mom kind of abandoned him and his dad, and also his step-brother and his step-dad. She made the same mistake twice and now, Eddy's just ticked off because he misses her and she's just running away from her problems. So Eddy gets to the set where she's acting, because she's an actress who put her career before her family and is now settling with a new man. He tells her off and she just doesn't know to to respond.

Play Me Part 3

By now, Lucinda and Eddy are officially dating. Love is in the air for these two and Eddy is on cloud 9.Eddy's internet series, RiotGrrrl seems to really be taking off. They're off to a great start. Eddy's dream is finally coming true. But there are still obstacles in the way; like the fact that Joe, Eddy's friend has a crush on Lucinda and has a side project going on that somehow involved Lucinda.Hmmm. Sound a bit odd..? Yeah, I think so. Then you have slutty Sonya trying to get with Eddy. It's such a small world that Sony's cousin is Lucinda's tennis rival, Penelope; who causes major trouble for Lucinda.

Well Eddy isn't having any of it. He's a very competitive person and he will fight for what he adores.

Play Me by Laura Ruby Part 2

The book is finally getting interesting! Yess! Okay so after Eddy and Lucinda have their little bonding moment at the animal shelter; the weekend tennis games become regulars. This time though, Lucinda invites Eddy over for dinner with her family.

Lucinda ends up wearing a really cute dress & just making Eddy like her a lot more than he already did. Dinner goes well. Eddy gets along with everyone. Turns out to be a good night.

Play Me by Laura Ruby

So far, this book this somewhat okay. It's supposed to be a love story where a player gets played by a tennis girl. But I'm halfway through the book and the author spends more time in random conversations between Eddy, the player, and his friends. In one chapter, like 4 pages was a conversation about what movie to pick for them to watch. They list a bunch of titles that I've never even heard about. The narrator, Eddy, is a director in training. He and his friends spend a lot of time filming their mini-series for an MTV comptetition called Riot Grrl 16. They make several references to a past YouTube sensation called Lonely Girl15, which ended up being. . . .

At this point, the only action Eddy's been getting with this hard-to-get lady friend is at the tennis courts, which of course, she's beat him. I also got some more knowledge about this mysterious girl. Her name is Lucinda Dulko and apparently, shared a first kiss with Eddy. Once she found out that Eddy had kissed her and several other girls at camp, he became infuriated. She has a reason to. Eddy is a man-whore.

Anyways, Eddy demands a rematch and after a second time of beating him, she takes him to an animal shelter where they play with puppies and animals that have been abandoned. They see a different light and are getting to know eachother.

The Tiger Orchard by Joyce Sweeney

I began to read this book on reading day. Unfortunately, I didn't get to finish it because a few pages into the book, I became uninterested. Regardless, I'm not saying it's a bad book. I liked the beginning because I made several references to my Psychology class. It starts off with a young boy talking to a psychologist about his dreams; better yet, analyzing them. I didn't know much about this character but the author reveiled that his father had died, or so the boy thinks he did. In his dreams, he talks about a tiger being there. He was a little frightened but the tiger was tamed. He didn't want to attack the boy; in a way, he was His relationship with his mom isn't the greatest. In a way, his brother gets in between them because he gets along better with her. I can't really relate to the main character because I have a really good relationship with my mother.

Along For The Ride by Sarah Dessen

Fresh out of high school, Auden West embarks on a summer trip she never expected to have. Her parents have been divorced for a while now. Her older brother,Hollis,is having his own little adventures across the pond in Europe and South America. Auden isn't just the average teenager though. Being raised by college professors for parents wasn't easy, for anyone. She missed out on many things a child normally does, like riding a bike. While most teens would be found drinking at some party, Auden is more likely to be somewhere in her room listening to her mom flirt with graduate students while drinking wine and discussing Shakespearean literature.

She ends up going on vacation to visit her dad, blonde-bimbo stepmother, and her newborn sister. What she learns is more than she expected. She learns about herself, her family, and new relationships. She makes new friends and is more ready for college than she thought she was, and it wasn't by studying in her room. It was actually by going out there and trying all the things she missed out on her childhood. She meets this one guy named Eli. They're a litte different but they have similiarities. He helps her get through all the issues she's going through & they end up falling in love, but they go through a separation first.
It's a great book. I loved it.

Perfect Chemistry Part 4

Taking place in Illinois, I can easily relate to the book already. I think anyone can relate to this book. Every character has its own unique personality. Brittany likes school and wants to get in a good college. She cares deeply about her sibling, and I do too. Sierra, her best friend, is always there for her. I have a friend who I can go to and hang out with. I can even relate to gang-banger Alex because we're both Hispanic and share some similar traditions. This is a really cute book. I definitely reccomend it. It's cheesy but fun. Predictable but surprising.

Perfect Chemistry Part 3

Brittany and Alex learn eachother's secrets and together, they overcome them. In between it all though, there's Colin, Brittany's boyfriend who just wants to get in her pants; and Carmen, Alex's obsessed-chola girlfriend. Then you've got Brittany's friends and parents who want her to keep living this perfect fantasy, and Hector, the leader of the Latino Blood who has Alex and his family threatened if he wants out. I can relate to them because I always consider what my parents think aswell as my older siblings. Being the youngest, they have really high expectations for me and it could get stressful at times. It's a rollercoaster full of events, but in the end, bad guy gets the good girl and everyone gets their wishes granted; the ones that survive anyways. A few characters die. But the book has a good ending to it. No strings are left hanging.

Perfect Chemistry Part 2

So this book is a little cliche, but it grasped my attention because each character has their own problem. Like Brittany hates her parents because they make all the decisions for her and they want to send her older disabled sister, Shelley, away to a facility without anyone's consent. Alex, on the other hand, lost his father when he was six years old. His dad was in the Latino Blood gang and died during a drug deal. So in order to protect his family and continue the legacy, Alex decides to take over his dad's role in the gang so that his little brothers don't have to.Eventually, as much as they despise eachother, Alex and Brittany fall in love and end up learning more with the science project than what they bargained for.

Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

As I began reading this book, I thought it was very shallow. Typical "opposites attract" story. You've got your goody-two-shoes girl who meets bad guy. Brittany, the preppiest girl in Fairfield, is living this perfect world. You know she is because the author uses repetition of "perfect" through out the chapters titled "Brittany". She's got the drop-dead-gorgeous looks, designer clothes, mansion she resides in; typical popular girl you read about or see on T.V. series. She reminded me of Marissa Cooper from the hit show, "The O.C." Alex is a rebel. He's part of the Latino Blood gang, one of the stronger ones. He's very intimidating and his chapters contain some Spanish words, including curse words. Brittany and Alex are on totally different ends but coincidentially, end up in the same Chemistry class as lab partners. Sound familiar? I'm thinking Twilight. Brittany and Alex learn eachother's secrets and together, they overcome them. In between it all though, there's Colin, Brittany's boyfriend who just wants to get in her pants; and Carmen, Alex's obsessed-chola girlfriend. Then you've got Brittany's friends and parents who want her to keep living this perfect fantasy, and Hector, the leader of the Latino Blood who has Alex and his family threatened if he wants out. It's a rollercoaster full of events, but in the end, bad guy gets the good girl and everyone gets their wishes granted; the ones that survive anyways. A few characters die. But the book has a good ending to it. No strings are left hanging.

Taking place in Illinois, I can easily relate to the book already. I think anyone can relate to this book. Every character has its own unique personality. Brittany likes school and wants to get in a good college. She cares deeply about her sibling, and I do too. Sierra, her best friend, is always there for her. I have a friend who I can go to and hang out with. I can even relate to gang-banger Alex because we're both Hispanic and share some similar traditions. This is a really cute book. I definitely reccomend it. It's cheesy but fun. Predictable but surprising.
http://www.simoneelkeles.net/chemistry.html