The Last Best Kiss by Claire LaZebnik

* * * 1/2

Anna Eliot is tired of worrying about what other people think. After all, that was how she lost the only guy she ever really liked, Finn Westbrook.

Now, three years after she broke his heart, the one who got away is back in her life.

All Anna wants is a chance to relive their last kiss again (and again and again). But Finn obviously hasn’t forgotten how she treated him, and he’s made it clear he has no interest in having anything to do with her.

Anna keeps trying to persuade herself that she doesn’t care about Finn either, but even though they’ve both changed since they first met, deep down she knows he’s the guy for her. Now if only she can get him to believe that, too....

With her signature wit and expertly authentic teen voice, Claire LaZebnik (the author of fan favorites Epic Fail and The Trouble with Flirting) once again breathes new life into a perennially popular love story. Fans of Polly Shulman, Maureen Johnson, and, of course, Jane Austen will love this irresistibly funny and romantic tale of first loves and second chances.


Review:

Persuasion is my favorite Jane Austen novel after Pride and Prejudice and Emma.  And this was a pretty good modernization of Miss Anne Elliot and Captain Wentworth’s story.  LaZebnik does a wonderful job of transitioning a story about betrayal, growth and forgiveness into a contemporary high school setting.

Anna meets Finn their freshmen year when he joins her carpool to and from school.  It doesn’t take long before they hit it off over frozen yogurt, super cool online photos and secret kisses.  But Anna is one of the cool kids and Finn is not.  She is embarrassed to admit their relationship to her friends so she holds back on showing too much at school.  When Finn asks Anna to Homecoming she says that she has already agreed to go with friends but that she will meet him there.   Which is true, but …when the young Finn in his oversized suit comes over to Anna, she completely snubs him.  They avoid each other the rest of the year and over the summer Finn and his parents move away.

Fast forward three years later.  It is senior year and all the girls are giddy over the new hot transfer….Finn Westbrook.  Anna is still feeling horribly guilty about hurting the only guy she has ever really liked.  She has no real hope that Finn will giver her the time of day let alone forgive her but she attempts to apologize anyway.  His response is exactly what you would expect.  He isn’t mean but he also isn’t interested in her apology or being friends.  But her friends pull him into their group and pretty soon Finn and Anna are in constant awkward company.

This story definitely had its uncomfortable moments.  The Homecoming scene made my skin crawl.  Even though you see it coming, nothing can really prepare you for that kind of humiliation.  But I loved the overall message.  Much like our hero and heroine in Jane Austen’s Persuasion, Anna and Finn (Anna in particular) have to grow and learn to be strong and stand up for their convictions before they can ever consider a relationship with each other.

My only complaint with the story is that I felt that Anna’s attempts at an apology were rather weak.  She made too many excuses.  Her apology would have gone a lot farther had she, rather than trying to justify her actions, simply apologized and admitted her actions were wrong.   Granted that is the adult in me talking.  Maybe I should be a little more forgiving to the teenagers.

As is always the case with books I really enjoy, the characters absolutely won me over.  I found the characters in this book to be wonderfully diverse and delightful. Well except for Anna’s parents and one of her sisters – the three of them were pretty despicable.  And I am not ashamed to admit that Finn might be one of my favorite book boyfriends ever.  I have a soft spot for cute nerds.  Make them dark haired and skinny and I’m a puddle on the floor.  Not so secret fact: The Executive Officer is a dark haired skinny nerd. So I might have a type.  And Finn might be it.

As you can probably tell, I found The Last Best Kiss to be a thoroughly entertaining and engaging book. This was a sweet story that I would recommend to anyone looking for a delightful teen romance.

Nat

Epic Fail by Claire LaZebnik

***
From HarperTeen:

Will Elise’s love life be an epic win or an epic fail?

At Coral Tree Prep in Los Angeles, who your parents are can make or break you. Case in point:
As the son of Hollywood royalty, Derek Edwards is pretty much prince of the school—not that he deigns to acknowledge many of his loyal subjects.


As the daughter of the new principal, Elise Benton isn’t exactly on everyone’s must-sit-next-to-at-lunch list.


When Elise’s beautiful sister catches the eye of the prince’s best friend, Elise gets to spend a lot of time with Derek, making her the envy of every girl on campus. Except she refuses to fall for any of his rare smiles and instead warms up to his enemy, the surprisingly charming social outcast Webster Grant. But in this hilarious tale of fitting in and flirting, not all snubs are undeserved, not all celebrity brats are bratty, and pride and prejudice can get in the way of true love for only so long.

This book was unapologetically Pride & Prejudice. From the names of the characters – i.e., Juliana, Elise, Layla & Kaitlyn Benton vs Jane, Elizabeth, Lydia & Kitty Bennett, to the ridiculously wealthy Derrick (Mr. Darcy) and his little sister Georgia (Georgiana). There were some differences, it being a modern adaptation and all, but the essentials were all there. Prejudice, misunderstandings, manipulation and of course, humiliation.

I found myself smiling as I read many of the exchanges between Elise & Derrick. I also enjoyed the despicable Grant Webster (George Wickham) and Chelsea (Charlotte). I felt that LaZebnik was trying too hard to make Mrs. Benton as embarrassing as Mrs. Bennett and that it sometimes disrupted the flow of the story. I did not find Mr. and Mrs. Benton to be very believable characters, but otherwise, the story was quite enjoyable.

 

I am giving Epic Fail 3 stars because I did not quite love it, but I did enjoy it.

 

~Shel

A Peek in the Biblio-Bin - #2

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren.  It is a way for bloggers to share what books they have won, received for review, bought from the bookstore,  borrowed from the library or friend, etc.

This week Shel is giving you a peek into her section of the Biblio-Bin.

It’s winter break in Ascension, Maine. The snow is falling and everything looks pristine and peaceful. But all is not as it seems...

Em is thrilled that the guy she’s been into for months is finally noticing her. But if she starts things with him, there’s no turning back. Because his girlfriend is Em’s best friend. And on the other side of town, Chase’s social life is unraveling and the stress of his home life is starting to take its toll. But that’s nothing compared to what’s really haunting him. Chase has done something cruel....And it’s only a matter of time before he’s exposed.

In Ascension, mistakes can be deadly. There are three girls—three beautiful, mysterious girls—to choose who will pay. Em and Chase have been chosen.

On Lily Sanderson’s eighteenth birthday she’ll become just a girl—still a mergirl, true, but signing the renunciation will ink Princess Waterlily of Thalassinia out of existence. That leaves plain old Lily living on land, dating the boy she loves, and trying to master this being-human thing once and for all.

Now that Lily and Quince are together, mer bond or not, she’s almost content to give up her place in the royal succession of Thalassinia. But just when she thinks she has everything figured out, the waves start to get rough. Lily’s father sends a certain whirlpool-stirring cousin to stay with her on land. What did Doe do to get herself exiled from Thalassinia and stuck in terraped form when everyone knows how much she hates humans? And why why why is she batting her eyelashes at Lily’s former crush, Brody?

The seafoam on the raging surf comes when a merboy from Lily’s past shows up—Tellin asks Lily for something that clouds her view of the horizon. There’s a future with Quince on land, her loyalty to the kingdom in the sea, and Lily tossing on the waves in the middle. Will she find a way to reconcile her love, her duty, and her own dreams?

Tera Lynn Childs’s sequel to Forgive My Fins offers another tail-flicking romance with plenty of fun, sun, and underwater adventure.

Will Elise’s love life be an epic win or an epic fail?

At Coral Tree Prep in Los Angeles, who your parents are can make or break you. Case in point:

As the son of Hollywood royalty, Derek Edwards is pretty much prince of the school—not that he deigns to acknowledge many of his loyal subjects.

As the daughter of the new principal, Elise Benton isn’t exactly on everyone’s must-sit-next-to-at-lunch list.

When Elise’s beautiful sister catches the eye of the prince’s best friend, Elise gets to spend a lot of time with Derek, making her the envy of every girl on campus. Except she refuses to fall for any of his rare smiles and instead warms up to his enemy, the surprisingly charming social outcast Webster Grant. But in this hilarious tale of fitting in and flirting, not all snubs are undeserved, not all celebrity brats are bratty, and pride and prejudice can get in the way of true love for only so long.

A boy who can see the world's secrets and unravel spells with just a glance.

Braden's witch eyes give him an enormous power. A mere look causes a kaleidoscopic explosion of emotions, memories, darkness, and magic. But this rare gift is also his biggest curse.

Compelled to learn about his shadowed past and the family he never knew, Braden is drawn to the city of Belle Dam, where he is soon caught between two feuding witch dynasties. Sworn rivals Catherine Lansing and Jason Thorpe will use anything--lies, manipulation, illusion, and even murder--to seize control of Braden's powers. To stop an ancient evil from destroying the town, Braden must master his gift, even through the shocking discovery that Jason is his father. While his feelings for an enigmatic boy named Trey grow deeper, Braden realizes a terrible truth: Trey is Catherine Lansing's son . . . and Braden may be destined to kill him.

How about you?  What books came your way this week?