Book Review: "I'm With The Band: Confessions of a Groupie"

Pamela Des Barres' book, I'm With The Band, has at this point become somewhat of a legendary classic rock tome of intimate knowledge that only a personal muse would have about these rock gods. For years, I've been trying to get my hands on it; partly out of intrigue because my own mother had a similarly colorful rock and roll youth (and probably ran in similar, if not the same, circles as Miss Pamela) and partly because I wanted to learn of the intimate details of these rock legends I've revered just as highly as Pamela herself. I sort of feel like we're kindred spirits.

To my surprise, the book isn't entirely just a tell-all smut-fest of rock stars' bedroom proclivities. Actually, there's fairly little detail about what actually went on in those bedrooms (much to my dismay...I certainly would've loved to hear more detailed accounts of what went down, har har, with Keith Moon and Mick Jagger, just to name a couple), and it's more just an autobiography of a particularly colorful girl. It's filled with tons of unexpected surprises along the way, and definitely makes me yearn even more than I already did to have gotten to live through a different era. Sigh. At least we can live vicariously through Miss Pamela. 5 stars. :)

Book Review: "Official Book Club Selection: A Memoir According To Kathy Griffin"

Can I just say I was overjoyed to finally get my hands on this book? It's been seemingly consistently checked out of my local library since it came out, so imagine just how overjoyed I was to find it was actually there? (Ironically, it was on the shelf right next to Steve Martin's book. If you read this book, you'll see why I find that hilarious.)

For how many hilarious anecdotes pepper this entire book, it also paints a clearer picture of Kathy as an actual person. A woman with a family, with her own short-comings, with.... oh hell, I'm not going to drag this down with that shit. ANYONE reading this book knows damn well they just want to hear her talk shit about any and every celebrity! ;) And she does plenty of it. (I was shocked there was only one teeny brief mention of Liza Minnelli though. I'd of loved to hear glorious anecdotes about her, given what Kathy's had to say about her many times in her stand-up acts. "LIGHTER!", anyone?) I'm kind of shocked just how much of her celebrity 'drama' has happened in my lifetime and I'd never even heard about these stories until this book. (Guess who's gonna pay that much closer attention to Kathy now?) Seriously though, this book is a hoot. I can't echo enough just how much you ought to read this. But, if you're faint of heart about swearing or rude humor, then you'll probably have a heart attack over it. (Doesn't mean you shouldn't read it!) 4 out of 5 stars!

Christmas Special Review #3: "A Dennis the Menace Christmas"

Let me go into this one saying that I was very skeptical of if this movie would even be any good or not, since I know how spinoffs often go. But this one, thankfully, isn't so bad. Dennis is still tormenting Mr. Wilson, as always. But as usual, his heart is in the right place. All he wants to do is bring the holiday spirit to Mr. Wilson, especially since he got assigned to him for a Secret Santa project. (And who could stay mad at that cute little face? The actor playing Dennis is adorable!)

The movie goes on to take on an A Christmas Carol turn with the whole Christmas past, present and future. Except this time, it shows Mr. Wilson as a child (who acted EXACTLY like Dennis), present, and future.....which shows how bad off Dennis's parents will be if Mr. Wilson forces them to pay for all the damages Dennis has incurred. Also, what will happen to Dennis.

So, the ending is fairly predictable....yet, at the same time, it's a major tear-jerker. (Either that, or I'm more of a sap than I thought.) Especially given that this is a sequel spin-off, I wasn't expecting it to be as good as it was. Not perfect, but pretty good. 4 out of 5 stars.

Christmas Special Review #2: "Richie Rich's Christmas Wish"

For this second review, I have to admit that I was a bit taken aback that this one even exists. I mean, Richie Rich has never exactly been that popular of a character, has he? Whose idea was it to make a Christmas special revolving around him? Oh well, I digress.

The first thing that struck me about this special (and I know that I'm biased here in my observation, so pardon me) is that it almost feels like a cross-bred hybrid of Arthur and Eloise. The over-indulged, spoiled rich kid thing seems to run in the veins of both those films, so it's no wonder I made such a comparison. Add into the fact that Richie has an old English butler, and it definitely throws even more Arthur into the mix. Anyway...

I was expecting to take major issue with this one in assuming that there would be far too much emphasis placed on money (and its importance) to where the true reason for Christmas gets lost in the mix. This was not the case. But, the main plot in this film is that Richie has his own personal mad scientist who's invented a wish-granting machine. Feeling a bit despondant and depressed that given day, Richie wishes that he'd never been born. The world without Richie is a far different place.... and one thing I took issue with is that evidently, Richie is the only reason his parents stayed together in the regular world, as in this alternate universe, all his parents do is bicker like cats and dogs about every little thing and don't even seem to like each other and are constantly on the verge of a break up, so it seems. Which begs the question - did they only marry because of a surprise baby, perhaps? Who knows.

But unlike in many of these Christmas specials that do the whole It's A Wonderful Life thing, Richie's not dead, nor is he ghost-like. He can interact with people and things just fine. Just...nobody knows who the hell he is. This struck me as a bit weird, since if he'd never been born, then how is he existing? But then again, I suppose if they'd just poofed him entirely out of existence, there'd be no film, so there ya go. There's a lot of odd twists and turns, like if Richie hadn't been born, apparently his butler would've been in a hair metal band called Root Canal... (yeah, I don't know either.)

The film is another one that ends on a Gift of the Magi note. (Seems to be a common theme that runs throughout these, doesn't it?) Overall, it's not a horrible film, but it's a very easily forgettable one. 3 out of 5 stars for this one.

Christmas Special Review #1: "Mickey's Once Upon A Christmas"

For many people, Disney and Christmas go hand in hand just as much as Rankin and Bass. (For you youngsters who don't get that part, Rankin and Bass are the company that gave you such specials as Rudolph.) There were always Disney Christmas specials on around the house when I was growing up, so I was excited to find out that new ones are evidently still being made. One such special being Mickey's Once Upon A Christmas.

I wasn't sure if it was going to be one long movie, or a compilation of the old Christmas cartoons they've done over the years, but it was neither of those. It was broken down into three short stories. Kelsey Grahmer (read as: Fraiser) narrates this baby in a beautifully poetic way. Likewise, the animation style is also very lovely, and even a little reminiscent of the animation techniques of old. (This is something I find myself yearning more and more for as an adult, now that I'm in a world populated by Pixar kids movies.) It also seems to try and channel the humor style of the old-school Disney cartoons... but on this front, it does tend to fall a little short of the mark and comes off as a bit unnecessarily hyperactive. But, all throughout, there's many subtle nods towards the old-school Disney Christmas cartoons, especially in the first short. They've got everything from Chip and Dale on their little Christmas train inside their tree, to Huey, Dewey and Louis all being obsessed with sledding, and even a brief nod to that old short where Donald ends up in a snowbank, looking like a snowman. The younger kids who haven't seen the old cartoons don't even get these, but for the grownups who grew up with them, it does leave a sense of warm fuzzies, which I figure is exactly why Disney threw them in (as it's Disney's forte).

The first cartoon is a take on the sort of cliched plot of "I wish every day were Christmas". It had been such a wonderful day that Donald's nephews wished every day to be Christmas... and the Christmas star granted them their wish. Which, just like in every other cartoon that's ever used this plot, starts out great for them, but they quickly grow sick of it and just want to regain their normal lives. There's bits of this one that even left me uncomfortable as an adult watching this, so I can only imagine what it must be like through the eyes of a child.

The second cartoon is a Goofy and Max one. It confused me at first, because I thought they'd inexplicably aged Max down, but then when I found out the plot for this one....yeah, I can see where they'd kind of have to, because it would've been a little weird to have a teenager going through the "Santa's not real?" plot. But of course, since this is one for the kiddies, Santa wins out in the end and is real. I'm not going to lie though, this one made me cry as soon as Goofy says his Christmas wish every year is the same thing, and he always gets it. Max asks what's that? And Goofy says, "Your happiness." (Oh jeez...I'm tearing up again just remembering it.)

The third (and last) cartoon in the special is a Mickey and Minnie one (finally! I had been wondering where, or if, Mickey would show up, seeing as the name of the special is MICKEY'S Once Upon A Christmas, after all...) and is basically another take on Gift of the Magi. As you can imagine, this one is heart-wrenching to watch. I found myself asking though, how on earth are we supposed to believe that Mickey and Minnie are that poor? They're the stars of Disney, and yet they're living like paupers while Goofy and Donald are well off to do? Is that how poor this economy has become, where we've come to not even question why Mickey and Minnie are living almost like hobos? That.....seems wrong. I don't know. Random observations. Anyway, as if it weren't hard enough to watch on its own, the tree-lot burning scene is downright traumatizing to watch, I don't care how old you are. But, it's still very sweet at the end, and more tears were shed.

Overall, for a modern Christmas special, this one's actually not too bad. I wouldn't sit super young kids through it....maybe start around 6 or 7 and up. It's likely to scare kids at parts who're younger than that. But apart from that, I'll rate this one 4 out of 5 stars.

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

It's the holiday season, and along with the endless decorating, baking, traveling, and shopping that comes along with it, also comes along a much simpler, almost guilty pleasure of mine... Christmas specials! In a bid to bring more readers to my blog, I figured I'll review as many Christmas specials as possible. Some are ones I've seen a million times over; other ones I'm seeing for the very first time on TV this year. Why, you ask? Eh.... too much time on my hands, why else? ;) Still though, read and watch along!

Book Review: "Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea"

Much in the same vein as Kathy Griffin, Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea is the irreverent (but hilarious!) autobiography by Chelsea Handler. Actually....I'm not so sure autobiography is the right term, exactly. It's little slices of life, random anecdotes, but is far from a full picture. Still...

Who couldn't love a book that has everything from fooling her classmates that she was going to star in a film with Goldie Hawn, to babysitting clients from hell, to life inside the clink, to a torrid love affair with a ginger, to shady pitch black dining establishments, to even shadier massage parlors, to dog sitting horror stories, to a re-gifting faux pas to end all re-gifting faux pas, to getting mugged by 14 year old Mexican girls, to midget escapades.....this book has it all. (No really. You only think I'm kidding.) I don't even know what exactly I can say about this one other than READ THIS BOOK. Even if you don't know who Chelsea Handler is, doesn't matter! Read it anyway! You'll be able to appreciate the humor. 5 stars!

Book Review: "Baby Proof"

Baby Proof by Emily Giffin seemed like my kind of book when I skimmed over the short synopsis GoodReads gave me when it showed up in my recommendations. Based on both that and the title, I figured what the hell, I'd give the book a shot. And, it's not that the book is badly written or anything - much the contrary, it's actually very well written and has a lot of good humor in it. Except that for someone like me.....

It reads like a damn horror novel.

Seriously. The premise of this book is basically a nightmare come true as far as I'm concerned. As a late-20's-something female with no intention of having children and knowing that this causes a HUGE strain on trying to form lasting relationships with, well, much of anybody, I thought maybe a story like this would be empowering. Liberating. Feel like somebody's got my back, even if it's just a fictional character. The main character, Claudia, is about 30 and wants *no* part of parenthood. Same goes for her husband, Ben. Except that over time, for Ben, he changes his mind and wants a baby more than anything. Inevitably, this leads to a divorce. All hell ensues.

Now, I realize this happens in real life pretty often; that's not the part that bothers me. What bugs me about this story is the fact that it teaches a really shitty moral, as far as I'm concerned. Lose your sense of self at any cost, if it means saving your relationship with your man. How terrible is that?? Seriously, the way the story ends up, Claudia decides she'll have a baby to appease Ben just so she can get back together with him. I just... I have no words for how upset I was with the ending of this book. I felt it was very patronizing to women like myself and trying to instill some notion of sell your values; you'll never be happy without a man and a baby! *facepalm*

I wanted to like this book. I really, REALLY wanted to. But the ending just ruined it for me. I don't know if I'm the only one who felt this way about the book or not, but, that's how it was for me. Nevertheless, the quality of the writing itself was good, so I suppose if you're like 90% of the rest of the female population, you'll probably like this book just fine. If you're like me, however, you'll resent it. But by quality alone, I'll rate this one a 4 star review.

Book Review: "Remember Me?"

Remember Me? is a fresh spin on an otherwise tired-out amnesia plotline. Our main character takes a pretty bad clock to the head.... and can't remember a single thing about the past three years of her life. The thing is, those particular three years were a majorly transformative three years for her, and she doesn't even recognize the person she's become in that time. Everything feels foreign to her as she tries to navigate her way through her new life, with a new job, a new home, a new husband (!!!), and many other things that leave her feeling like this can't possibly be her life.

There's many twists and turns in this plot and I don't want to give much away - it's one of those books that's best if you just read it for yourself. However, I WOULD like to give props to the author on one major point (and sorry if this is a spoiler): I appreciate that the book doesn't end with some miraculous magical "I REMEMBER EVERYTHING!!!" moment. No, our main character still doesn't remember what's been lost even as the book ends - only one tiny glimmer of one single memory. It's very open-ended to your own interpretation if you think she gets her memory back or not. I feel that this is a more realstic approach, because honestly, after so much time has passed, what would be the realistic possibility of one's memory just magically re-appearing? Yeah, exactly. So I think this was actually handled fantastically.

I rate this one a 4.5 out of 5 stars :)

Book Review: "The Undomestic Goddess"

The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella is a classic story of a prim and polished high-powered businesswoman being plunked suddenly into a lifestyle of which she is completely unprepared to handle. Not that she planned it that way, anyhow. But she learns to cope, and as she does, it's not long before she adjusts and this becomes her new way of living - even when her old life is offered back to her on a silver platter.

While I didn't enjoy this book quite as much as I did Twenties Girl, it's still pretty good. Probably half my problem is that it's all about the world of lawyers, which I have little to no interest nor knowledge in, so a lot of that went sailing over my head. I can appreciate the lifestyle and the way it's portrayed, though. So I can't really dock any points away for that. Still, some parts of the story did seem to drag on a little dryly, whereas with Twenties Girl, I couldn't put the book down for two seconds practically. I'm going to go ahead and rate this book 4 stars though, as it's still a very good story and you'll probably enjoy it. :)

Book Review: "Twenties Girl"

Even if you're not a fan of the 1920's, you'll still be able to appreciate this book! Admittedly, I am a fan of the 20's, but that's beside the point. ;) Regardless. I'd never heard of Sopie Kinsella by name before, althoug I knew it had seemed familiar from somewhere... Turns out, she's the one who wrote Confessions of a Shopaholic! So that should tell you that the quality of this author is high.

I love the premise of this story, because it plays into SO many "what if?" scenarios in my mind. Basically, this girl has to go to her great-aunt's funeral who died at 105 years old. Never knew her aunt in life... in fact, practically the whole family blew her off and abandoned her in a nursing home. Almost no one was at the funeral. And yet, suddenly during the services, the girl hears a voice. And sees a person who wasn't there before. Little does she know it's the ghost of her great-aunt Sadie.

The whole story becomes a whirlwind as Sadie begs the main character, Lara, to stop the funeral somehow, because she needs her necklace. Just what necklace, Lara doesn't know. Before she knows it, she gets herself tied up in trying to track down this necklace at any cost. At the same time, during the weeks she spends with the ghost, she learns about who her aunt really was and becomes friends with her, which makes it all the more devastating and heart-wrenching when Sadie finally does fully cross over at the end. There's so many plot twists in this story though.... I can't even begin to tell you how much I love it. This is quite possibly my newest favorite book! I'd rate it even higher than a 5 star rating if I could! :D

Book Review: "Knit The Season (A Friday Night Knitting Club Novel #3)"

Knit the Season is the final installment of the Friday Night Knitting Club trilogy by Kate Jacbons...and what a fine end to a series if ever I saw one. She gives our beloved characters a lovely send off.

As with many series finales, this book was writen to tie up loose ends. And that it does. Dakota is trying to find her footing in life as everything else around her seems to be changing in one way or another. As she's adjusting to all these shifts, she's still mourning the loss of her mother. As she prepares for this year's holiday season, it seems everybody has a story to share with her about her mother, all stories she'd never heard before, and all of which shed new light on what kind of person Georgia was. The little girl who thought she knew her mother better than anybody quickly finds out that there was quite about about the type of person her mother was that she didn't know about at all.

Given the twist endings of the first two books, I was on pins and needles (literally needles...I was knitting while reading the majority of this book) in tripidation of something bad happening at the end of this book. Especially with Gran slowing down, I kept fearing she might be the next Walker to go or something. I was relieved to not only find out she wasn't, but that there's no tragic twist ending on this book. Rather, the opposite.

Personally I love these books and wish this weren't the end of them, but who knows....maybe she'll write more of them someday! 5 out of 5 rating!

Book Review: "Knit Two (A Friday Night Knitting Club Novel, #2)"

The sequel to The Friday Night Knitting Club, Knit Two by Kate Jacobs brings back almost all of the old characters (minus Georgia, of course) from the first book so that we can see were everybody ended up 5 years later (and beyond, when you reach the end of this one). Unlike the first novel, which centered around Georgia, this book is a bit more equal opportunity to the rest of the characters and gives all of them more time to develop each of their storylines and personalities more in full. For this, I actually prefer this sequel to the original, but the sense of loss is palpable throughout the entire thing, and you can't help but feel like you, yourself, have lost a friend as well while reading it. While most of the other reviews I've seen of this book rave about how they like how Catherine got more of a storyline in this one, I guess I'm rooting for the underdog here. I love the fact that Anita, the lovable old woman, got so much page-time as it were to detail her engagement, upcoming nuptials, and the search for her long-lost sister. Of course, I also love everything about the Rome trip. ;) And it's kind of cool getting to see Darwin in so much more of a domestic role now. A lot can change in 5 years, and this book definitely goes into it. The story has a bit of a twist ending that yanked at my heartstrings, similar to how the first book did that at the end too, but I think it tied up some loose ends, as odd as it may be to say so over that particular ending.

I flew through this book quite a bit faster than the last one, and I'm rating it a bit higher; this one gets a 4 out of 5 star review.

Book Review: "The Friday Night Knitting Club"

I have to admit, when I first heard mention of The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs on the Goodreads website, I was instantaneously filled with glee. You see, I just picked up knitting as a new hobby last November. Everything about it still excites and thrills me. To see that it was the cornerstone of a novel? Oh my goodness! Instantly it was filed into my "to reads" list (of which, if any of you have me added over on that site, know is quite the lengthy and extensive list indeed). I'm limited only by what my local library system has on its shelves, and many times, they don't have some of the titles that I get most excited about. I was delighted to see that this one, they did have. I found it slightly daunting that almost every review for this book on the website were about 2 stars and below on average. Still, I pressed forward, figuring that the people rating it so low probably aren't even knitters and "just don't get it".

The story itself is very much a Seinfeld-esque set-up. Set in NYC, the story basically outlines the life and adventures of Georgia Walker, owner of the Walker & Daughter yarn shop, as well as her family and friends. For much of the book, nothing particularly noteworthy happens as far as plot - it's one of those stories where it's just a slice of life in each of these characters' lives. I almost found it hard to keep turning the pages, but I wanted to see where it was going. There had to be some good reason that this story got published, other than the kitschy literary devices of using aspects of knitting to teach life lessons.

And then I reached the bombshell. A mere few chapters before the end of the book.

I'll give you a spoiler: the main character dies.

And you do NOT see it coming. At all.

It's enough to tear at your heartstrings - I actually did cry when I hit this part of the story. I didn't emotionally connect with much of anything else in the entire book, but when THAT happened...oh my lord. Where did THAT come from?? It TOTALLY blindsides you, but at the same time, it happens in a very realistic way. You DON'T always see it coming when you lose a close friend. Sometimes they literally are fine one minute, and within a matter of hours, they're gone. I think the reality of this drives deep at home, and THIS is what places the book in amongst the best-sellers lists.

I feel like the dramatic moments should have been spaces out intermittently across the length of the book, rather than keeping everything SO calm and casual almost the entirety of the book and saving it all up for the ending. The writing style was also fairly dry and kind of boring for the majority of the book, which makes trying to continue reading particularly difficult. But I did it, and I'm glad I did. Now....two more books to this series to get through...

I rate this book a 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: "The Boy Next Door"

I've heard mention of Meg Cabot many, many times over the years, and for some inexplicable reason, had never actually picked up one of her novels. I'm not sure why, but I figured it was about high time that I fixed that. And now I'm so glad that I did.

This particular book has a very unique style to it. Much like the Internet Girls series, this book jumps the internet bandwagon, although slightly different. Instead of using instant messages, the entire story in this book is told through emails back and forth between the characters. Nothing but. I was a little skeptical as to just how that would work initially, but I'm kind of surprised how telling such emails could be! You've got a love story unfolding, marital drama, a mystery, scandal... lots of elements at play. And of course, humor. And yet, we never see these characters outside of behind their keyboards. I'm very impressed by this. However, one minor detail (that I must dock my review a point for) is that all the emails are written in exactly the same style. In 20+ years of using the internet, this came as a minor pet peeve to me that all these characters would write EXACTLY the same way, with the same literary nuances and such. In reality, everybody has a writing style unique to they and they alone. So this does take away from the realism a bit, and gets a little cringe-worthy with how many "______, I mean"s throughout the book. But other than that, I found this to be an incredibly enjoyable read and highly recommend it! 4 stars.

Book Review: "If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won't)"

If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won't) is, apparently, Betty White's sixth book. (This was news to me - I only know because she mentioned the others in the foreword. Well, now I know what I need to try and track down!) God bless her for being so dedicated to her craft. And I must say, this book gives some insight into the world of this wonderful lady. The book is comprised of a series of short stories from different facets of Betty's life on all sorts of different topics, but it seems that her favorites to talk about are her husband Allen (who she still speaks so fondly of that it's almost heartbreaking) and about animals. Soooooo much about animals. I always knew there was something about Betty that just made her inherently lovable to me; I think I found the key to what it is. ;) It seems most of my favorite people are all animal people! But it's definitely news to me just how *much* of an animal person Betty is, and I love it. I love all her stories, and could listen to her all day. A hueg 5 star rating, and here's hoping I can find her other books and that they're as enjoyable as this one was!

Book Review: "Hollywood Is Like High School With Money"

When you hear the name of the author Zoey Dean, it's quite likely that the first thing you'd think of would be the A List series. (It's also quite easy to dismiss her as an author if basing her off of said-series.) I would just like to say that Hollywood Is Like High School With Money is nothing like that. No, this story is vibrant, fresh, and it pops. You connect with the characters. You KNOW it probably won't end well, and you root for the underdog anyway, even when she's doing wrong. But most of all, Zoey has finally broke out of her mold of teen books. She's writing for a slightly older demographic, and the effort shows in spades. Yes, there's still nods of the head towards those teen books here and there throughout, but mostly, it is written intentionally for an older audience, and is a million times more enjoyable. It also offers a very candid, honest view at the world of being a personal assistant to someone important (which is impressive for still technically being classified as fiction), and that it's not all fun and games and brushing elbows with the rich and famous. The title of this book rings true in many ways over, and is felt reverberating throughout the entire story.

I absolutely LOVED this book and would re-read it again and again. A big 5 stars to you!

Book Review: "Posh and Prejudice (Diary of a Chav #2)"

The second installment of the Diary of a Chav series, Posh and Prejudice, had a tall order to live up to for being able to even hold a candle to the original...and it delivers. It's consistently funny, deals with realistic problem, and - unlike many of its rivals on the teen book market - has a far more realistic outcome than most. Not to mention, I've grown quite attached to miss Shiraz quite quickly. It's not every day that the main character in a teen novel is quite so vibrant and naturally lovable. Big bonus points for this, and for keeping it consistent from the first book to the next.

The storyline deals with themes such as the difficulties of secondary school, failed relationships, discrimination against the working classes, feeling trapped and wanting a way out of what everyone else around you just blindly accepts as their destiny, etc. The ending of the book totally sidelined me; I did NOT see that coming. But it leaves the door wide open for interesting things to happen in the next book. :)

Unfortunately for me, it'll probably be quite a while before I get a chance to read the rest of the books in this series, as not only does my local library not carry them, but NONE of the libraries in the county have any of the others. :-\ So unless someone can hook me up with the others, I have no idea how long it'll take...which really bums me out, because I've been enjoying these more than just about any other books I've read this whole year. Oh well, what can you do, right? Anyhow, I give this book another huge 5 star rating. :)

Book Review: "Diary of a Chav"

Well now! Diary of a Chav by Grace Dent turned out to be an extremely refreshing change of pace from most of the books I've been reading lately! Spoken like a true Brit, the entirety of this book is written in very much legitimate Brit-speak...none of your prim and proper stuff 'round here! This is more along the lines how real British people speak...or at least, judging by all the ones I've ever been friends with. (And there have been many over the years.) A lot of this book might go right over the tops of a lot of Americans' heads given all the slang (despite a nice glossary in the back), but it just felt natural to me reading it; probably thanks in part to all the Brits I've known in my lifetime, it just feels like talking to any one of them. And I love it.

As the title implies, the book is written in the style of a diary of the main character, Shiraz. It basically follows one year in the life of trials and tribulations (often overdramatically so, as is usually the way of most teenagers) of a typical lower-class 15 year old girl, which always turns out to be completely hilarious, no matter what it is that's gone on with her. It also shows some personal growth on the part of the main character over the course of this particular year, which is good to see, because in many teen books, the main characters often end up no better off than they were in the first place where the book started.

I really love the style of this, and was overjoyed to find out there's an entire series of these! If they're all this good, they may be my new favorite thing of the moment. This seems to be the first series to *really* grab me this much since the Secrets Of My Hollywood Life series earlier this year. Big five stars!

Book Review: "So Super Starry"

For a book with a title like So Super Starry, one would assume it to be about Hollywood starlets or the like. Especially with the photos on the cover. So please explain how, exactly, we end up with a very British book about posh, pampered, overly-sheltered English kids who live in their own little private community away from the rest of the world, and the only defining factor between all of them is wealth?

Of course, being a teen book, it's got all the usual ingredients: the main character who feels just a little bit different from everyone else, the popular kids, the outcasts, the bitches, the love interests, etc. In this particular go-round, the main character falls for one of the popular kids/bitch's brother, who has a reputation, blah blah blah. And because he comes from money, everyone makes a big deal out of what this girl ought to be doing to impress him, rather than the old addage of to thine own self be true. Yes, it ends up winning out in the end, but the entire book, it seems, is SO superficial that it's disgusting. Even the main character knows this, and yet it remains the same. Yes, I realize there are people in the world who really live like this, but this story seems to be more a study into the psychology of the superficial than it does a love story between people from opposite ends of the spectrum.

Not to mention, the author's style of writing is so very dry. This was really strange for me, because usually I pounce all over anything that's British, but this....I don't know. I struggled to even make it through the whole book because it kept losing my interest. As such, I feel that I'm being generous by even rating it a 3 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: "The Karma Club"

Just about everybody has at least some grasp on the concept of how karma works: that whatever you do and put out into the universe, good or bad, will come back on you tenfold. Thus is the basis of The Karma Club by Jessica Brody. After a group of three friends have all been scorned by their significant others, they form a club in which to exact revenge on the perpetrators, all in the name of karma. The idea is that they're helping to lighten karma's load by speeding up the karmic process a little and exacting punishments themselves. What they fail to recognize is that for the negative energies they put into the revenge tactics, they're only bringing bad karma unto themselves.

This book is loaded with typical high school drama, but there's enough humor in it to make up for that fact and then some. (Their revenge tactics are pretty damn creative...) I found it quite enjoyable, and rate it a full 5 out of 5 stars. :)

Book Review: "The Virginity Club"

The title alone of this book is probably more than enough to stir up controversy. Oh yes, The Virginity Club is one of those books; that no matter which side of the line you stand on, there's probably something between these covers that will end up getting your panties in a bunch. And I'm not immune.

This is by no means a new pet peeve of mine, but personally, it bothers me whenever a book, a film, or anything else decides to force the notion that virginity is something to be ashamed of and should be shaken off as quickly as possible. Let me make it clear: there is NOTHING wrong with virginity, and I don't care what age you are - if you happen to be one, even if you feel like you must be the only one left at your age, trust me. There's PLENTY of others out there who're just as old as you, and older. Whew, okay, got that out of the way. Now, onward.

This book has an almost schizophrenic sort of flip-flopping on the issue. All the girls in this book are vying for the same scholarship; one in which the biggest caveat is that you must be "pure of body and spirit". Not once in this entire book does it end up saying just how that rule is to be enforced. The term is very much open for debate as far as its true meaning goes. Regardless, prior to this scholarship, it seems that most of the girls wanted to lose their virginity ASAP. Then when this came around, oh, of course. It's a different tune now that money's involved. And you have characters from both sides here, ones ridiculing virgins, and ones martyrizing them. Not much for in between the two extremes, either. But that's not all... they also go the opposite extreme and do a TON of slut-shaming. (Yes, that's a real term.) Which makes one think then that the author must, on some level, be more on the side of thinking that virginity is virtuous and should be kept at all costs, but....there's so much in here that contradicts that. Basically, you're damned if you do and you're damned if you don't according to this book. Well what, exactly, is this book trying to convey as a message then? I don't know, and because of that, it seems to have missed its mark majorly. At best, I feel I can only bear to give this book a 3 star rating, and even that feels like it's being generous.

Book Review: "What My Girlfriend Doesn't Know"

First thing's first: let me start out by saying that I generally don't seek out poetry/prose books. Not that I have anything against them - I don't in the least - it just doesn't usually happen. And I had no idea when I picked up this book that it was written as such. What surprises me more, and is completely new to me, is that this author actually wrote a novel-length story out of their poetry and prose. I've never seen a story written that way, so forgive me if I'm being completely naive here, but I found it to be very refreshing and downright intriguing. I honestly never even occurred to me that an author could do that! So, speaking as a writer who has an incredibly hard time writing so much as one little poem, say nothing of a STORY out of them... I'm in absolute awe of this book.

The story too is also intriguing. You almost forget about the ages of the characters, they're so far ahead of their time. Then again, I might be biased, because in school, I felt I basically was a female version of the main character in this story. A social outcast; an avid fan of classic rock; an artist at heart; a hopeless romantic. I felt so much at home reading this that at times, I nearly felt like I was reading back through old diary entries of my own. I really, really enjoyed this one, and highly recommend it! Big 5 star rating!

Book Review: "Star Power (Talent #3)"

In this final installment of Zoey Dean's Talent series, the girls are truly finding themselves on the up and up. Mac has taken it upon herself to become everybody's agent. (It used to just be Emily's.) She starts out meaning well, but soon becomes heady with power and starts letting it get to her. Emily is still in full swing of her Davey Woodward crush, and it's only coming out more and more in spades since working with him on set in a romantic role. Becks has been signed on as the fourth Dixie Girl, which are a world-renowned surf team. And Coco is trying to make a name for herself as a singer, and not as just Cardammon's daughter. But since Mac keeps putting her managerial duties first and friendship second, and as is to be expected, ends up making a huge mess out of things. As with most things, things find a way of working out in the end, and ends up on a cute note.

I'll be sad to see the girls go, but at the same time, one can really only put up with so much middle school drama. After all, isn't living it firsthand once enough? But I did enjoy the story, and I'm rating this one a 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: "Hollyweird"

Hollyweird by Terri Clark is a fun little read that's essentially a new spin on the classic good vs. evil tales. 3 girls win a trip out to LA to meet their favorite actor and idol, Dakota Danvers, and be treated to the whole celebrity treatment while they're there. What they don't know is that their idol...is the son of Satan.

But all hope is not lost. Just as unknowingly as they'd gotten mixed up with hell's minion, one of God's fallen angels, Jameson, is provided to them as a protector. They don't know it right away that he's an angel, but in time, the truth is revealed, as is the knowledge that the supernatural world of demons, vampires, witches, werewolves, etc all exist in the underground. Likewise, it's brought to their attention that much of the celebrity world is part of this preternatural existence. (What an interesting thought that would be if it really did work that way?) But Jameson has been given the assignment of being put in charge of defeating Dakota before he unleashes evil on the entire world...and his plans are coming together faster than anyone could possibly think. The only help in the world that he has is that of which he entrusts in the girls.

There's a lot of aspects of this book that remind me of one of my favorite films ever, Stanley Donen's Bedazzled. Good vs. evil, the 7 deadly sins, etc. It all comes into play here in a fresh, modern spin on a classic tale. It's a quirky, easy read (you could easily read it in one sitting if you were so inclined), and I highly recommend it to just about everybody :) 5 star rating!

Book Review: "Almost Famous (Talent #2)"

This second installment of Zoey Dean's Talent series is thankfully a huge step up from its predecessor. Whereas the first book in the series was bland and boring, this one is filled with juicy drama all the way through, and really fleshes out what each character is all about. It's all in the tone of middle school drama gone VERY awry, and eventual revenge. However, morality is to be upheld, and the underlying message is that revenge doesn't pay, no matter how badly you've been burned. (It would've been too predictable if everything had ended up working out according to plan with the revenge plots.) I think there's a lot of themes throughout this book though that most people can relate to on some level, as most people have been harassed in school at some point in their lives; maybe not to the degree these girls are, but it still gets its point across. Regardless, I'm voting this one a big 5 stars :)

Book Review: "Talent"

Outside of her The A-List series, Zoey Dean has another offering for us with a miniseries meant for a slightly younger demographic, starting with this book, Talent.

The premise is basically this: Emily, a typical all-American girl from Iowa, comes to LA to visit the city with her mother and her best friend for a week. Just as Hollywood-obsessed as most girls their age, they soak up every little detail about the business that they can... but especially when it comes to their movie star obsession, Davey Woodward. There's the typical levels of teenage star obsession...and then there's these girls. Who, after hearing that Davey has a movie premiere party just 10 blocks away from where their hotel is they're staying at, sneak out after Emily's mom falls asleep that night. Paige gets turned away from the door immediately, whereas Emily succeeds in lying her way into the party. She's quickly discovered by the one girl who caught her little 'performance', whose mother just happens to represent Davey - along with 90% of the rest of young Hollywood. Feeling that she's stumbled upon something special here, she decides to try and make Emily a star. However, as her mother's not willing to even hear her out for her efforts, she's left to do this almost entirely on her own...and it inevitably proves to be much harder than she ever could have anticipated.

I get the feeling that this book was aimed for a middle school demographic, and is written as such. It's not bad - it's actually a very cute read, not to mention a quick one at that (despite being almost 300 pages). It's just interesting enough to have picqued my interest into wanting to check out the next book in the series. :) Rating this one 4 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: "City Of Angels (The A-List: Hollywood Royalty #3)"

The final book of Zoey Dean's A-List series has now truly drawn to a close...and I must happily say that I was finally impressed with this off-shoot of the original series. If you've read my reviews of the other two books in this trilogy spin-off, you'll know that I felt the other two books left much to be desired and paled vastly in comparison with its mother series. This book, however, makes me a little sad to see it go so soon now. Why couldn't all three have been written as well as this one?? I'd be rooting and cheering for more if they'd all been like this! (I'm tempted to shoot the author an email, asking if there's any chance there might just be one more story left in her to round out these books...perhaps to tie up loose ends a little more, but I'm sure that it's just not in the cards.)

The characters that I'd more or less resented in the past two books, I finally came to love in this one. Especially when it came to the rockstar romance drama of Daisy and Ash, it truly made me yearn for more. In all honesty, I would be beyond thrilled if there were a series just for them out of all this, as I feel that in this book, they became my favorite characters. Maybe I'm a little bit biased, as I once lived a romance verrrrry similar to the one that was outlined here, but that's neither here nor there. Then there's the drama of Jake with Amelie and Jojo, which made me yearn with every ounce of my being to finally see Jake end up with Jojo and get their own happy ending story. Hell, I even wanted to see Myla and Danny hook back up, once and for all, but that wasn't to be, either. (Insert dramatic sigh here.) I just... I feel like I just now finally got into these books, and now it's all over. :( This really bums me out, because this story was written so well. Please, Zoey Dean, write one more for me?

A big 5 star rating to this one!

Book Review: "Sunset Boulevard (The A-List Hollywood Royalty #2)"

Well, we're 2 down, 1 to go for the A-List: Hollywood Royalty trilogy! And I have to admit, I'm somewhat relieved that I'm nearly done with these. I was hoping that my lack of emotional connection to much of any of these characters was just the mark of it being a different series from the original and trying to get into the swing of something new. So far, that doesn't seem to be the case. The author is trying so hard to be hip that most of the characters sort of meld together in a kind of mismatched amalgam of the overly-trendy. Once again, the story mainly revolves around the characters' dating scene, and how they all trade lovers faster than square dance partners. There's also the topic of the filming of a movie taking place at the high school as well as...well, no. Everything else still classifies as relationship drama.

It's dry, kinda boring, and almost totally predictable. Yes, I say this as a 27-year-old reading this book, but at the same time, I can almost guarantee you that the average teen would say the same about this book and that it's not even with its price for the read. Ugh. Rating this one a generous 3 stars.

Book Review: "The A-List: Hollywood Royalty"

Like many a best-selling teen book series, Zoey Dean's The A-List has its own new spin-off: The A-List: Hollywood Royalty. Out with the old, in with the new as far as the cast of characters goes. There's very, *very* subtle references to old characters such as Sam Sharpe, but they are mentioned only in passing and as if you must know who they're speaking of.

The new cast of characters is almost befitting of any given group of Disney channel teen stars in the past decade. And almost all of them, you can practically tell what real celebrity they're based loosely off of. (The most obvious of these is Myla - the name practically heralding to Miley, and the family beckoning the the Brangelina pack.) Unlike the last cast of characters, who at least were a sophisticated sort of Hollywood overpampered teen jet-set, the new ones are just spoiled rotten brats with entitlement issues and nothing but teen dating angst problems.

The entire tone of the book is vastly different from that of the original series as well. (If I didn't know better, I would swear that this were ghost-written by somebody else.) I'm sure that the author was trying to go for something hip, fresh, and new, but it just comes off as typical run of the mill teen novel fodder. Where the original A-List books seemed to be a notch above the rest, bordering on being considered acceptable adult reading material, these are most definitely targeted towards a younger demographic. I'm not sure that I like that. Regardless, there only seems to be two more books in this series so far, and doesn't look like there will be more as far as I can tell as of yet. (Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.) I think I can see why. I'm only rating this book a 3 out of 5 stars - not utterly unreadable, but far from a pleasurable read, I must admit.

Book Review: "California Dreaming (The A-List #10)"

So, we've come to the end of the line of the original A-List series. And it certainly does go out with a bang! A plane crash, the implosion of Ben and Cammie, a wedding, a breakup, family drama, a major medical emergency... you name it, it's in here. As we wave off these characters we've grown to know and love over the past ten books as they ride off into the proverbial sunset, there's a glimmer of sadness in realizing we won't get to see what exactly it is that they'll make of their lives. Or will we...? There's a second A-List series with an all new cast of characters that might just mention in passing the originals, for all we know. There is hope for the future!

I'm rating this book a 5 out of 5 stars. It has anything and everything you could want, from comedy, to romance, to drama, to angst, to...like I said. Everything. It's all in here. Very well written, and a very nice close to the series.

Book Review: "Beautiful Stranger (The A-List #9)

This ninth installment of the A-List series certainly seems to be starting to wind everything down now, now that it's approaching the end of the series.

This book is filled with all sorts of unpredictable twists and turns; Sam gets engaged, Sam falls out of engagement. Ben wants to start a club of his own with the aid of his father, who claims he'll back him in anything. (The dad backs out.) Cammie funds the project. Anna discovers that Yale might not be all that she'd always imagined it was going to be after all. Adam kicks Ben's ass. There's an impromptu trip to NY. And much, much more (you didn't expect me to give everything away, did you? ;)).

Still, you can't read this particular book in the series without that niggling little feeling in the back of your mind knowing that it's getting pretty near the end of the series, and there's a certain sadness that comes along with that. It took me a while to learn to take these characters under my wing, so to speak, but now that I finally have, it seems all too soon that it'll be time to let them go. (Isn't that always the way?) Still, rating this one a 4 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: "Heart Of Glass (The A-List #8)

Oh boy - Heart Of Glass, the 8th installment of Zoey Dean's The A-List is a juicy read if ever I've seen one! Buckle up, kids - it's a bumpy (but thrilling!) ride.

Sam is house-sitting for a famous friend of her family's and invites Cammie and Anna to come keep her company and to enjoy the luxuries of the place on the 4th of July. They decide to go for a walk down the beach behind the house, and they unknowingly trespass into the backyard of one of Cammie's father's worst enemies in the business, who ends up getting no greater joy than busting Cammie and Anna and having them arrested for something as petty as said-trespassing.

Luckily for the girls, they're able to get off fairly easily - no jail time, and the community service that they have to serve is the plushest ever in history: working on helping organize a fashion show that benefits at-risk girls. Not too shabby. They quickly befriend one of the main girls there, Champagne, whom they feel could quite easily have a future in modeling if she just knew the right people. This is where Anna and Cammie step in, and make it their mission to make this girl a something.

Meanwhile, there's plenty of drama in Sam's homestead. Sam suspects that Poppy is cheating on her father with her yoga instructor, which she refuses to tolerate, as she hates the woman to begin with. Knowing that her good friend Parker is an aspiring actor, and knowing full well that she could offer him the deal of the lifetime, she gives him the opportunity to appear in her father's newest big box office film if he'll agree to try to seduce her stepmother, just to test the waters and see how easily she'll stray, so she can get photos taken and leak them to the press. He has a lot of scruples about doing this, but agrees to help.

There's tons more drama in the book as well in the sub-storylines, but I don't want to give everything away as spoilers in this review. ;) All I can say is that this particular book in the series is exceptionally written, and I'm giving it a big 5 stars!

Book Review: "American Beauty (The A-List #7)

This seventh installation of The A-List brings our girls (and guys) to graduation night. They've waited their whole high school careers for this night; will it stand up to their expectations? Meanwhile, Cammie is pressing further in her own private investigation into the details about her mother's demise, and unearths some shockers along the way that rock her world - and not in a good way. But being the good-hearted person that Adam is, he stands by her through it all; the good, the bad, and the ugly. Cammie surmises that he may even be some sort of guardian angel sent to her by her mother, knowing full well that she's not deserving of such a wonderful guy when she behaves the way that she does, and yet he continues to stand by her. There's a few other surprises and another new face along the way too - you'll have to read for yourself to find out. ;)

Overall, this one was pretty well-written and pretty good. I'm rating it a 4 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: "Some Like It Hot (The A-List #6)"

Some Like It Hot, the 6th book in Zoey Dean's The A-List series, takes a little bit of a step down from all the glamourous traveling that takes place in the last two books. Instead, this time, the storyline revolves around the senior prom. ...Yes, you read that right. (Speaking as someone who didn't even both going to her own prom because she thought it sounded lame, I might be a little bit biased against this particular book.) Sam decides she's going to make a documentary about the patheticness of the girls who revolve their entire life around that one "magical" evening; Cammie finds the whole thing an embarassment and doesn't even want to go; Dee has to get a day pass from the mental institution she's still in to go to it at all; and Anna just wants to go with Ben. But alas, a new face has appearance on our horizons: enter Maddie; a longtime family friend of Ben's family who's living with him for the summer. After a stomach stapling operation, she's dropped hundreds of pounds, but still looks the ugly duckling, despite having curves in all the right places that make even Anna jealous. But she figures that since Maddie's going to her own prom with Ben's friend, it won't hurt anything if she and the girls give her a makeover. Except that what Ben hasn't told Anna yet is that he'll be taking Maddie to her prom as well...and Maddie isn't exactly subtle about her crush on him. Major jealousy issues ensue. There's also a bombshell concerning the case around Cammie's mother's death that finally comes to light that just might change everything.

This story wasn't awful, but it does feel that it was lacking something, even with as many different storylines all got packed into one book. I'll rate this book a 4 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: "Back In Black (The A-List #5)"

One would imagine that a book about Sin City, Las Vegas, wouldn't be anything but exciting. Much as the city is that of broken dreams, this book leaves much to be desired. Zoey Dean's 5th novel in the A-List series takes all her best well-known characters to Las Vegas for a little senior year debauchery. Most of the kids had either gone before or had been looking forward to this trip since their freshman year and all have high hopes for this trip. But just as in real life, things rarely go as planned. This becomes a real comedy of errors in which just about anything that could go wrong, does go wrong. Parker blows all his cash within the first few minutes of their trip on a slot machine and on the last pull, wins $20,000...only to find that his fake ID gets discovered and they fine him for having it. This is the first of increasingly worsening follies that happen across the board for the entire trip, which is declared a bust. The book does have a twist ending, and definitely leaves itself up in the air for the next book in the series to pick up from.

Still, this book just feels like something's missing. I can't put my finger on what, but the story itself isn't all that engaging this time around. Hopefully this is not a sign of how the rest of the series carries on. I'm going to only rate this book a 4 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: "Tall Cool One (The A-List #4)"

The girls are back in the 4th installation of the A-List series by Zoey Dean, and they've all got their own storylines going on this time around! Cammie and Adam are trying to give a love affair of their own a whril; Sam's stepmother Poppy has unofficially adopted Dee as one of her own (and have been connecting on a spiritual level all their own); and of course, Anna takes center stage as her sister Susan has once again gotten out of rehab and disappeared into thin air - having brought the both of their parents together to try and present a united front for her, if only she'd show up. Anna takes an impromptu trip to Mexico to scout out a hotel for her father and give imput whether he should purchase it or not, and is quickly met with a sleazy business associate, an Australian hottie who quickly takes a shine to her, and general paradise. Sam shows up at the most unexpected moment and scores a potential love interest of her own while there, and she and Anna embark on some unexpected adventures. You know what they say - what happens in Mexico stays in Mexico! (Or was it Las Vegas? Oh, never mind.)

I like that this book gives us a temporary break from the false glitter and superficiality of Hollywood and a brief glimpse at the girls experiencing things that are a little bit more important in life. Just as it's a vacation for Anna, it's a vacation for us, the readers, as well. I really enjoyed this one, and am looking forward to seeing where the storylines continue to unfurl in the next book. :) Rating this one another 5 out of 5 stars!

Book Review: "Blonde Ambition (The A-List #3)"

Blonde Ambition is the third novel by Zoey Dean in the popular A-List series. If you thought you'd seen drama in the books before - you haven't seen anything like this yet!

In this piece of the series, Anna scores an internship with Cammie's father for his new tv series, Hermosa Beach. This of course angers Cammie to no end, who's forever jealous of Anna's influence on all she comes in contact with. This is hot on the heels of her having snagged the boy of her dreams away from her, as well as 2 more - and having quickly become closer with the friends she's known for years than she is, she quickly seeks revenge. Needless to say, the result is not pretty. Cammie plots all throughout this book about how to exact revenge on Anna, but let's just say, karma is a cruel mistress...

This has been the most gripping book of the series so far and I'm eagerly looking forward to reading more of these! Rating this a 5 out of 5 stars!

Book Review: "Girls On Film (A-List #2)"

Girls On Film is the second book of Zoey Dean's The A-List series, and I have to admit, it's beginning to grow on me - and more than a little.

Previously thin and stereotypical characters are now becoming a bit more fleshed out and 'real', despite their all being of the Hollywood brat variety. Certain amends are made, friendships forged, and bridges even further burned. It's hard to say a whole lot about he storyline of this book without giving away crucial plot points as spoilers, but I must say, also new to the series is the inclusion of Anna's sister Susan; fresh out of rehab - and on a one-way fast track right back in. Things are definitely getting a lot more interesting. I'd really recommend for you all to just read the book, since I don't have a lot of other ways of explaining this one without ruining the element of surprise. This one gets a 4 out of 5 stars - they're getting there!

Book Review: "The A-List"

Having just embarked on the start of a new journey in reading the A-List series by Zoey Dean, I have quite a few things I feel like I need to say about just what I've seen so far in this first book.

It style it's written in is very, very dry. Perhaps this is because of our main character, Anna, being such a goody-goody that this is to reflect her prim and proper upbringing, and perhaps as the series progresses, maybe this will change. Or maybe not. Regardless, it took a while for me to really start feeling 'into' this book, and I have a feeling that this style is why, since the subject matter should have been interesting.

Oh. I should also mention that this thing reads like a trashy reality show. You know the type... The ones with the over-pampered, over-privileged Hollywood princesses acting like spoiled brats just because they can. There's gratuitous sex (well, it's not actually written out, but it's referenced many, many times....but still in that dry, sterile sense that the whole book is), there's cattiness, there's backstabbing, there's drama, you name it. This shit may as well be aired on whatever channel airs Real Housewives of wherever. (I've never actually watched any of those shows, but just from what I've observed from and outsider's point of view, it fits right in with that.) Sure, the catty drama is delicious, but at the same time, it's not very satisfying when you finish the book and go "...that's it?"

The whole story takes place over the course of 3 or 4 days, what's that tell you? (Ironically, I finished the book in just as many.) And yet, there's enough shit-slinging to fill cover-to-cover. Fights over boys. Daddy issues. Abandonment. Dead parents. Celebrity parents. Teen pregnancy. Cheating. Lying. Deceit. It's all here. I'm actually shocked that this book hasn't become a movie or a TV show. It's nothing particularly original, so as a film or show, it would probably tank hard, but that never stopped people like Gossip Girl. (Oh yes, I went there.) I don't know, I wasn't very impressed by this. It's not the most awful book I've ever read, but I can't in good conscience call it good by any stretch. I'm hoping that the rest of the series is better, since I'm going to be reading them anyway. I'm rating this one a 3 out of 5 stars. Fairly mediocre.

Book Review: "Secrets Of My Hollywood Life: There's No Place Like Home"

Well folks, we've officially hit the end of the line in this series. Secrets Of My Hollywood Life: There's No Place Like Home is the sixth, and final, book of the hit series by Jen Calonita. And parts of it are definitely heart-wrenching.

Kaitlin has come a long way since the first book of the series as far as both her life and her career are concerned. But with that also comes the ever-looming realization that she's not in control of her own life, and that if she doesn't make some changes, she never will be. (There's a lot to be learned from this lesson.) Everything around her is changing as well, which makes things that much harder to digest. She's starring on a hit tv series; her mother is pushing her to film not one but TWO films with huge big-name producers; Sky has stolen her personal assistant right out from under her as her new manager; and there's college looming ever-closer as the clock ticks onward. A collapse is imminent. But nobody could ever predict just how, exactly, it would happen.

Much as one can surmise by the cover and the title of the book, there's a heavy influence by The Wizard of Oz. Following a car crash, Kaitlin is thrust into an alternate dimensional version of her life - one where she's not famous and hasn't had the sort of Hollywood upbringing she's always known. Her friends, co-workers, and family are also all vastly different from their real world selves. It takes a realization of self and personal values to help Kaitlin find her way back home.

I have to admit, this isn't how I expected the series to end, but I liked it! (Well, that's to be expected, as I'm a huge Judy Garland fan.) I think it was much-needed to help bring a sense of closure to things, and I can't think of a better way it could have been handle. Major kudos to Jen Calonita for writing such a fabulously entertaining and intriguing series! As always, another huge 5 star review for this book. :)

Book Review: "Secrets Of My Hollywood Life: Broadway Lights"

It's getting very near the end of the run, folks - Broadway Lights is the second the last book in Jen Calonita's Secrets of My Hollywood Life series, and I'm getting kind of bummed about it. I've gotten very attached to these characters over the course of the past month or two when I started reading these - what will ever taken their place? (Then again, I say that every time I hit the end of a series I love.) Regardless, I soaked up every word of this book like a sponge, and not only because of it being so close to the end and loose ends starting to become tied up. I pounced all over it because...

IT'S BASED ON BROADWAY! DUH! :-p

Seriously though, everything about this book held my attention like crazy, and mostly in part because of my love affair with NYC. Sure, it was a little bit of a stereotypical of a view of the world's greatest city, but then again, a lot of stereotypical liberties have been taken as far as the whole views on showbiz throughout the whole series, so I'm not going to dock it down any points for that.

This story takes us through Kaitlin and Austin's first ever lengthy separation, which is heart-wrenching for me to read. Especially with all the jealousy arising from jealousy in the long-distance relationship, it stirred up far too many memories and still-raw emotions of the past within myself to be able to put this book down for long. I HAD to know how it would all end up. (That said, I had expected a little more realistic solution to have arisen, but it is what it is. Que sera sera.) But also, the process of putting together a Broadway production and sharpening it to perfection for the public. This, I have a lot of respect for, given my roots in theatre culture. And there were some completely unpredictable twists and turns along the way as well - I won't give them away, but they were very cool to see!

Overall I'm giving this book yet another big fat 5 out of 5 stars, because it is just divine perfection. :)

Book Review: "Secrets Of My Hollywood Life: Paparazzi Princess"

Secrets Of My Hollywood Life: Paparazzi Princess by Jen Calonita is to date (at least of the ones I've read this far) the most heart-wrenching story in the series. Kaitlin's soap opera, Family Affair - that she's been a part of since she was 4 years old - is going off the air at the end of the current season, and therefore leaving Kaitlin to soon-be unemployed. As her family's primary breadwinner, she's being pressured from all sides to quickly pick her next project, despite her mother shooting down whichever ideas she likes and trying to force her own ideas of what she thinks Kaitlin should do onto her. Add onto this the stress of her best friend seemingly growing distant from her as she begins to make her college plans for on the opposite side of the country, everyone around her but herself getting their driver's licenses, her boyfriend also potentially moving away to another state for college, on top of the mounting pressure from her mother to shop every business opportunity out there and pick one immediately, is a recipe for disaster. Enter Ava and Lauren, who are the novel's equivalent of Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie back when they were hard partying BFFs. Sensing Kaitlin's vulnerability, they latch onto her like lice and milk her for all she's worth. Kaitlin's good girl image begins to take a nosedive the more she's seen with them - sort of a guilty by association type deal. In the midst of all this, Kaitlin's mother forces her to at least show up for an interview with one of the hottest, but most notoriously manipulative record producers in the industry. He forces her to do a quick demo of a song they'd written for her, of which the book was titled after. All hell breaks loose, as it doesn't at all reflect how she feels about Hollywood and was never meant to be released for the public to hear. (Naturally, it gets "leaked".) Things eventually hit a fever pitch, and something has to give.

I don't want to give away too much of the storyline, so I'll stop there with it, but I have to say that there were more than a few times I got misty-eyed reading this book. I can't wait to see what's next! Rating this a huge 5 out of 5 stars, and would rate higher if I could!

Book Review: "Secrets Of My Hollywood Life: Family Affairs"

Secrets of My Hollywood Life: Family Affairs by Jen Calonita is the third, and so far juiciest book in the series so far!

Now that the drama with working on the film Pretty Little Assassins is done and over with, Kaitlin figures that her life will finally be able to regain some normalcy, going back to Family Affair life. Only, it won't be as it was before: the show's getting a new actress. And she seems to be hellbent on destruction of all that's around her to make her own star shine.

The new girl, Alexis, starts out acting sweet-as-pie to anyone and everyone around her; trying to butter up the writing staff especially to get in their good graces, even though her story arc is only intended to last half a season. But she makes such a splash with the public on top of her charming graces with the staff of the show that they decide it might not be such a bad idea to keep her own as a potentially permanent character. Herein ensues the drama.

Sky feels that Alexis is trying to impede on their territory, and Kaitlin thinks she's just being jealous of the new girl. But the more that Kaitlin witnesses, the more she begins to see through the facade and that the nice act is just a put on, and for once, Sky is 100% correct: this girl wants to destroy both of their jobs and become the star of the show. And will stop at nothing to get it. Trying to prove this to everyone else, however, is a feat to be seen.

I don't want to give out too many spoilers here, but the ending of the story has a completely unexpected twist. For one, I never expected to ever see Kaitlin and Sky teaming up and acting -friendly- to each other in a million years. So you would assume that life on the set after all is said and done would be so much more pleasant now that they've seemingly made friends, but a much bigger bombshell than anyone could ever expect rocks their world and changes their lives forever.

Want to see what I'm talking about? Grab yourself a copy of this fantastic book today! Once again, I rate this book a huge 5 stars!