Twenty Boy Summer

Review: Perfect Chemistry - Simone Elkeles

Release Date: June 1st, 2009

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 320

Rating: ★★★★

While on vacation in California, sixteen-year-old best girlfriends Anna and Frankie conspire to find a boy for Anna's first summer romance, but Anna harbors a painful secret that threatens their lighthearted plan and their friendship.

Beautifully written and emotionally honest, this is a debut novel that explores what it truly means to love someone and what it means to grieve, and ultimately, how to make the most of every single moment this world has to offer.

I expected this one to be a five star for sure, but maybe that's why it's not. All in all, it was a fantastic book. Ockler constructed characters that were hard to understand, yet easy to relate to.
     The imagery in the novel was amazing, and it actually made me cry while reading it, and laugh, and smile, and as I said...cry. When a novel does that to you, than it's definitely a good book. Ockler's ability to make you feel what Anna felt was beyond incredible...but the problem was that the one thing I was supposed to feel right away, I didn't feel at all. And that was her connection to both Matt and Sam.

     I'm not really sure how to explain it in a way that you'd understand...but it felt like she liked Matt only because he was forbidden, and she liked Sam to get rid of the Matt-infested-memories. You know? I wasn't really given any insight on why she loved these boys, she'd just kiss them but I couldn't feel what she felt. It was like being left in the dark.

      Frankie was an amazing character; typical, yet amazing. I've read the whole "party-girl-best-friend" character in so many novels, it's crazy. But this is probably one of the first one's in which she has a reasoning for her behaviour...it's her way of dealing with the pain.

     With that said, the book also seemed to stretch on in some parts, and detail things that I had no interest in.

     So overall, it's a solid four star book. I definitely recommend it.