by Simone Elkeles
Maggie Armstrong had a crush on her best friend’s twin brother, Caleb Becker. That is until one night, at a party, Caleb hit Maggie with his car and left her broken in the street. It’s a year later and Caleb is being released from juvenile detention, convicted of a hit and run while driving drunk. Maggie has spent the past year in recovery from a devastating leg injury that has left her scarred, with a severe limp, and an outcast. Caleb is returning home, hoping to find that nothing has changed. His family, however, is falling apart at the seams. His girlfriend has moved on to his best friend, and one moment his friends treat him like he’s the same old Caleb and the next like he’s trash. Both Maggie and Caleb have lost everything. Their friends and families have changed because of the accident and no one will ever look at the two of them as they did before.
Maggie and Caleb are keeping secrets about that night, however, secrets that could change everything. Told in alternating chapters, Leaving Paradise, is a fast and emotion filled read. It’s not a cry out loud book, but there is a strong undertone of emotion that takes you on a ride. You feel the anger in both Maggie and Caleb, but you also feel the hopelessness and frustration of each situation. Yes, there is a romance here, but it’s not the center of the book and it is added in at just the right places. Though the ending was not what I expected, I was definitely left satisfied. You’ll love the characters of Maggie and Caleb and feel empowered by how each overcame other peoples’ perceptions of them and in turn became stronger in their own selves.
posted by Colleen, Teen Services Librarian
Here are some more paranormal romances that might pique your interest and pluck on your heart strings -
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Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr -Seventeen-year-old Aislinn, who has the rare ability to see faeries, is drawn against her will into a centuries-old battle between the Summer King and the Winter Queen, and the survival of her life, her love, and summer all hang in the balance.
Evermore by Alyson Noël-Since the car accident that claimed the lives of her family, sixteen-year-old Ever can see auras and hear people's thoughts, and she goes out of her way to hide from other people until she meets Damen, another psychic teenager who is hiding even more mysteries.
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Planning on a vacation this summer and want to get a good beach read? Click here for a list of summer romance novels for teens. What will you find on this list: novels that center on a character's summer romance that you should be able to breeze through in a day or two (hopefully while getting some sun on a beautiful beach!). Guys: be sure to check out this list, too. These easy to read books may just give you some inside information on how to have the perfect summer romance with a special girl.
posted by Colleen, Teen Services Librarian
The Wedding Planner's Daughter
by Coleen Paratore
I read the book called The Wedding Planner's Daughter. It was a great book and talked about how a girl likes this guy, and even though she is young, they plan a wedding for them. I would recommend it to anyone. This book is a short read and has a lot of good quotes for other books in there too.
review submitted by Haley
Fallen is about seventeen-year-old Luce, who is starting reform school after she survives a suspicious fire that kills her boyfriend. Immediately she is drawn to Daniel, a fellow student who hates her for no reason. Luce can’t shake the feeling that she has known him all her life, but his mysterious nature makes it almost impossible for her to learn the truth about their connection. Daniel isn’t the only boy at the reform school with a connection to Luce, though. There is also the open and forward Cam, who will stop at nothing to win Luce’s heart. The more Cam pursues Luce, the more she finds herself inexplicably drawn to Daniel. The sense that they have known each other all their lives is the key to the truth about Daniel.
Lauren Kate creates an interesting mythology here, and the setting of a reform school allows her supernatural elements to be more believable. Another appealing factor to Fallen is the strong supporting characters. The other students at the reform school are relatable and interesting, and they also provide Luce’s character with more emotion and strength. However, there were a few times when I did question Luce’s ability to see the obvious (especially when it came to Daniel). On the downside, Kate wrote Fallen as the first book in a series and it is so obvious: most of the book is the back and forth between Luce and Daniel, while last few pages seem to set up the sequel by revealing just enough about Daniel and Luce’s connection to explain what came in the chapters before. But the good news is the second book, Torment, was published in September 2010. You can also click here to get to the Fallen website where you can view the newly released cover art for the third book in the series, Passion. Check out Fallen's book trailer below:
posted by Colleen, Teen Services Librarian
Last Updated On December 8, 2008
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