Runaway by Meg Cabot

Runaway by Meg Cabot was graciously provided by Around the World Tours and is set to be released April 20, 2010. WARNING: This is the final book in a trilogy, so there are MAJOR spoilers below. I have already reviewed the first two books, Airhead and Being Nikki, and you are more than welcome to read those reviews to get caught up!

The insanity has got to end!! Who knew that having your brain transplanted into the body of the most important teenage model would be such a pain? Well, that should have been obvious, but anyway. Em Watts has been parading around as Nikki Howard for a few months now and has kind of gotten into a routine. Unfortunately, the truth about what really happened to Nikki, and the fact that she's still alive and in someone else's body, has thrown a kink into the routine.

Nikki learned the truth about what Robert Stark, the evil patriarch of the Stark Coporation, was doing with his new line of Stark Quark laptops. A secret that almost got her completely killed. Brandon Stark, the father-hating son of Robert Stark, is determined to find out this secret is and so he steals everyone away to his South Carolina villa to try bribing them into telling him what he wants to hear. Little did he expect a kidnap/rescue by Em's little sister with the help of Em/Nikki's BFF Lulu, and Em's sometimes boyfriend Christopher.

When the truth is revealed about what the Quarks are capable of and how Robert Stark will use their capability, everything begins to crumble. Em has to find a way to save everyone she loves while trying not to get herself killed in the process. Yeah, because that's the easiest thing ever when you've already died once.

This was a GREAT conclusion to this series. I gotta say that it had me worried at times with where it was going because I could feel it sliding off track, but it tied up the loose ends quite nicely. Watching Em grow into her new skin and learn to work with her new body, instead of constantly fighting it, was gratifying to watch. The same held true for Nikki, who we only discovered alive in the last book! I found that the true characters and personalities of all the major players really shined through in this final novel. Everyone seemed to surprise me in some way and it was quite refreshing.

The only things that irked me about the book were how smoothly everything worked out (although this is fiction, so I'm already suspending belief with the brain transplant) and the fact that there were things repeated over and over again, like the reader needed to be reminded about the previous action in the storyline to understand why this event was happening. My theory has always been that if you're reading the books, you should know the story so that the author doesn't have to waste word space on reminding you. That's just my theory though.

A fabulous book and a wonderful ending to a fun series, this book is a quick read that is most enjoyable. Hard to believe, but these were the first books by Meg Cabot I had read. I'm excited to read some of her other works now. Good luck!

Nostalgic Friday: Flowers for Algernon

Welcome back to Nostalgic Friday! Since I love all things historical (culturally, physically, and personally) I do a post on Fridays honoring some awesome book that is a bit older. Many of them are books I enjoyed in my teens and others are books that I discovered as an adult that I think are relevant to YA readers.

This week's selection is Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes, which was originally published in short story format in 1959. It was turned into a book in 1966. I remember reading this in 7th grade and loving it because of the moral of the story. Be careful what you wish for, because you might not like it when you get it.

Charlie Gordon is a mental handicapped adult (IQ of 68) who works a menial job. Not completely content with his lot in life, Charlie takes reading and writing classes at the local institution for retarded adults. As he improves, his teacher recommends that he be a candidate in an experimental surgery to improve mental function. The surgery has been proven a success on a small scale with the increased intelligence of the mouse Algernon.

After the surgery and recovery, Charlie's IQ sky rockets to 185 and he begins to experience the world in a way he never has before. Unfortunately, it's not what he wants. Almost none of his experiences are positive as he had grown up understanding and interacting with the world one way and now that system no longer works for him. He can't relate nearly as well to other people or they to him.

Soon thereafter, Algernon begins to reject the operation and after reverting back to his former intelligence, he dies. Charlie realizes that this is where he is headed and scrambles to try to repair the damage he has caused.

While the subject matter is more serious and a little more sad than usual, I find that this book still has purpose. Some of the language has changed and become outdated, which isn't unusual for a book approximately 40 years old, but I found the symbolism and truth refreshing. When so many YA books exist in fantasy realms or deal with very saucy material, I sometimes want to retreat into these more adult-ish novels.

I found myself sympathizing with Charlie because I could understand his feeling of alienation and worthlessness. While I have never been mental handicapped, one kind of gets the same feeling as a tween/teen. There's self-doubt, worry, bullying, and the determination to overcome obstacles. I felt like I really understood Charlie which made all the difference in how I related to him as a character. The story was quite plausible, especially when taking the time period into context, and the adverse reaction was logically expected.

While it's not a light, fun read, I find that it still has merit when I want something to ponder. What are you thoughts? Too heavy or a refreshing change? Thanks for stopping by!

Being Nikki by Meg Cabot

This is book two in what will be at least a three part series. The first book is Airhead. If you haven't read it, then there may be spoilerish information below. Just thought I'd warn you. :D

Why is being dead so hard? Because when you're the face of business mogul Stark Enterprise, you never really get to be anything except what they want you to be. Emerson "Em" Watts was an ordinary kind of girl, crushing on her long time best friend Christopher, when she managed to get herself killed along with famous Stark Enterprise model, Nikki Howard. After an arduous recovery from a highly experimental brain transplant surgery, Em has emerged as the brain in Nikki's body. That fact has made it impossible to go back to her normal life. She must be Nikki in every way possible or Stark Enterprise has promised to ruin her family.

She finally starting to get into a routine of school, photo shoots, and jaunts to exotic locations (sometimes for more than she bargained for) when another kink is thrown at her. Nikki's brother turns up begging for her to help him find their missing mother. It soon becomes apparent that Nikki is not herself and that Stark Enterprise is up to more than they admitted. Enlisting the help of Christopher, who is now bent on taking down Stark Enterprise for killing the one girl he loved, Nikki/Em strike out to make things right. Little do they know the surprise that awaits them when they arrive at the brain transplant surgeon's house.

This book upped the ante from Airhead and turn some unexpected and exciting turns! I found that I enjoyed this book more than the first, which is quite rare for me, because I walked into the book understanding the situation and the relationship dynamics. The first book was great, but there was a lot of necessary explanations that had to be done to make the rest of the stories work. This book got to jump right into the action and it didn't really stop.

The different ex-boyfriends that keep popping up in Nikki/Em's life are a hassle to get through, but an important part of the dichotomy of the two girls' personalities and lives. As we continue through the story, we learn more of the intricacies of characters' personalities. Secrets are everywhere and no one can really be trusted to be telling the entire truth when they speak. Witty repartee, scandals galore, and a cliffhanger to leaving you wanting more, Being Nikki is a wonderful continuation of the Airhead series. Meg Cabot deserves a huge round of applause for her newest series!