Book Review: Hooked (Hooked #1) by Liz Fichera

YA contemporary romance with a Native American, female golfer protagonist

Hooked (Hooked #1) by Liz Fichera

Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: January 29, 2013
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Pages: 368 pages
Source: NetGalley
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Native American teenager, Fredericka "Fred" Oday, is an extremely talented golfer. When the school coach sees her play, he eagerly asks her to join the all-boys team. When Fred accepts, she has no idea that she is displacing one of the boys, who is intensely resentful, even though his wild behavior and low grades made his removal completely predictable. The best friend of the displaced boy, Ryan, is handsome and popular, and very loyal to his friend. Out of that loyalty, he is determined to dislike Fred. He also becomes more than a little jealous of Fred, because Ryan soon discovers that she is a brilliant player, much better than he is. Before she came, he was the top player on the team, but no longer.

I always appreciate any YA romance novel written with dual points of view. It was particularly useful knowing Ryan's point of view, because without it some of his actions would have made him seem more like a villain than a hero.

The author did an excellent job weaving in Fred's home life, cultural background, and her desire, with her family's support, to get an education and lift up her standard of living. The juxtaposition between her family life and Ryan's was also very interesting to read.

Fred is a very strong, focused young woman, and an extremely sympathetic heroine. It was fascinating learning about golf, a sport I personally know little about.

This is Liz Fichera's debut novel, and a rich addition to YA multicultural novels.

Review Disclosure: I received review copy of this book through NetGalley.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 5

Subcharacters: 5

Writing: 5

Family Drama Plot: 5

Social Drama Plot: 5

Romantic Plot: 4

Overall: 5

Book Review: V is for Virgin by Kelly Oram

Utterly delightful YA contemporary romantic comedy

V is for Virgin by Kelly Oram

Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: December 5, 2012
Publisher: Bluefields
Pages: 216 pages
Source: Purchased
Reviewed By: Kate McMurry

Eighteen-year-old high school senior, Val Jensen, is callously dumped by her handsome, heartless boyfriend when she refuses to have sex with him after dating him for three months. Not only that, her ex smears her reputation by proclaiming to anyone who will listen that he dumped Val, not because she would not have sex with him, but because he did have sex with her, and she was a lousy lay. As if that were not bad enough, he instantly replaces Val with a popular, beautiful "Mean Girl" who has much lower sexual standards than Val.

Val reaches the breaking point when she encounters her ex lip-locking with her replacement in an obnoxious, carnal display in the lunch room. She races over to them, jumps on their table, and shouts out to the hundreds of thunderstruck students surrounding them that her ex is a liar who rejected Val because she is a proud virgin who refuses to have sex before marriage. Her bold stand is video-recorded by a fellow student, posted on YouTube, and goes viral on the Internet.

Val is tagged with the nickname "Virgin Val," and "V for Virgin" becomes her modern-day version of The Scarlet Letter. In counterbalance to the relentless ridicule from her peers, Val has the loving support of her best friend, her adoptive mother, and a wonderful letter from her birth mother that she has read over and over again across the years. Her birth mother had Val at age 16, was unable to care for her, and urged Val in her letter to learn from her mistake and not repeat it. Val feels a sacred obligation to not let down her birth mother or herself.

Before the controversy from Val's YouTube fame can settle down, she comes to the attention of twenty-one-year-old high-school dropout and rock legend, Kyle Hamilton. Gorgeous, womanizing, charming and witty, Kyle is instantly and obviously attracted to Val. He is shocked to learn she is not only a virgin, but adamantly so. Kyle decides that Val's vow of abstinence is a challenge he can't refuse, and their very public battles fuel a media frenzy.

I am a huge fan of romantic comedy, both novels and movies, and this rollicking story has the potential to be both. It is highly visual and enormously entertaining. The battle of wits between Val and Kyle makes them one of the most compelling fictional couples I've ever had the privilege to encounter. The sexual chemistry between them is explosive, made all the more so because their relationship never gets beyond a few forbidden-fruit kisses.

If you love romantic comedy with an upbeat, happy ending, this book is for you.
Fans of YA romantic comedy by Janette Rallison will particularly enjoy this book.
I read the Kindle version of this book. It is beautifully laid out; the formatting is excellent, and the line edits are outstanding. It is better done, in fact, that the ebook editing from most big publishers.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 5










Subcharacters: 5

Writing: 5
Romance Plot with Kyle: 5


Overall: 5