Wild Cards

August 26, 2013
Elkeles (the Perfect Chemistry books) is in familiar territory with this football-themed romance between Ashtyn Parker, captain of her high school’s team, and Derek Fitzpatrick, a bad boy with a heart of gold. When Derek’s stepmother Brandi, her young son, and Derek move into Ashtyn’s suburban Chicago home (Brandi is Ashtyn’s older sister), the two teenagers clash and sparks fly. There’s never any question that Ashtyn and Derek will end up together (her current quarterback boyfriend is a jerk), and their constant claims that they can’t stand each other get old and make them both come across as oblivious. The novel alternates between the two teens’ first-person narratives, but the already weak story is further let down by clichéd, hard-to-swallow dialogue and internal monologues (“Shit, this isn’t the way it’s supposed to go. I’m supposed to keep my emotions in check and only hook up with girls who want a good time”). Elkeles does little with Ashtyn’s supposed passion for football, and the romantic chemistry isn’t enough to rescue this uninspiring, by-the-numbers romance. Ages 14–up. Agent: Kristin Nelson, Nelson Literary Agency. (Oct.)■

August 1, 2013
Romance Lite in a new series from the author of Perfect Chemistry (2009). When Derek gets kicked out of prep school in California for playing a prank, he has no choice but to move to suburban Chicago with his young stepmother, Brandi. There, he meets Brandi's sister, Ashtyn, who's just been voted captain of the football team, to the chagrin of the star quarterback, her boyfriend, Landon. Ashtyn takes an immediate dislike to Derek, although she's charmed by his Southern drawl. Derek, a former quarterback himself, is impressed by Ashtyn's unlikely combination of hot femininity and prowess on the gridiron. A thin plot, weak characterizations and poorly realized setting are beside the point in this fast-moving story. There's plenty of sexually charged tension between Derek and Ashtyn as they go from beach parties and breakups to road trips and football camp. Alternating first-person chapters reveal the personal struggles of each as they fight the inevitability of falling in love. Unfortunately, the feminism implicit in Ashtyn's being a football player is undermined by her apparently unironic conclusion that real power comes from squeezing into a cocktail dress and stilettos and imagining herself a princess. Still, Elkeles' ability to write deliciously steamy love scenes for those in the early stages of their own sexual journeys will keep her fans coming back for more. (Fiction. 14- & up)

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November 1, 2013

Gr 10 Up-Being a prankster got Derek kicked out of school and, without a choice, he relocates with his young stepmother to her hometown outside Chicago. There, he bunks with Ashtyn, who is his stepmother's sister, the only girl on the high school football team, and quite possibly, the girl of his dreams. Ashtyn is the newly appointed team captain, and in a jealous rage, her longtime boyfriend, who had assumed he would be captain, betrays her and their teammates and transfers to the rival high school. To make matters worse, Ashtyn now has to come up with a plan to fix her broken heart and pull her team together. Deserted by her mother and the offspring of a disconnected father, she's been deceived by those closest to her countless times, and letting it happen again is not an option. Ashtyn has her vision set on football, but she becomes distracted by the game Derek plays as he sets his beguiling ways on her. The twists and turns of lust and love between her and Derek grow when she's forced to prove herself on the football field and in the field of love. Elkeles's reverse role of characters brings this steamy love story to life.-Keisha Miller, South Orange Public Library, NJ

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2013
Grades 9-12 Everything is sliding into place for kicker Ashtyn Parker. She was just voted captain of her high-school football team, which ups her chances at a scholarship to a Big Ten college, and she's dating Landon, the quarterback. Then bad-boy Derek Fitzpatrick shows up in her life, and everything Ashtyn has planned for is suddenly called into question. Thrown together by awkward family circumstances, Derek and Ashtyn fight their attraction for one another. When everything lines up to place them alone together on a road trip from Chicago to Texas, Derek and Ashtyn have to make some difficult choices when their passion threatens to overwhelm them both. Although this story has been told many times, award-winner Elkeles is very adept at creating three-dimensional characters and setting them up to make life-changing discoveries about themselves in believable ways. She also doesn't shy away from realistic teen sexuality or language. In alternating first-person points of view, this start to the Wild Cards series shows that sometimes the person you'd least expect can make a huge difference in your life.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: New York Times best-selling author Elkeles created a massive following with her Perfect Chemistry and Leaving Paradise books, and fans will be clamoring for this promising start to a new series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)

January 27, 2014
When Derek gets kicked out of boarding school, he has to move in with his pregnant stepmother in Chicago because his father is away at sea. Life gets more complicated when chemistry develops between Derek and a girl named Ashtyn, who is the football captain at his new school. Now the teens must navigate high school while fighting hormones that send them down dangerous pathways. The dual-narrator strategy works well in this audio edition, which features chapters alternating between first-person points of view. Heyborn effectively fleshes out Derek’s personality, utilizing inflection and tone. Rubinate also keeps listeners engaged during Ashtyn’s chapters, capturing the complexity of a young woman who is both powerful and vulnerable. However, when Heyborne gives voice to Ashtyn and Rubinate to Derek, their performances falter and feel distant. Ages 14–up. A Walker Children’s hardcover.

January 1, 2014
After Derek gets kicked out of boarding school, he reluctantly agrees to move to Chicago with his stepmother, Brandi. There, he's instantly drawn to Ashtyn (Brandi's sister), a feminine but tough football player--and vice versa. Even with a recognizable formula (especially to fans of the author's Perfect Chemistry trilogy) and two-dimensional characters, Elkeles manages to make the romance sizzle.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)