Mundie Moms

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Book Review: Who I Kissed by Janet Gurtler



Published by: SourceBooks Fire
Released on: October 1st, 2012
Source: ARC from publisher to review
4 stars: I Enjoyed It
Purchased from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

She Never Thought A Kiss Could Kill. . .

Samantha is new at school and just recently joined the swim team.  She’s been flirting with one of her teammates, Zee, who invites her to a party and just as quickly dumps her for another girl.  Hurt, but pretending not to care, she turns to his best friend, Alex, and gives him a kiss.  And he dies—right in her arms.  Alex was allergic to peanuts, and Samantha had eaten a peanut butter sandwich right before the party.  She didn’t know.  Overnight, Samantha turns into the school pariah and a media sensation explodes.  

Consumed with guilt, abandoned by her friends, and in jeopardy of losing her swimming scholarship, she will have to find the inner-strength to forgive herself for the tragedy.  Critics are already applauding the author’s insight and her ability to make her “character breathe with life” (Kirkus Reviews). Skillfully capturing the raw, honest emotions of her teen protagonists, Janet paints them into a searing portrait of a tragedy that uproots the lives of everyone it touches.

This book was a pleasant surprise for me. I'm trying to branch out a bit more in my reading of YA contemporaries, something I don't read a lot of, and I really liked Janet's writing style and her story telling. She did an incredible job at creating a realistic story that deals with heartache, grief, love, learning to forgive, moving forward, choices, consequences and variety of other topics readers will easily relate to. The thing I was most impressed with in Who I Kissed was Janet's ability to bring awareness to food allergies, and mental illness without it being preachy or heavy. While both things are a huge factor in the lives of the teens in this book, it's their relationships, and the choices they make that really drew me into the story.

Life is about choices. No matter how big or small they are, they shape us, and our future. I liked that, that was a theme with Samantha's story. It's those choices no matter how planned out or spur of the moment they are, that turned her life upside down, and took her on a different course that she had planned. Like that time she ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, not realizing the deadly effect it could have on Alex, the guy she barley knew and kissed at that party. I really enjoyed getting to know Samantha. She's someone I felt like I connected with right away, and I enjoyed her strong voice. I sympathized with and I cheered her on. I understood her pain, and sorrow as well as her motivation to continue on. I liked that while she had a support group of her dad, her close friend and her aunt, the choice was always hers to get through the tragic event that has now changed her life.

In this web of sorrow, heartache and grief, comes something powerful, and it's Samantha and her will to just live. To take one day at a time and to try and cope with all that's gone around her and try to make things right in a new kind of way. The thing I loved about this book is how real the characters felt. It's not just Samantha, but her dad, her aunt, her crush Zee, her best friend, and Alex's family. I got their emotions, I understood their motives, and I liked that there is more to what really happened that night at the party than we're first made to believe. This is a book that unravels perfectly revealing just enough I need to know at all the right moments. It's a story that includes first kisses, the first kisses you wish you got, new romances, hope, hate, bullies, crushes, family relationships, and so much more. Most importantly it's book about forgiving and moving one. I love the way Janet tackles all the emotional sides that happen in this book, and puts it in a realistic high school setting. It's not just about Samantha, but about Alex's family, his best friends, and those that surround both Samantha, Zee and those who knew Alex best.

There's so much more I want to say about this book, but I'll just say it's one I'd recommend picking up. I really enjoyed Janet's writing style and I'm looking forward to reading more of her books. There is some mild language, mentions of sex/fooling around, and tastefully written sex scene, and a lot of talk about grief and coping with the loss of a loved one/good friend. It's a book that may not be for everyone, but it's one I felt was realistically written, and one I'd probably read again.

Don't miss my guest post with Janet and enter to win a copy of Who I Kissed HERE.

5 comments:

  1. Great review! I have not read any of Janet Gurtler's books but this one does sound fabulous. I will have to pick it up sometime!

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    1. Thank you Katie! This is the first book I've read of Janet's and I'm looking forward to reading more of her books. I hope you enjoy it!

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  2. Wow, this book sounds like an interesting read! The poor girl is shunned because she accidentally kills a guy by kissing him from a peanut allergy? I like that this is a completely new concept for a book!

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    1. Yes! It's really well written!! I found the different approach to be really appealing. It's a good read.

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  3. I have the book and can't wait to read it. Nor can my 10 year old after Janet told him about it while she was still writing it. I just have to read it first to make sure it's appropriate for him.


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