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A review by amandapate
17 First Kisses by Rachael Allen
1.0
Review by: Amanda at Of Spectacles and Books
Why I Chose this Book:
I have come to the realization that I snub my nose at chick-lit too much. I know that I should be a well-rounded reader, and I chose this month to read at least 2-3 contemporary novels. This was a freebee I got on Edelweiss, so I decided to give it a shot. And dear God, I wish I hadn’t. I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Just to preface, this review is going to be full of ranting and raving about how upset I am about this book, so if that is not something you’re into (including minor spoilers), you should skip reading and just know not to waste your money and time on this book.
5 things you need to know about this book
1. Misleading Synopsis
This book was not okay on so many levels I nearly stopped reading it. The only reason why I finished it was so I could write a review over it. Good job to whoever mentioned Stephanie Perkins in the synopsis, because that was the reason why I took a chance on it since I’ve heard such great things about her work. But like most synopses that name drop, it fell desperately short. Even the synopsis itself is extremely misleading. I thought Claire was going to be a sweet girl, but she ended up being a popular girl right next to her best friend Megan, who -much like Claire -acted like a complete B*.
2. Abusive Relationships are Poorly Handled
Abusive relationships aren’t like Allen portrays in her book. Well, I won’t generalize it like that -most abusive relationships aren’t like she presents it in the book. Allen could have gone into so much more detail about the emotional and physical reactions to being in an abusive relationship, and even into the manipulation abusive boyfriends tend to use on girls. But Allen didn’t do anything like this. She made the relationship out to be a funny thing after it was all over.
This made my blood boil. This is a book primarily for teenagers. These teenagers are being taught that it’s still the girl’s fault if she gets raped, so what the hell is this book trying to tell girls about abusive relationships? I mean seriously? Abusive relationships should not be romanticized in any way, even if it’s just in a minor way.
Furthermore, Claire's friendship with Megan is not what friendship should be about. It shows a very skewed version of friendship that is based on selfish desires and not on a mutually giving partnership.
3. What is up with these characters?
These character were just terrible. There was no depth, no growth, no self-discovery really. There were multiple times she could have taken advantage of good material to go in depth with theses character, but she never took it. (1) She gave Luke a verbally abusive dad, but didn’t go into how that shaped him as a character; it is only implied. (2) Claire had a mom who was severely depressed -she touched on this the most, but it didn’t do much for me in way of shedding light on her character. (3) Megan is as close to a bimbo without being a bimbo as you can get with no development either.
4. Megan and Claire and teenage sex
The friendship between Megan and Claire is so jacked up. They act like stupid preteens with promises they never intend to keep and hormones they never even try to keep in check. They think, and the author supports, that messing around and having sex is what everyone does, as if it’s a rite of passage. Allen presents this facet of the book with absolutely no repercussions. She paints both of the characters (though Claire is still a virgin) as sexual teens, but she never shows the impact of sex or sexual actions and what it can do to people emotionally.
5. Other Minor Rants
A) You don’t screw over your best friend for a boy. That’s a no-no. But screwing over your best friend twice? Something is seriously wrong. No high schooler who wants to graduate alive (socially and otherwise) does crap like this.
B) You don’t kiss all of your ex-boyfriend’s buddies in order to get back at him. Like really? Claire even leads on one of the poor guys. Once again, she shows how selfish she is.
C) Peer Pressure GALORE! Claire and Megan are the popular girls in school, and much like the stereotype, they are as helpless as a fairytale damsel when it comes to peer pressure. Claire is constantly listening to peer pressure, even when she knows it’s not right -even to the certain extent that she ponders if rape is okay. Yeah, NO! There is absolutely no strength of character to be had in this novel except for one person (Sam), but there is almost no development for him, and he’s sadly flat.
Final Thoughts
I’m almost as disappointed in HarperTeen for picking this book up as I am at Rachael Allen for thinking that the issues she mentions in her book is okay for anyone let alone teenagers to read. I would not in any way recommend this book. It wasn’t even good writing in my opinion. You people may find my review harsh, but I can’t tell you how angry, offended, and frustrated I am that this book was even picked up to publish let alone written with the idea that this thought process is still found valid in our society today.
Why I Chose this Book:
I have come to the realization that I snub my nose at chick-lit too much. I know that I should be a well-rounded reader, and I chose this month to read at least 2-3 contemporary novels. This was a freebee I got on Edelweiss, so I decided to give it a shot. And dear God, I wish I hadn’t. I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Just to preface, this review is going to be full of ranting and raving about how upset I am about this book, so if that is not something you’re into (including minor spoilers), you should skip reading and just know not to waste your money and time on this book.
5 things you need to know about this book
1. Misleading Synopsis
This book was not okay on so many levels I nearly stopped reading it. The only reason why I finished it was so I could write a review over it. Good job to whoever mentioned Stephanie Perkins in the synopsis, because that was the reason why I took a chance on it since I’ve heard such great things about her work. But like most synopses that name drop, it fell desperately short. Even the synopsis itself is extremely misleading. I thought Claire was going to be a sweet girl, but she ended up being a popular girl right next to her best friend Megan, who -much like Claire -acted like a complete B*.
2. Abusive Relationships are Poorly Handled
Abusive relationships aren’t like Allen portrays in her book. Well, I won’t generalize it like that -most abusive relationships aren’t like she presents it in the book. Allen could have gone into so much more detail about the emotional and physical reactions to being in an abusive relationship, and even into the manipulation abusive boyfriends tend to use on girls. But Allen didn’t do anything like this. She made the relationship out to be a funny thing after it was all over.
This made my blood boil. This is a book primarily for teenagers. These teenagers are being taught that it’s still the girl’s fault if she gets raped, so what the hell is this book trying to tell girls about abusive relationships? I mean seriously? Abusive relationships should not be romanticized in any way, even if it’s just in a minor way.
Furthermore, Claire's friendship with Megan is not what friendship should be about. It shows a very skewed version of friendship that is based on selfish desires and not on a mutually giving partnership.
3. What is up with these characters?
These character were just terrible. There was no depth, no growth, no self-discovery really. There were multiple times she could have taken advantage of good material to go in depth with theses character, but she never took it. (1) She gave Luke a verbally abusive dad, but didn’t go into how that shaped him as a character; it is only implied. (2) Claire had a mom who was severely depressed -she touched on this the most, but it didn’t do much for me in way of shedding light on her character. (3) Megan is as close to a bimbo without being a bimbo as you can get with no development either.
4. Megan and Claire and teenage sex
The friendship between Megan and Claire is so jacked up. They act like stupid preteens with promises they never intend to keep and hormones they never even try to keep in check. They think, and the author supports, that messing around and having sex is what everyone does, as if it’s a rite of passage. Allen presents this facet of the book with absolutely no repercussions. She paints both of the characters (though Claire is still a virgin) as sexual teens, but she never shows the impact of sex or sexual actions and what it can do to people emotionally.
5. Other Minor Rants
A) You don’t screw over your best friend for a boy. That’s a no-no. But screwing over your best friend twice? Something is seriously wrong. No high schooler who wants to graduate alive (socially and otherwise) does crap like this.
B) You don’t kiss all of your ex-boyfriend’s buddies in order to get back at him. Like really? Claire even leads on one of the poor guys. Once again, she shows how selfish she is.
C) Peer Pressure GALORE! Claire and Megan are the popular girls in school, and much like the stereotype, they are as helpless as a fairytale damsel when it comes to peer pressure. Claire is constantly listening to peer pressure, even when she knows it’s not right -even to the certain extent that she ponders if rape is okay. Yeah, NO! There is absolutely no strength of character to be had in this novel except for one person (Sam), but there is almost no development for him, and he’s sadly flat.
Final Thoughts
I’m almost as disappointed in HarperTeen for picking this book up as I am at Rachael Allen for thinking that the issues she mentions in her book is okay for anyone let alone teenagers to read. I would not in any way recommend this book. It wasn’t even good writing in my opinion. You people may find my review harsh, but I can’t tell you how angry, offended, and frustrated I am that this book was even picked up to publish let alone written with the idea that this thought process is still found valid in our society today.