Novel Review: How to Be Bad by Lauren Myracle, Sarah Mlynowski, and E. Lockhart

Rating (Out of 5): ~3-3.5

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release Date: 2008

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Teaser Tuesday.

Goodreads Synopsis:

From the authors of ttyl, Bras & Broomsticks, and The Boyfriend List come three unforgettable characters—and one exhilarating novel

Vicks is the wild child whose boyfriend has gone suspiciously quiet since he left for college; Mel is the newcomer desperate to be liked; and Jesse will do anything to avoid a life-altering secret. Each one has her own reason for wanting to get the heck out of their nowheresville town, even just for the weekend. So they climb into Jesse's mom's "borrowed" station wagon and head south.

Hearts will be broken, friendships will be tested, and a ridiculously hot stranger could change the course of everything

The Cover:

I rather like the covers for this book. The one above is mine, and I like it's simplicity, and that the alligator has a meaning in the book. It matches with E. Lockhart's early covers, as well, which I like. The newer cover is just as pretty, too, though, and more modern, showing a better side of the story, I think.

Review:

Three girls who work at a waffle house together, all at least somewhat tired of their lives, decide to go on a weekend trip together.

There’s Vicks, whose boyfriend has left for college and whom she’s heard very little from since. She doesn’t know what to do about it, and she’s feeling increasingly alone, now being the only kid left at home, even with her best friend keeping things from her. Said best friend, Jesse, is getting more and more stuck up and religious, now that her mother is sick. And then there’s Mel, the rich girl who’s always been the middle child, the tie breaker, forgotten.

I liked Vicks and Mel. Vicks is tough, even as she’s alone and missing her boyfriend. I really liked the end where she finally sees him; they’re kind of adorable. Mel is quiet, more conservative, and I related most to her. She also meets a guy along the way, and I thought they were fun together. Jesse was a little harder to like, being as uptight as she was. She was better by the end, though.

This was a pretty all right book. I liked their journey, and really liked the two romances. The humor was more crude than I like, but that’s just my preference, and I’m sure most people won’t mind as much as I did.