Saturday, February 4, 2012

Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick by Joe Schreiber

It wasn't Perry's idea to take Gobi to the prom. She is the Lithuanian exchange student living with Perry's family and while Perry was friendly with her, they weren't exactly close. But there they were, at the prom. Following a small physical altercation, they leave but instead of heading home, Gobi insists that they drive into New York City for one unforgettable evening. And between dodging bullets, staring down possibly dangerous men, and evading the police,  it will definitely be a night that Perry will never forget.

It took me awhile to get into this book because I wasn't ready (or willing) to hand myself over to it at the beginning. I kept asking questions about the story: Why doesn't Perry just stand up to his parents? Who's Gobi working for? Is this making any sense? I told myself to read 50 pages before I made any decisions, and the next thing I knew I was 130 pages in. It kind of snuck up on me and pulled me in. Information was parceled out over the course of the book, and while I wish that there was at least a bit of explanation of Gobi's motives and role earlier on, I was satisfied with what was revealed. Another thing that kept me turning the pages was that it seemed like it wasn't always adhering to common YA romance/adventure fiction conventions. People get shot. People die. There are repercussions from actions. When I expected one thing to happen, another would happen instead. This kept me on my toes while reading and pushed me to finish the book to see what happens. I read the entire book in one sitting, and I think that that was the best reading experience for the book. I can easily this being a movie because it had so many great cinematic elements (the transformation from quiet wallflower to hot assassin, chase scenes, a great ending).

Check out Joe Schreiber's blog.

Find it at IndieBound. 

Read it with:
Chasing the Dead by Joe Schreiber
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn
A Long Long Sleep by Anna Sheehan
Fat Vampire by Adam Rex

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