Sirenz

May 15, 2011

If two mismatched roommates fighting over a pair of high-fashion pumps accidentally push a gorgeous guy to his dismembering death but aren't anywhere near Mt. Olympus, do ye gods still see it?

Unfortunately for Meg and Shar, the goth girl and the perfect princess respectively, not only do the gods see them unintentionally cause the demise of a young man, the girls are coerced into acting as temporary Sirens for Hades in order to help him collect on the expired contract of an elusive celebrity and thus clear their own tarnished record. Though Hades, Demeter, Persephone and Hera all play a part in potentially conjuring a secondary interest in Greek mythology for readers, far more label than deity names are dropped as the girls traipse from Underworld to fashion world in their mission. Less of a redeeming tale of teamwork against all odds and more of a frothy comedy glazed with oversexed, overdressed gods and goddesses, there still lies the message that friendship can emerge under even the most unlikely circumstances—but only if the dowdy one realizes she can be pretty and the pretty one realizes she can be compassionate by making over said dowdy one.

A garish indulgence for young chick-lit devotees. (Paranormal chick lit. 12-15)

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

November 1, 2011

Gr 8 Up-Seniors Meg and Shar, unwilling roommates at a boarding school in New York City, make a deal with Hades and end up way over their heads. In a sequence of events that teeters between being ridiculous and horrific, the girls accidentally push an attractive new acquaintance in front of a train while they are fighting over a pair of shoes. Luckily (or unluckily), Hades pops up, dapper and chatty, and offers to restore Jeremy (he's been "sliced in half") if they work for him as Sirens and lure a reclusive fashion designer into the Underworld. They agree, and he gives them special powers, not mentioning that each time they use one they will transform slightly into the bird-women of legend. As the teens try to fulfill their contract by the deadline, other meddlesome deities make cameo appearances. Filled with outrageous, campy humor, Sirenz is mostly a fun romp for readers interested in shopping and fashion, though Hades's openly lascivious interest in Shar crosses the line into creepy.-Eliza Langhans, Hatfield Public Library, MA

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2011
Grades 8-10 What would it take for you to make a deal with Hades? For fashion-savvy 17-year-olds Shar and her punk-goth roommate, Meg, it's the chance to undo their involvement in a tragic subway accident. To seal the deal, they must lure fashion designer Romanov Arkady to his doom, assisted by their new Siren powers. But the girls learn being a Siren isn't all fun and games when they start to sprout feathers and talons. This series debut weaves a web of mythology, romance, bird beaks, and high fashion. Readers, of course, will have to suspend disbelief, but the experiences of this sartorial odd couple are funny and entertaining, and the mythological elements add a little extra pizzazz. Don't expect historical accuracy; these are not your everyday Homeric deities. Bennardo and Zaman are bringing the gods into the twenty-first century, and Meg and Shar get caught up in the fast-paced drama.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)