#scandal

June 15, 2014
Why, oh why, didn't Lucy Vaccaro just skip prom and stay home playing "Undead Shred" like she wanted to?If she had, she never would have kissed Cole, the boy she's secretly been in love with for four years-and her best friend's boyfriend. She wouldn't have lost her cellphone either, and she would have avoided the social media nightmare that erupts when compromising pictures of everybody at that post-prom party are broadcast from her Facebook account-including a photo of that kiss with Cole. Ockler's take on cyberbullying, social media and friendship is a rambling, agreeably foulmouthed and often funny one, but it feels both overstuffed and underdeveloped. It's at least in part a mystery, but authorial misdirection produces an unsatisfying and anticlimactic resolution rather than enjoyable red herrings. A subplot involving Lucy's Lindsay Lohan-like older sister provides opportunities for parallelism and reflection, but it also helps boost the page count. Likewise, pages dedicated to amiable bickering among the sweetly goofy members of an anti-social media activist group that allies with Lucy are amusing but feel ancillary. Lucy herself begins to feel more a tool for the message than a fully developed character, despite her engaging narration.As platitudes mount in the second half of the book, readers may find themselves wishing Lucy'd played "Undead Shred," too. (Fiction. 14-18)

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June 1, 2014

Gr 9 Up-Despite her reservations, Lucy Vacarro gives in to best friend Ellie's request that she stand in as Cole's prom date, while Ellie is at home sick. Though she'd rather be at home slaying zombies instead of in a poofy dress, Lucy spends a momentous night with Cole, whom she's been secretly in love with for years. The pair shares a few drunken kisses and the next day a picture of their faux pas is posted on Lucy's Facebook, along with photos of her classmates' indiscretions. Now persona non grata, the protagonist is pulled in for cyberbullying counseling and branded a homewrecker. She sets out to clear her name with the help of a quirky group of technophobes, her starlet sister, and the British import school newspaper editor. Preachy at times about the dangers of social media mismanagement and little heavy on the Veronica Mars jokes, this engrossing novel ties together important themes of friendship, celebrity worship, and slut-shaming. Teens will happily tag along as Lucy tries to uncover the identity of not only the true perpetrator, but also who's behind the Gossip Girl-type blogger who collects the high school's scandals. Primary and secondary characters are fully developed; however, readers may find the male lead a little underwhelming. The classic "I'm in love with my best friend's boyfriend" story with a 21st-century twist and lots of heart.-Shelley Diaz, School Library Journal

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