17 First Kisses

April 21, 2014
While high school senior Claire Jenkins and her beautiful best friend, Megan, have a long history of supporting each other when it comes to family, they tend to compete over guys. After a handsome soccer player named Luke moves to their small town, Megan gets him first, much to Claire’s dismay and anger. But Luke keeps paying attention to Claire, and soon he’s breaking up with Megan, and Claire is risking their friendship to keep her romance with Luke a secret. Between chapters, debut author Allen includes flashbacks to Claire’s past kisses (dating back to second grade), though these sections are really about revealing the evolution of Claire and Megan’s friendship and a past family tragedy. While the flashbacks are informative and entertaining, they can frustrate the forward momentum of the novel; additionally, Allen sometimes skips over weeks’ worth of events with a few lines, making the story occasionally feel disjointed. As Claire struggles to understand if and when a boy might be worth risking a friendship, readers should find it easy to relate. Ages 13–up. Agent: Susan Hawk, the Bent Agency.

May 1, 2014

Gr 9 Up-High school senior Claire has kissed many frogs in search of her prince. Starting in kindergarten, her kissing partners have run the gamut from band nerds to star football players. All the while, her best friend Megan has been by her side. Megan's good looks and magnetism sometimes leave Claire playing second fiddle. When a new boy moves into town, he seems to be the perfect boyfriend for Claire, but her best friend is interested in him, too. The teens devise rules for how they are to handle the situation and remain friends-but both girls find themselves bending these tenets. Told in a series of flashbacks, Claire's story has humor and optimism and breaks through the high school love triangle formula. The backstory involving her family is detailed and adds depth to the novel. The protagonist is placed in several compromising but realistic situations involving underage drinking and sexual pressure. She makes strong decisions and deals with the consequences of her actions. Recommend to teens looking for a beach read.-Morgan Brickey, Marion County Public Library System, FL

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.