Author: L. Philips
What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): Sam has been on a romantic dry-spell for a couple of years, ever since he broke up with the only eligible gay boy (and his best friend), Landon. Sam is convinced to perform a Wiccan spell with his friend, Meg, to find the perfect boyfriend. Could it be Gus, the French exchange student; Travis, the sexy musician; Jamie, the talented artist; or loyal Landon, who wants another chance? Will Sam ever find his true love?
What I think (in 250 words or fewer): Perfect Ten is a fun summer beach read. The slight angst is of the teenage romantic type, and everything turns out fabulous, in the fairy-tale style of Harlequin romance novels.
After I wrote the above two sentences, I made the mistake of reading other reviews of this book. I could not believe how many negative reviews I found. Did we read the same book? Or--did we just have completely different expectations when we read the book blurb?
I do agree that the characters are shallow, spoiled, self-centered, and sometimes silly (I didn't mean to use quite that much alliteration, but my points stand). I also agree that they are privileged white kids and add that Sam talks about how awesome he is Zack-Morris-style and is totally Jessica Wakefield in this book; even Sam's friends tell him he's "short-sighted" sometimes.
If they were not his friends, they would tell him he's a stupid, thoughtless jerk occasionally.
I realize that not all high school students are immature Jessica Wakefield types, but Sam definitely is, and I think he does learn from his mistakes and grow as a character throughout the book. I also would maintain that most people make stupid, thoughtless jerk-moves in the name of love, especially as a teenagers.
I tried not to let the negative reviews affect my initial enjoyment of Perfect Ten, although I can see the points of some of the reviewers (even though I think they are taking the book too seriously).
This book is on the 2018 Rainbow Book List.
My final takeaway (in 75 words or fewer): Do you like romance novels? The cheesy, formulaic kind that are fun to read if you don't over-analyze the plot and characters? Then you'll like this book.
Fluffy, romantic, and no angst but the privileged-teenage-boy-kind made Perfect Ten a fun summer read for me. I breezed through the book and enjoyed it.
My favorite quotes/passages:
- "Write that down in the books, ladies and gentlemen. A teenager admitted he was too young for sex. Go ahead. Throw your Abstinence Club party. Don't forget the streamers" (paperback edition, pg. 32).
- "From this angle he looks like he walked out off the cover of a Harlequin paperback. I imagine the title would be something lame like Rebel with a Cause, and that the heroine would slowly turn him from a bad boy to a suitable gentleman she could bring home to Mother. As long as he kept that wild streak in the bedroom, of course" (pg. 149).
- "'In the words of the great Garth Algar, if you're gonna spew, spew into this.'
I don't ask him who Garth Algar is. I'll Google it when I'm sober" (pg. 173). - "Give her a break, Sam. She says she loves him. Love can make you stupid. And crazy" (pg. 266).
Other reviews: As I mentioned above, Perfect Ten has a lot of mixed reviews. Several of them are under Goodreads, and here is one from Kirkus Reviews.
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