Reader reviewed by the book muncher

Colbie Cavendish is looking forward to a fun summer spenet partying with her new (and über-popular) circle of friends. Unfortunately, her fighting parents decide to send her to a tiny Greek island no ones ever heard of to stay with her crazy aunt Tally. This is practically unforgivable to Colbie since shell only have minimal contact with her new friends (email) and is worried theyll forget her. But when Colbie finally takes a break from being depressed about her vacation when she spends mostly in an Internet café, she realizes that maybe she should be out living instead of mourning all the changes to her old life. And thats when she meets Yannis, a gorgeous Greek guy whos just as interested in her as she is in him. It seems Colbies vacation isnt as miserable as she thought it would be; it changes her perspective on her entire life.

I really enjoyed Alyson Noëls writing in her other novels that Ive read, Faking 19 and Saving Zoë, and Cruel Summer was no different. While the plot isnt fast-paced and exciting, its the well-developed characters that really caught my attention, though in this case, Colbie was the only well-developed character as the story was told from her point-of-view. Alyson Noël has a subtle way of making her stories much deeper and more meaningful than they may appear on the surface, and this makes them seem real. For example, Colbie is initially portrayed as a whiny and insecure girl, but as her vacation progresses, she starts to appreciate or at least accept what she has in life. I also liked how romance was incorporated into Colbies story, because she really deserved Yannis in the midst of all her other problems. In all, Cruel Summer was a very enjoyable story and, despite the cover, much better than just a beach read.

In a strange way, although none of her novels rank very high among my favorites, Alyson Noël is one of my favorite authors. Its not just because shes an Orange County resident like me and often writes about that setting; Alyson Noël just has a really great writing style. I definitely recommend Cruel Summer as well as her other novels that Ive read, Faking 19 and Saving Zoë. I also look forward to reading Art Geeks and Prom Queens and Kiss & Blog sometime in the future.

reposted from http://thebookmuncher.blogspot.com