Secrets (Ivy, #2) by Lauren Kunze and Rina Onur

*Spoilers from the first book may be present in the summary, so if you have not read it and/or don't want the book be spoiled, please do not read this review.*

Summary/Cover Image from Publisher's Website:

Gregory or Clint? Clint or Gregory? Matt, anyone? And what is Lexi up to . . . exactly? When we last saw Callie Andrews, she was caught on the horns of a dilemma. Lexi was threatening to expose all of her safely guarded, deeply buried secrets from high school, and Callie had just hooked up with bad-boy Gregory—despite the fact that she had a perfect (sort of) boyfriend and her BFF Vanessa had claimed (sort of) Gregory as her own. Yow. Entertaining, hilarious, addictive, scandalous, sexy, and smart, The Ivy series is an insider’s look at freshman life at Harvard University. This isn’t high school anymore!

Review:

Just when I thought the world of The Ivy could not get any more scandalous, dramatic, or suspenseful, Secrets, the newest addition in The Ivy series, comes along and blows my expectations right out of the water.

Quite simply, Callie is not looking forward to returning to the drama and deceit she left back at Harvard. However, not going back is not an option so there she is back in her freshman year after an uneventful Thanksgiving break. As usual, nothing is going her way. For one, Lexi is still threatening to unleash the secret Callie would do anything to hide, and because of it, Callie’s now doing all of Lexi’s dirty work, even if means letting go of the things she loves the most. Next, her BFF Vanessa is not talking to her, which is causing major chaos in their dorm. Most importantly, Gregory, the boy she hates to love, is acting weird around her, leaving her to wonder once again whom she will end up with… Gregory, Matt, or Clint? Better yet, will she ever get out of Lexi’s hold on her? Moreover, will her and Vanessa every call a truce and make up? Only time and more pages will tell in this unforgettable sequel to what started it all- The Ivy.

Just like in The Ivy, the characters in this were one of the best parts of the novel. For one, there was some much-needed development into them and their relationships, and for two, they became just all around three-dimensional for the most part. My favorite would still have to Callie, as not only is she very much likable and root-able, but parts of her story are very much ones that any girl can relate to, no matter how young or how old. The only aspect I didn’t like about her character in this was the fact that it took her quite a bit of time to stand up for herself involving that one secret, but it did cause for some great suspense to occur in the long run as well as nail-biting type scenes, so I suppose it was worth it in the end.

I also enjoyed the focus on Callie’s love life, because if anything, it is very eventful, and best of all, it moves in some great directions. For instance, Gregory steps it up a bit in this novel, as does Clint, which made me forever indecisive when it came to picking whom Callie would end up with.

Furthermore, I once again think the Lauren Kunze and Rina Onur did a great job with the plot in this. Full of drama, secrets, lies, and romance, there wasn’t a time when I wasn’t dying to flip the page, so I could finally find out what would occur next. Better yet, I also loved that while a big portion of Secrets has to do with love, there still is a focus on friendship and day-to-day college life, as I feel it give this series an edge to most YA books out there. Most importantly, I also liked how they faced a particularly heavy issue in this, though I will not say much more about that, since I don’t want to spill any spoilers.

Even better than the prequel, Secrets once again has the ability to win over fans, as they become fully involved in Callie’s story. I can only hope the third one will be as amazing, if not more.

Grade: A+

Secrets is now out!

Source: Melissa at HarperTeen- thanks!

Secrets Teaser Tour

If you've been a long time reader of this blog, you might remember that I read, loved, and reviewed a book called The Ivy last year (by the equally fabulous Lauren Kunze and Rina Onur). Anyhow, as part as the special teaser tour for Secrets, the second installment in this series, I have an exclusive sneak pick of it for you all today.

However, before we get to that, here's the official summary for the book. Be aware that spoilers may be present if you haven't read the first book.

You're a student at the most prestigious university in the country, and you've been tapped for the most elite social club. You've made it!

Now Don't Blow It!

Callie Andrews triumphed during her first semester at Harvard: she made incomparable friends, found the perfect boyfriend, and received invitations to the most exclusive secret societies. But she may have ruined every-thing with one ill-fated night. Now she's keeping secrets from everyone, including—

Clint
the upperclassman who's too good to be true

Vanessa

the best friend turned backstabber

Gregory

the guy who's a total(ly hot) mistake

and Lexi
the social queen who wants to bring Callie down.

But Callie didn't get into Harvard by giving up, and she isn't about to now. Besides, she's not the only one with something to hide..

And now here is the exclusive teaser:

Blushing, she giggled. “Oh . . . why is it so hard to stay mad at you?”

“Maybe because I just spent the last two hours of my life saving yours . . . though it could be because you saw me in a towel?”

Curious? Pick up Secrets on May 31, 2011! And The Ivy as well if you haven't read it yet.

To see past and future teasers:

April 25th: Ivy Website
April 26th: Bookalicio.us
April 27th: Bloody Bookaholic 
April 28th: Ramblings of a Teenage Bookworm 
April 29th Truth Be Told 
May 3rd: Book Vixen 
May 4th: The Nerd's Wife
May 5th: Bookwormygirl 
May 9th: La Femme Readers 
May 10th: Ivy Website

And be sure to check back for my review of Secrets coming later this month!

The Ivy by Lauren Kunze and Rina Onur

Summary/Cover Image from Publisher's Website:

Congratulations! You have been admitted to the most prestigious university in the world. Now what are you going to do?

Callie Andrews may not have money or connections or the right clothes, and she may have way too many complications in her love life, what with—

Gregory

the guy she loves to hate

Evan

the guy she'd love to forget

Clint

the guy she'd love to love

and Matt

the guy she really should love

—all vying for her attention.

But she has three fantastic roommates (best friends or her worst nightmare?) and a wholesome California-girl reputation (oops) and brains and beauty and big, big dreams.

Will it be enough to help her survive freshman year at Harvard?

Review:

I've been dying to read The Ivy ever since I first heard of way back in '09, and I have to say, now that I've read it, it was well-worth the wait. No doubt about it.

To me, The Ivy is like Gossip Girl goes to college meets Lauren Conrad's L.A. Candy series with just a bit more substance then both of those reads have combined, which left it to be a mix I absolutely adored!

The Ivy tells the tale of Callie, a girl who's just about to start her first year at the highly prestigious Harvard University. In high school Callie used to be one of the most popular girls there; she never had any trouble making friends, getting the good grades, and having all the boys drooling over her, and she expects to collage to be the same way of course. Though, as she is soon about to find out, it won't be that easy, because first of all she has three kooky but somewhat lovable roommates, but is one out to ruin her reputation? Second of all, her boyfriend of several years has just broken up with her, but is he hiding a major secret? Third, she has Harvard's queen bee out to get her as well. Last of all, she's having boy trouble, major, major boy trouble. You see, not only does she have an ex who she can't seem to get out of her mind, but she has Gregory, the guy who loves to make her mad, Matt, the sweet, nerdy, and charming boy who has a heart of gold, and Clint, the rich socialite who she would do anything to really, really love. Now, it seems that freshman year will be anything but simple. Though, will she be able to survive it? Only time will tell!

I really, really liked Callie. She was funny, sweet, and all around good person, though that never stopped me from wanting to shake some sense into her sometimes, which made her even more lovable in my eyes. I enjoyed seeing her have hobbies besides just chasing boys around. Also, I found her three roommates to be absolutely hysterical; my favorite out of the three, though, would have to be Mimi. Further more, it always proved to be interesting to see Callie go through her days at Harvard because it never failed to provide drama, drama, and some laughter, but the one thing that made Callie the most relatable and someone I never ceased to root for, in my opinion, was her ability to make mistakes and learn from them; it's an important quality to have I have to say. Plus, this wouldn't be a complete if I didn't talk about the boys at least once. Matt was amazing, by far one of my favorite's of Callie's guys. I especially liked his expose about sexism at Harvard because it really was eye-opening and made me think. Further more, Gregory was swoon-worthy and sarcastic, though he was imperfect in almost all ways when it came to dealing with his possible liking of Callie. Also, my favorite non-Callie boy was OK, who was just a complete riot.

Besides the characters, my other favorite part of The Ivy was its setting, because I loved the fact that Kunze and Onur included some of Harvard's history, legacies, and clubs among other tidbits in it.

Further more, the plot was filled with fun and drama, and when mixed with the easy-going writing, it was easy to fall right into this book and finish in a few short hours. I especially loved how while it was told from Callie's third person narrative, it also included little snippets from the other characters lives because it always seemed to provide a new little twist.

I'm not really one to say whether or not it did an accurate job of portraying college life because of the fact I'm still in high school, but from what I've read from other reviews by people who have experienced college life, it seems to them at least that it does a good job of portraying the social and study part of it.

In all, The Ivy proves to be the perfect breezy end of summer read and a new series to keep an eye out for because I have a feeling it can only get better and better from here.

Grade: A-

The Ivy will be released August 31, 2010.

Source: Publicist at HarperCollins. Thanks, Melissa!