Perfect Chemistry

Why I Loved It: I've have recently decided that Simone Elkeles is amazing at creating the drool-worthy bad boys that win your heart and mind. Alex is one of my top book boyfriends. I mean seriously? The boy is this gorgeous and confident Latino boy, with full bad boy swagger, intelligence, and a family loyalty that most girls crave in a guy.

The book had all the set-up that leads to cliche, but Ms. Elkeles missed cliche by a landslide. I never expected Brittany's life to look like what I discovered throughout the book. Alex had so much more depth than I was expecting. The characters are just so relatable and likable which really helped. By the time I reached the end, I was screaming NEXT ONE and started mentally crying because it was 2 in the morning and the library didn't open for another six hours.

So if for some reason you have not read this book, you are going to get on that. Seriously. I can't really explain just how vital that is. Think Romeo and Juliet meets Latino gang in the modern time.... PLEASE READ IT!

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This book is sexy. Alex is so freaking original that I found it hard to see any bad in him. His and Brittany's relationship is sweet, because they both only want to help each other. It really makes me want a Latino guy! And the next book, about Carlos, is just as good. And hot.

The premise is based on the Romeo and Juliet, 2 different sides of the track idea. These 2 kids are too different to make it work. They have different backgrounds, different lifestyles; too different for them even to associate with each other in school, let alone outside of school.

The kids from the north side don’t really mix with kids from the south side. It’s not that we think we’re better than them, we’re just different. We’ve grown up in the same town, but on totally opposite sides. We live in big houses on Lake Michigan and they live next to the train tracks. We look, talk, act, and dress different. I’m not saying it’s good or bad; it’s just the way it is in Fairfield.

Alex is a bad boy gang member and Brittany’s a prissy ice princess. Can you see where this is going? Yeah, I could too, after about the first page. But that shouldn’t stop you from giving it a chance. Because getting there is very very fun.

They have a near disastrous meeting in the parking lot on the first day of school then of course they’re immediately assigned to be lab partners in Chemistry class (based on the alphabetical order of their last names, natch). Initially, they barely tolerate each other and try to outsmart the other with their witty banter and attitudes.

But are the attitudes covering something? Could there be more beneath the surface? Or are the stereotypes true? When a fellow gang member offers his car in a bet to see if Alex can bed the perfect Brittany by Thanksgiving, he figures she’s too lily-white for him to truly be interested in. She means nothing to him, so of course he takes the bet.

They are forced to spend time together to work on their Chemistry project and pretty soon sparks start to fly. They begin to see another side of each other. Ice princess with a not-so-perfect home life? Check. Gang member with a heart of gold? Check. Clichés abound, but they work here. Elkeles’ writing makes them seem new and different. You can see the development of their relationship and it happens in a very believable way.

There is plenty of sizzle as their dislike turns to lust, both of them insisting there’s nothing there. Once they get past the stereotypes, their relationship moves at a lightning fast pace. They fall hard and fast, as teenagers tend to do.

Each chapter alternates between Alex’s and Brittany’s point of view which I felt made it easy to get into the story, to know what they are thinking. Both main characters, and most of the supporting players, are very well-developed. You care quickly about them and understand why they do the things they do. They are flawed and gritty and real.

There is cussing a’plenty (in 2 different languages – bonus!) and lusty sexy scenes that made my heart go pitter patter. But again, it all felt very real and honest.

The sum up: Perfect Chemistry rocks. The premise feels new and fresh. The romance is raw and honest. Put this on your must read list right now.

Reader reviewed by cristal g.

Perfect chemistry is a book that keeps you wanting to read more. Is about two teens with total oppisite living styles until there put together to work in class, and have no choice but to work with each other not expecting what would happen later on. You have a north sider rich white girl falling for a south side gangster from chicago. They have a bit more in common then what they though and may change there lifes for good. Perfect chemistry makes you want your own love story like Alex Fuentes and Brittney from the stoy. You will not regret reading this book.

Reader reviewed by keka

I absolutely adore this book! I've read it about nine times already and it still doesn't get old. The romance was perfect. You can't help but fall in love with the dangerous and sexy Alex. I'll even admit that i cried a little bit towards the end. Perfect Chemistry is a definite must read.

Reader reviewed by jillian r

Synopsis:
Alex Fuentes is a gang member from the South on the outskirts of
Chicago. Brittany Ellis is a privileged and popular girl from the
north, who seems to have it all. They are total opposites who will
never get along. When they are forced to be lab partners in their
chemistry class, "the results are bound to be explosive." With
stereotypes, impressions, and misconceptions about each other comes a
lot of expectations -- hate, pranks, arguments, among many others. But
what happens is one that they least expected; they fall in love. Can
they break through the boundaries and the walls that separate them both?

Review: This is West Side Story and Romeo and Juliet combined
in a Young Adult novel. Bad boy and Miss Popular starts off hating each
other's guts, and ends up falling in love. Sounds stereotypical?
Overdone? Not one bit. Simone Elkeles takes a seemingly "overdone" premise, and adds a new and modern twist to it.

Reader reviewed by Lachelle

Perfect Chemistry was honestly a book I thought I wouldn't like when I took it out at the library although after I finished the book....OMG!!! I couldn't put it down, I kept reading it over and over again. That helps me know NEVER JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER. Brittany and Alex had absolutely amazing chemistry and it honestly made me cry for like one whole minute. I really recommend this book.

Reader reviewed by Lachelle

Perfect Chemistry was honestly a book I thought I wouldn't like when I took it out at the library although after I finished the book....OMG!!! I couldn't put it down, I kept reading it over and over again. That helps me know NEVER JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER. Brittany and Alex had absolutely amazing chemistry and it honestly made me cry for like one whole minute. I really recommend this book.

Reader reviewed by OIKZ

Where do I begin? If you have read Romeo and Juliet, this is somewhat relating to the same characters with different situations, subsequently confronting eachother, which will eventually ruin the reputation of the venerable character, then they will figure out a mutual understanding by spending time together, which will collapse their relationship in the end, then they reconcile and greet one another with warmth and live happily ever after. But wait, what happens when the guy you're falling hard for turns out to be of Mexican blood. Step in the shoes of Britney Ellis, a popular majorette in the cheerleading squad, holding a strong position in leadership, currently dating the most handsome quarterback on the surface of the planet. All's well, that doesn't end well. Why does shakespeare always has to ruin the happy, jubilant moments of each soul's life. The novel takes twists and turns that reaches a climatic point in both of the characters lives. So typical love story, with an amazing passionate relationship. You will come across some explicit profanity in Alex's Dialogue, so this is an admonition for those who refuse to read stories that include elements of that sort.