Review Detail

'Dating My Nemesis' (formerly called 'The C Word') by Michelle MacQueen and Ann Maree Craven is just as engaging as 'Dating My Best Friend' and 'Dating the Boy Next Door,' the two novels that come before it in the series. Mean girl Addison and loner Julian both were hurt by the loss of Cooper Callahan years before. Not only was Addison stuck on him, but Julian was his twin until the fateful day when he died. The book spends more time shedding light on Cooper's motives that night which led to the accident that killed him. Addison finds herself dealing with the repercussions of what happened when Cooper finally showed interest in her, and Julian deals with wearing his brother's face while being in love with the same girl that Cooper hurt so badly just before his death.

There is pain and heartache, but even more, there is truth, kindness, and understanding that stem from the honesty that Addison and Julian reveal to each other throughout the story. Even though that night tore their group apart and sent them all off in different directions, trying to deal with the accident in the only ways that allowed them to cope, they all share a bond that has thrust some of them back together and is seeming to bring Addison and Julian some of that same closure.

While Addison talks to an anonymous guy online about books, she finds that her life really isn't all it's cracked up to be, heading the cheerleading team and dealing with mean girls like her supposed best friend. She finds strength in old friends when she needs help most, and while Julian tries to tell himself he won't be there for her, he finds that it's hard to stay away from the girl he's always cared about, but hasn't been able to reveal his feelings to because of his brother, Cooper, who was always deemed the golden child.

With cameos from the other characters that make up the first two books in the series, and with a hearty helping of romance, upset, and coming to terms with the past, MacQueen and Craven have done it again. Any contemporary novel by these two should surely be on every YA romance reader's to-be-read list.