Review: This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers

Name of book: This Is Not A Test
Author: Courtney Summers
Publication: June 19th 2012 by St. Martin's Griffin
Genre: YA Paranormal
Source: Owned

It’s the end of the world. Six students have taken cover in Cortege High but shelter is little comfort when the dead outside won’t stop pounding on the doors. One bite is all it takes to kill a person and bring them back as a monstrous version of their former self. To Sloane Price, that doesn’t sound so bad. Six months ago, her world collapsed and since then, she’s failed to find a reason to keep going. Now seems like the perfect time to give up. As Sloane eagerly waits for the barricades to fall, she’s forced to witness the apocalypse through the eyes of five people who actually wantto live. But as the days crawl by, the motivations for survival change in startling ways and soon the group’s fate is determined less and less by what’s happening outside and more and more by the unpredictable and violent bids for life—and death—inside. When everything is gone, what do you hold on to?

-- My Rating --

3/5 Oscars: Liked it...

-- My Thoughts --

     I have read Courtney Summers' Cracked Up to Be and I was not happy with it. It was a little too cliché and confusing. But happily, this was much better and I have to admit that Courtney is much better in the paranormal and suspense genres than in the good ol' contemporary.
     Sloane's life was one living hell with her father, but when a dangerous flu spreads and people get all crazy and cannibal-ic, she tries to find ways to die. But being with five other teenagers in a locked-up high school who would do anything to survive, doesn't really give her much choice but to play along.
     I dove into this book expecting it to be horrific, gruesome and full of zombie-lore. While I got my share of zombie-lore, it was too little for my liking. But the lack in the plot-development was paid for by the uniqueness of the main character. Sloane is such a broken character and it was hard not to root for her. Although she made stupid decisions, the lack of anyone who cared about her in her life made up for it, somehow. I believed her motivations and her crave for love was sweet.
     Why I didn't give five stars? Well, first, there was not much action in this book, all they did was sit around and wait for the zombies to barge in and kill them. Second, most of the characters, except Sloane, were somehow poorly developed. They added charisma to the story and they had significance but I failed to sympathize with any of them. All in all, I am glad that I read this book and it was definitely unique, since I have not read anything like it before!

Review: Cracked Up To Be by Courtney Summers

Name of book: Cracked Up To Be
Author: Courtney Summers
Publication: December 23rd 2008 - St. Martin's Griffin
Genre: YA Contemporary
Source: E-book owned...

When "Perfect" Parker Fadley starts drinking at school and failing her classes, all of St. Peter's High goes on alert. How has the cheerleading captain, girlfriend of the most popular guy in school, consummate teacher's pet, and future valedictorian fallen so far from grace?

Parker doesn't want to talk about it. She'd just like to be left alone, to disappear, to be ignored. But her parents have placed her on suicide watch and her conselors are demanding the truth. Worse, there's a nice guy falling in love with her and he's making her feel things again when she'd really rather not be feeling anything at all.

Nobody would have guessed she'd turn out like this. But nobody knows the truth.

Something horrible has happened, and it just might be her fault.

-- My Rating --

-- My Thoughts --

     So, I was searching through my collection of e-books, and I found two books by Courtney Summers: Cracked Up To Be and This Is Not a Test. I decided to start with the older one, Cracked Up To Be, which wasn't what I expected at all.

     Parker is perfectly screwed-up high school student, she is mean to everyone who comes here way. The only people who put up with her are ( or were) her now-missing best friend, Jessie. Her ex-boyfriend, Chris. Her rival and supposed-to-be best friend, Becky and the new kid in school, Jake.

     Parker is the fallen-princess of the high school. She was the head cheerleader and she had the perfect boyfriend. But one day, she gave up cheerleading and broke up with her boyfriend. Nobody knows why but we will find out toward the end of the book.

     Will Parker stop acting like a total *bitch*? Will she get over her emotional breakdowns? Who will she choose: the lovable Chris or the caring Jake? Find out when you read this YA contemporary romantic drama, Cracked Up To Be.

     First of all, let me say that I was disappointed with this book. Even when I finished it, I still didn't get the point of it! The characters  are pretty messed up and superficial. They are mostly one-dimensional. 

     I didn't like Parker, I hated how she treated other people. Even if you have been been through this much, you shouldn't treat people like that. She treated her parents like they were her servants or something!

     And she didn't deserve any of the love the two boys gave her. Even though she is the one who broke up with Chris whom still loved her like hell, he is still taking care of her, but she always snaps back his every word. Jake has the same situation, he openly confesses that he cares about her, she still doesn't give him a God-damn chance.

     When I reached the end, I was like " That's it?.... Oh, okay" I am so sorry, I don't want to act like I totally hated the book, there were some parts that I liked. I liked how the author didn't give away the reason Parker was so messed up until the end. And the reason was so unpredictable and unexpected. I loved it!

      Throughout, this book will very very enjoyable if you are a contemporary lover. Although it has a few minor flaws, it is still a very enjoyable and compelling read, You should definitely try it!