Review: Tempestuous by Kim Askew and Amy Helmes

Name of book: Tempestuous (Twisted Lit #1)
Author(s): Kim Askew and Amy Helmes
Publication: December 18th 2012 by Merit Press
Genre: YA Contemporary
Source: Provided by the kind publisher...
Goodreads

Recently banished, unfairly, by the school’s popular crowd, former “it girl,” Miranda Prospero, finds herself in a brave new world: holding dominion amongst a rag-tag crew of geeks and misfits where she works at the Hot-Dog Kabob in the food court of her local mall. When the worst winter storm of the season causes mall workers and last-minute shoppers to be snowed-in for the night, Miranda seizes the opportunity to get revenge against the catty clique behind her social exile. With help from her delightfully dweeby coworker, Ariel, and a sullen loner named Caleb who works at the mall’s nearby gaming and magic shop, Miranda uses charm and trickery to set things to right during this spirited take on Shakespeare’s The Tempest.

-- My Rating --

-- My Thoughts --

     I am a great fan of Shakespeare's plays. I loved Hamlet and Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet was epic. But I haven't read The Tempest, so I'm not sure about the similarities  but this book was one twisted piece of literature (in a good way)!

     Miranda was always the "it" girl, the "go-to" girl, the most popular girl at her high school. Until, she decided to open up a little win-win website, but soon, everything spirals out of control, and she falls down her popularity mount, unfairly. They say "The taller you climb, the harder you'll fall" (something along these lines)...

     Everyone at her high school hates her, and her father is devastated. Now, Miranda is working at a corn-dog stand in the local mall, to pay up for everything she earned in her little plan. But one night, as a huge blizzard hits, she is locked inside with a bunch of other teenagers. But Miranda is set on one thing: get revenge in the truest way!

     I loved this novel. Who would have thought that I could fall in love with such a light, almost-cliche sort of read. But, surprising myself, I adored this. And since I need to organize my thoughts, I will write this review in points:

1- Kim and Amy's writing is exotic. It is light. It is believable (for a teenager). Their writings blended together in perfect harmony that I couldn't tell the difference, at all.

---

Her boundless enthusiasm and my healthy sarcasm went together about as well as a helium balloon and a bucket of rusty nails...

---

2- Most of their characters were layered. Miranda is very unlikable at first. But I absolutely loved her once I got into the story. She tends to help everyone, and she is sarcastic. Ariel, Miranda's co-worker is such a sweet, sweet girl! I adored her. She reminds me of, well... me. And rarely books make me feel like that. A couple of the characters fell flat for me, but I didn't mind.

3- The Romance. A slow-building, love-hate relationship between Miranda and Caleb. An A+ for the authors on the romance. I loved noticing the growing attraction between them and how they pushed each other away at first. But even if there were not enough one-on-one moments, I felt their chemistry. 

---

A simple guitar slung over a guy's torso can transform even the most feral-looking guy into someone, well, kind of hot...

---

4- The mystery. Yes, there is a mystery. Something occurs in the mall and someone is responsible. This part was a little predictable, I found out who it was a couple of chapters before Miranda did. But THAT did not stop me from enjoying how the characters treated the discovery. When contemporary authors add a mysterious feel to the story, I always end up disappointed. But this was not the case here. The mystery part added to the story, and it led to a great character development.

Sarcastic. Funny. Spellbinding. A promising debut from two one-in-a-million authors! I cannot wait to read more from them! Go, grab a copy, NOW!