Wanderlust

This installment in the Beautiful Americans series was just as enchanting as the first, almost making me believe at times I was sitting in a French cafe. The imagery is well done but never overzealous and the characters slip into French at just the right time to remind the reader where the settting is. Even with the different stops made in this book, each city's unique aspects are shown at perfect moments. This series most definitely makes me want to travel through France. The only real issue I took with this book was the character lines and development. In Beautiful Americans, I loved the 4 different perspectives and their stories were generally so aligned it all weaved together perfectly. Because the characters are not as together in this one, it did detract to some extent for me. I would get to the end of one character's chapter, eager to know more, but then have to read through the other three character's chapters before getting back to the plot line- and by the time that happened, my ferver for that character's life would be decreased in light of the events happening to another character. Melding together, four perspectives works great- as separate story lines, I found myself having to stop and think and retrace with almost each new chapter. Along with this, I think each of the individual stories ended up being skimmed over to some extent to make it fit- there were times I found myself trying to figure out why a fight just suddenly erupted between characters or why someone took off. The processes leading up to those events wasn't quite as strong, particularly when the one leaving wasn't the person who's mind we were in at the time. That, too, detracted somewhat for me. Despite those things, I still loved this book. It is most definitely a very nice spin on the high school drama scene- American students, in Paris. Only this book takes place over the course of the winter break without any of the class related things to really congest the story. Apart from a few moments, I did like watching the character's continue to grow. They all learned things about themselves and the others and rarely did I find it illogical or forced. I still adore Alex- she is such a train wreck that I couldn't help but feel for her. Out of the four, I think she is the one I most enjoy reading about. Despite how she comes off, she is as messed up as any other teenager, fighting for attention and for things to work. Watching her destruct was heartbreaking and I really enjoyed being inside her mind. As with the first book, I kept screaming in my head what an idiot she was doing- telling her to stop being so into herself- but knew it wouldn't happen. That's who Alex is and I love that Silag didn't deviate from that. She set up her character and certainly stuck with it, not allowing her to just chuck her life long habits out the window all at once, even after realizing what a mess she is. PJ, Zack and Olivia are also notable characters with their own personalities, moti

When we last left the high school juniors attending the Lycée de Monceau in Paris, PJ was running away from the advances of her host father in hopes of finding her missing sister, Annabel. Alex's mother was cutting her off financially, and Alex had a letter in her pocket from the Lycée that she didn't want to open. Olivia broke up with her boyfriend, Vince, and got together with her host brother, Thomas. And Zack had a crush on Jay --- who is not gay --- while Jay was worried sick about PJ. PJ has just finished reading her sister's copy of MADAME BOVARY. Inside, she notices that the city of Rouen is circled. When Annabel left the book with PJ before running out on her wedding, Annabel must have meant for him to find her there. So PJ gets on a train with nothing to lose. As soon as Jay receives an email from PJ, he reads it over and over again, looking for clues. Together, the whole crew decides they know where PJ is. They rent a car and take off for Montauban, where Alex insists they can stay at her dad's apartment. Unbeknownst to Zack and Jay, though, Alex hasn't spoken to her father in ages, and he has no idea they're on their way. WANDERLUST is a pretty quick read that will make anybody desperate to travel to France and follow in the Lycée students' footsteps --- but only if you can stay in the same lavish hotels they do. Even PJ has her own adventures, though they're not quite as exciting. Just as in the first Beautiful Americans novel, WANDERLUST is told from alternating viewpoints, so the reader gets the full picture of what's going on. The plot reads like an episode of MTV's "Road Rules"--- it's comparable to a French travel guide for teens, but also largely improbable. BEAUTIFUL AMERICANS was reasonably possible and also fairly smart, but WANDERLUST has no new tricks --- just the same bits of French and a rich kids' scavenger hunt. There is plenty going on --- from family troubles to first almost-kisses --- to keep everyone busy on their way to discover why PJ has left Paris. However, there is something not quite believable about their problems. The book is certainly a fun and easy read, but seemed rather long given that not much was resolved. We'll have to wait for the third installment to learn what happens to PJ, her sister and everyone else. WANDERLUST may have lost a bit of steam, but I'm going to keep hanging on. The setting and the chick flick-esque plot is just too much fun. --- Reviewed by Sarah Hannah Gómez ([email protected])

I was so excited to read the second book of the Beautiful American saga and this book did not disappoint. I once again became entwined in the student's experience aboard. Wanderlust is full of drama and excitement as the character's continue their year abroad. It leads the reader through France and Amsterdam, painting a picture of foreign sights and sounds. It makes you feel like you are about to jump on a plane and head to Europe yourself. Don't forget to read Beautiful Americans first though. I can't wait for the final book of the trilogy to see where the author takes us!