Wild Roses

Cassie's stepfather Dino is famous. The world knows him as a talented violinist. Cassie knows him as an unpredictable and violent man. As the story progresses, he nears the brink of self-destruction. You can almost hear the walls shake and see Cassie cringe when Dino raises his voice. Meanwhile, Cassie becomes involved with Ian, another violin virtuoso - and a student of Dino's. While there are plenty of books out there about abusive significant others, there are few - especially those shelved in teen fiction - that confront mental illness or the dynamics of stepfamilies head-on. This book has both. It is honest and unflinching. Deb Caletti imbues all of her stories with realistic sensibility and captivating characters. Make sure that you read not only Wild Roses but her other novels as well. You won't be sorry.

Wild Roses is Cassie Morgan's experience with love and insanity. Cassie knows that love can hurt, having divorced parents, but here she finds out what love can really do. Her stepfather, Dino Cavalli, is a world-renowned musician. He's always been a little hard to deal with but lately he's become every more agitated, paranoid and dangerous. Cassie believes Dino is becoming insane. She's worried, especially for her mom, who seems oblivious to how bad the situation really is. Then there's Ian Waters, Dino's student. Cassie falls in love with him and then tries to stay away, but can't. Through this experience, Cassie discovers that love can be beautiful yet terribly painful at the same time. I thought this book was great. Cassie tells her story through her humorous point of view as a teenager. She speaks truthfully and the book has a lot of emotion, but without Cassie telling it, this book would probably be boring. There are some intense parts where you can't stop reading, and others, where it's light and the book doesn't really force you to read on. Deb Caletti did an amazing job of making a strange encounter with insanity very real. If you're searching for a good book and don't mind some profanity, this would be the one to choose!

Having a stepfather is hard. Having a famous and crazy stepfather is harder. Having Dino Cavalli, world-renown violinist and composer, as your stepfather is nearly impossible. This is the challenge that seventeen-year-old Cassie Morgan faces. Cassie describes Dino as "both crazy and a genius." More specifically, he is "joy-impaired (hugely depressed), excessively imaginative (delusional), abundantly security conscious (paranoid as hell) or emotionally challenged (wacko)." A good deal of Dino's paranoia is surrounded by his enemy and former agent, William Tiero. Dino hates Tiero so much that he bought the ugliest dog he could find and named it William. He liked to yell at and control the dog ("Get your nose out of the garbage, William!"). Things are starting to get far worse than naming a pet after his enemy. Now Dino thinks that William Tiero (the real one, not the dog) is out to get him. He swears that Tiero is stalking and spying on him. The paranoia only increases as Dino prepares for an important concert that will reveal new songs for the first time in years. As Dino's behavior gets more erratic, Cassie becomes more frightened. It doesn't help that her mother is oblivious to Dino's behavior. Not to mention, her father is obviously still in love with her mother and has revealed that he is investigating Dino's background because he believes that something is not quite right. In the midst of all the craziness of Cassie's home life, she finds herself falling in love at the impossibly worst time. Ian Walters is Dino's young student who is working towards winning a scholarship to a fancy music school. Even though Cassie knows that Ian has to focus on his music, she finds that her heart has a mind of its own. WILD ROSES is a moving novel that is beautifully crafted. Deb Caletti has a way with words like her characters have with music. She reaches deep into the souls of her characters and stirs up emotions that readers will revel in. Caletti has already proven herself as a wonderful wordsmith with her past novels, and WILD ROSES doesn't let us down. --- Reviewed by Kristi Olson

In my opinion, Deb Caletti is definitely underappreciated - her writing style very much like Sarah Dessen's, but she doesn't get the same recognition that Sarah does. I picked up WILD ROSES without even reading the summary, and I don't regret it at all. WILD ROSES is about Cassie Morgan, a teenage girl that most readers will be able to relate to: her parents are divorced, she doesn't really like her mom's choice in men (at least, she doesn't like her step-father, world famous violin player, Dino), and she's afraid to fall in love. That is, until Ian Waters comes along. Cassie and Ian have a connection from the second they meet, and her unease with the situation is what makes the book so wonderful - she wants to be closer to him, but at the same time, she's not sure if that's what is best for her. WILD ROSES is an incredibly realistic story about coping with divorce and falling in love for the first time. However, the book isn't all about being upset over divorce and falling for a boy - the most interesting (and heartbreaking) part is the storyline about Cassie's step-father, Dino, who is a time bomb waiting to go off. Deb Caletti is amazing, and if you like Sarah Dessen books, or if you've read Caletti's other books (Honey, Baby, Sweetheart, and The Queen of Everything), you'll love this one too.

Oh my God this was the best book!!!!!!!! I got to read an advance copy and it is so amazing. This is the story of Cassie Morgan who's step-father is a famous violinist and who is steadily going crazy as Cassie is falling in love with his student, Ian Waters. I loved the characters, Ian and Cassie and Dog William and Ian's brother Bunny and his friend, who are hilarious. But I loved what Deb Caletti says about divorce especially and what kids go through as it is so true and you can really relate to it. It was also very suspenseful. I hope she writes a seqel! If you love to read and love a good book youcan't put down but makes you think, you will love it!!!!!