Clockwise by Elle Strauss

"Casey Donovan has issues: hair, height and uncontrollable trips to the 19th century! And now this --she's accidentally taken Nate Mackenzie, the cutest boy in the school, back in time. Awkward. Protocol pressures her to tell their 1860 hosts that he is her brother and when Casey finds she has a handsome, wealthy (and unwanted) suitor, something changes in Nate. Are those romantic sparks or is it just "brotherly" protectiveness? When they return to the present, things go back to the way they were before: Casey parked on the bottom of the rung of the social ladder and Nate perched high on the very the top. Except this time her heart is broken. Plus, her best friend is mad, her parents are split up, and her younger brother gets escorted home by the police. The only thing that could make life worse is if, by some strange twist of fate, she took Nate back to the past again. Which of course, she does."

Clockwise by Elle Strauss(Book One of the Clockwise series)
290 pages

Let me start by telling you that this book is full of cliches. Full. Of. It. Obviously I won't spoil it for you, but the cliches are likely to make you roll yours eyes or start banging your head against a table. Okay, probably not the latter, but you get what I mean.

Let's not forget the lack of descriptions of things. I mean, it just really irked me sometimes when something wasn't detailed and just written there without anything else continuing it. I WANT to know all of the details.

It's not to say that this book isn't worth your time, because it is/isn't. Depends on how you look at this review and the other reviews you'll most likely read of it.

Casey is everything I dislike in a female main character. Very insecure, compares herself to our people look wise, and crushes on the popular guy. I mean, most of us have probably been there, but Casey just stays like that until basically near the end of the book. BUT I have to admit that she was an okay character. Why? Because she was an independent type of person. She faces all of these obstacles in her life(most of it due to the whole time travelling thing) and she just has that "let's do this" and "I can't stop the inevitable" type of thinking that I just can't help but to admire.

Nate is the oh-so-amazing and oh-so-likable popular guy. With the mean and jealous girlfriend, of course. I can't really say much because his character pretty much only really comes out when spoilery things happen.

I would have to give this a 4/5 stars. It really is a good read. It wasn't very long so you can just read it at your leisure. The plot is pretty good too, but the cliches ruined its hope of a 5/5 from me. Sometimes, though, the cliches just gave you a smile.

I am, of course, looking forward to reading the next book of this series...

Investigating the Hottie by Juli Alexander

"Peterson. Amanda Peterson. When my life suddenly turns into the Princess Diaries meets Mission Impossible, can I do in a week what I haven’t managed to do in all my fifteen years—reel in a hottie?

Investigating the Hottie is a completed young adult romance. When Amanda spends a week with her aunt, Christie, she learns that her aunt is a spy. Christie admits that Amanda has security clearance and has already started her training. When her aunt asks her to investigate a teenage hacker, Amanda thinks that spending time with a nerd should be doable despite her social ineptitude. Unfortunately for Amanda, the hacker is a hottie."

Investigating the Hottie by Juli Alexander
200 pages

First of all, let me just say this book was actually pretty good. The characters were very realistic, and I mean very realistic. This book targets what every teenage girl feels and reacts to each situation brought to her.

Amanda Peterson is anything but normal. Her aunt is a spy and now, she's one too. Her first assignment is to investigate a teenage hacker--who is not what she expected--but what happens when she starts falling for him? Let's not forget that Amanda has basically never talked to a boy because of her shyness! In this crazy ride of firsts and odd situations, Amanda is a hilarious character that you will love reading about!

The teenage hacker, Will, is everything you wouldn't expect. He's popular, plays soccer, he does everything you wouldn't expect a hacker to do! A perfect cover, right? Maybe not so much...

Christie, Amanda's aunt, has her own case to solve with her partner, Nic. Both of these characters are always bickering, over every single little thing. Opposites attract, huh?

In this very short, at least for me, novel, Juli Alexander gives us a good plot and very good characters to go with it!

Anyways, I would rate this 3 out of 5 stars. I loved the characters, but I quickly grew disappointed 3/4 of the way in. The little twist at the end just really doesn't appeal to me. There was a bit of obvious foreshadowing as well... And I think I may have been happier if the ending wasn't so vague.