Getting Caught

by Mandy Hubbard, Cyn Balog

Sometimes in war, there are no winners…

Peyton Brentwood is pretty, popular, and Harvard-bound. Or so she hopes. Her only distraction from AP classes and entrance exams is the prank war with her ex-best friend, Jess Hill. Peyton is used to getting what she wants, and she’s not about to let a loser like Jess gain the upper hand.

For Jess, the prank war is an outlet, a way to get revenge on the best friend who left her behind. As if Peyton has the guts to do what it takes to win. Please. There is no way in hell Jess is going to lose this one, even if she has to hit Peyton where it hurts.

These two girls are about to discover it’s best to keep your friends close… and your enemies closer.

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Teen

144 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 6, 2011

About the author

Mandy Hubbard is the author of PRADA & PREJUDICE and YOU WISH, both novels for teens now in stores. In 2011, her releases include BUT I LOVE HIM (written as Amanda Grace) and RIPPLE. She is also a literary agent for D4EO Literary Agency. For more information, visit her website.

Reviews

[PinkAmy loves books, cats and naps · Rating 3 out of 5]

Next door neighbors and former best friends Peyton and Jess have been involved in a prank war since their friendship ended. Now, for senior year and the pranks have gone from silly to hurtful.

Although the characters are almost adults, GETTING CAUGHT is a quick read, geared toward tweens and younger teens due to the immaturity of the "prank war", the characters and the Disneyesque ending.

Both girls had positive and negative traits, but I didn't understand Dave one bit. What kind of person agrees to date a girl for three months for an acquaintance's prank? He seemed to egg on both girls without consequence. I wish they both had kicked him to the curb.

GETTING CAUGHT is a fairly enjoyable, but forgettable story.

[Mandy]

The book I co-wrote with Cyn Balog, author of FAIRY TALE, SLEEPLESS, and more.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

At First Sight: Once upon a time, Jess Hill and Peyton Brentwood were the best of friends. But everything changed when they entered high school and now the only thing that links them, aside from their shared past, is the prank war that has been raging between them for almost four years.

There are few rules to the war, the most important being that it only ends when one of them gets caught, and as senior year enters the homestretch, Peyton and Jess are racing to out-prank each other before its too late.

On the side, Peyton is on a single-minded race to get into Harvard - which has been her dream since she was in the third-grade - and get out of her house where she's the overachieving black-sheep of the family.

And Jess is just trying to get to the end of high school, without a fixed plan in mind and doing little else other than work at a Pet Store and try to out-prank Peyton. Until her forever crush, Dave, starts showing some interest in her.

Second Glance: Getting Caught is an ebook-only book by Mandy Hubbard and Cyn Balog - which I got all the way back in September of last year*, and I feel bad it took me this long to read, not only because of the time but because I actually ended up loving this story.

When the story opens it's just after winter break of senior year, and Jess and Peyton are as different as two girls can be. Jess is a loner and a rebel and has an "I don't care attitude" and Peyton is a bit of a neurotic mess, an all around 'perfect' student and it's hard to imagine these two were ever friends but, as the story progresses, you see how much of their past they shared.

And I thought it was very realistic how their friendship deteriorated so fast, how one misunderstanding lead to another and then it just took off. I think the book is very honest about that because when you are 14 and so vulnerable everything feels so big and it's easy to get carried away, and that's in part what happens to Jess and Peyton until they reach a point where their war is kind of the only thing that makes sense to them.

The pranks were evil but creative, so I'm giving the authors props for that. These two girls really knew how to hurt each other. And I also appreciated that, while both of them were angry at each other, they sounded so different and approached their anger in different ways.

Getting Caught is a short book (about 200 pages) that packs a punch. It covers so much time for it's length and I really felt like I got to know both Peyton and Jess. And I really liked both of them - though I do have a favorite.

Bottom Line: I found Getting Caught to be a fun, addictive type of read. I read it all in one afternoon because I just wanted to know what had happened between Peyton and Jess and how everything was going to end. And I loved how it ended. I thought it was a lovely read.

[Sarah (The Book Life)]

http://sarahliveslovesreads.blogspot.com

This book was really fun. I love a little harmless pranking! When I was in high school, my friends and I would play pranks on each other all of the time. It was always so much fun and often ended up being hilarious for everyone involved. Some of the pranking going on in this story reminded me of those days, although as the story moves along the girls start taking the pranks further and further. And they all learn a little bit about how far is too far.

Former best friends Peyton and Jess have been pranking each other since freshman year. It started out small, but over the years it has snowballed and they live to out do the other. The whole school is wise to the prank war, but the girls have never actually been caught. Considering they are the only two getting pranked on a regular basis, it was a little hard to the belive that the school administration hadn't caught on, but it didn't really matter because it was too much fun reading their back and forth. Both girls were pretty extreme stereotypes and it certainly affected the way their pranks played out. Jess was the loner, freak girl and was always a little more spontaneous with her prank style, while Peyton was uber meticulous and everything she did was carefully planned out in advance.

You know from the start that this war is eventually going to have to come to an end and it was a fun ride getting there. The girls had a lot to learn about friendship, communication and misunderstandings. The ending definitely has some closure and leaves you with a sense of hope. This is a quick, fun read and definitely worth picking up :0)

[Regina Linton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was so fun to read and the collaboration of both writers is fantastic. Peyton, the girl who has it all, brains, popularity...the works. And Jess who is always trying to be someone different everyday are at odds with each other.

One misunderstanding spirals these two girls into a prank war that is epic. Almost life destroying. They work their hardest to outdo one another and the one who gets caught is the looser.

Some of their antics aren't easily forgiven and it keeps getting worse and worse as they try to best each other during their war. Innocent victims, hardly. They are lashing out to each other how they feel.

Many surprising twists involved and all and all a happy ending.

Recommended for Contemporary YA lovers.

[Mandi Kaye Sorensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed at http://www.mandikayereads.com/archive... (2/20/12)

I was pleasantly surprised by this short little novel. It's not often that I read something outside of the paranormal/urban fantasy genres, but when I do I always say the same thing when it's well written: sometimes it's really nice just to read about someone else's life.

This book really explores the consequences of miscommunication and assumptions in a relationship. The writing was high quality and I quickly fell into the thought patterns of each of the girls as I read. The ending is not quite as predictable as one would expect, and it was a very quick read.

If you're into contemporary YA and/or need a nice break from your usual genres, I'd definitely suggest you give this one a try.

[Sherri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Told from two perspectives, the authors do an excellent job of building two very believable, but very different characters who are in a "prank war." Not only was the book very well crafted, but it also contained just the right mix of drama and depth. It also has a nice mix of "coming of age" and "romance" to make a well rounded contemporary fiction book. And, it's a quick read without any dull points to drag it down. I really like that it kept moving.

[Ch · Rating 4 out of 5]

"We're so used to watching our backs. I'm not sure we'll know how to live in any other way.

Maybe we've been wrong. Maybe we're not really that different after all."

I really enjoyed reading Get Caught. A 100-page story that successfully made me fell feELzzZzXX. I love hearing from both characters and each voice was strongly delivered. Short but thorough and satisfying.

[Joves · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think I read this book just so I could add it to my list of 100 books read for 2012.

It was bland.

Want to know how the real sh*t is pulled?
Read this:

[Sandee is Reading · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay. :p
Review to follow.

[Vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick, very fun read!