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Secrets of My Suburban Life
And you thought your life had a dark side....
Everything changed for Lauren ("Ren") after Harry Potter killed her mom. No, it's not what you think--Harry Potter didn't come to life and stab her or anything. A stack of those thick books crushed her. Now Ren is stuck out in the suburbs of Connecticut, dragged out there because her father is too grief stricken to continue living in New York.
Ren tries to fit in at her new school, but the most popular girl, Farrin, keeps icing her out. Then Ren discovers that Farrin has a She's been communicating online with an older man, and they are actually planning to meet! Ren can't let Farrin go through with it--she's witnessed enough tragic events as it is. So she comes up with the perfect plan to stop the perv. But then she finds out who he is...
Everything changed for Lauren ("Ren") after Harry Potter killed her mom. No, it's not what you think--Harry Potter didn't come to life and stab her or anything. A stack of those thick books crushed her. Now Ren is stuck out in the suburbs of Connecticut, dragged out there because her father is too grief stricken to continue living in New York.
Ren tries to fit in at her new school, but the most popular girl, Farrin, keeps icing her out. Then Ren discovers that Farrin has a She's been communicating online with an older man, and they are actually planning to meet! Ren can't let Farrin go through with it--she's witnessed enough tragic events as it is. So she comes up with the perfect plan to stop the perv. But then she finds out who he is...
225 pages, Paperback
First published January 8, 2008
3 people are currently reading
167 people want to read
About the author
Lauren Baratz-Logsted
53 books471 followersLauren grew up in Monroe, CT, where her father owned a drugstore at which her mother was the pharmacist. She is a graduate of the University of Connecticut at Storrs, where she majored in psychology. She also has what she calls her “half-Masters” in English from Western Connecticut State University (five courses down, another five to go…someday!).
Throughout college, she worked semester breaks as a doughnut salesperson, a job that she swears gave her white lung disease from all the powdered sugar she breathed.
Upon graduation, she began work at the venerable independent spacebookseller, now sadly defunct as such, Klein’s of Westport. There, she bought and sold for the better part of 11 years.
In November 1994, Lauren left the bookstore to finally take a chance on herself as a writer. Success did not happen over night. Between 1994 and May 2002 – when Red Dress Ink called with an offer to buy THE THIN PINK LINE – Lauren worked as a book reviewer, a freelance editor and writer, and a window washer, making her arguably the only woman in the world who has ever both hosted a book signing party and washed the windows of the late best-selling novelist Robert Ludlum.
Since Red Dress Ink’s call in 2002, Lauren has been kept very busy with writing more novels and checking her Amazon ranking on a daily basis. She still lives in Danbury, with her husband and daughter, where she has lived since 1991.
In addition to writing, Lauren’s daughter keeps her busy, accounting for the rest of her time.
Lauren’s favorite color is green.
Lauren’s favorite non-cat animals are penguins.
Lauren wants you to know that, however you are pronouncing her last name, you are probably pronouncing it wrong.
Throughout college, she worked semester breaks as a doughnut salesperson, a job that she swears gave her white lung disease from all the powdered sugar she breathed.
Upon graduation, she began work at the venerable independent spacebookseller, now sadly defunct as such, Klein’s of Westport. There, she bought and sold for the better part of 11 years.
In November 1994, Lauren left the bookstore to finally take a chance on herself as a writer. Success did not happen over night. Between 1994 and May 2002 – when Red Dress Ink called with an offer to buy THE THIN PINK LINE – Lauren worked as a book reviewer, a freelance editor and writer, and a window washer, making her arguably the only woman in the world who has ever both hosted a book signing party and washed the windows of the late best-selling novelist Robert Ludlum.
Since Red Dress Ink’s call in 2002, Lauren has been kept very busy with writing more novels and checking her Amazon ranking on a daily basis. She still lives in Danbury, with her husband and daughter, where she has lived since 1991.
In addition to writing, Lauren’s daughter keeps her busy, accounting for the rest of her time.
Lauren’s favorite color is green.
Lauren’s favorite non-cat animals are penguins.
Lauren wants you to know that, however you are pronouncing her last name, you are probably pronouncing it wrong.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews
February 18, 2008
With a blurb starting off with, "Everything changed for Lauren ("Ren") after Harry Potter killer her mom" how could you go wrong?
Oh let me count the ways.
The characters are well written... for shallow teenagers.
The plot was beyond simple. Kudos to the writer for putting it out there, though. It is a scary thing that needs mentioning - one's safety on the internet.
It was not very far into the book before I figured out the "who dun it" of this book and I kept telling the main character to stop being stupid and see it for herself.
The topic is one of great importance. Maybe a young adult just entering the online world of social websites might gain from reading this book. Maybe that young adult might find the mystery... well... a mytersy as opposed to blatantly obvious.
Oh let me count the ways.
The characters are well written... for shallow teenagers.
The plot was beyond simple. Kudos to the writer for putting it out there, though. It is a scary thing that needs mentioning - one's safety on the internet.
It was not very far into the book before I figured out the "who dun it" of this book and I kept telling the main character to stop being stupid and see it for herself.
The topic is one of great importance. Maybe a young adult just entering the online world of social websites might gain from reading this book. Maybe that young adult might find the mystery... well... a mytersy as opposed to blatantly obvious.
June 1, 2019
Yowza. This one was bad. But I had fun, so it wasn’t completely a waste of my time.
Everything about this book is done poorly. Ren is incredibly shallow and self-centered, and everyone around her has the same paper-thin personality. The stakes are never really that high, because Lauren Baratz-Logsted never allows anyone to take anything seriously. It’s one long string of awkward happenings and it all ends okay. Who cares that our heroine is dumber than a sack of rocks? She gets a boyfriend, yay!
I wanted to sympathize with Ren. The themes of change and loss were briefly touched upon, but they weren’t handled with care and felt like an afterthought. And honestly, why did Ren not consider calling the police when she found out Farrin was chatting with an older man? It never occurs to her until two-thirds of the way through the book, and even then someone has to point it out to her. It’s amazing how truly idiotic every single character is, not one of them is intelligent at all.
The cast is diverse (kind of), but it doesn’t even matter because it’s not handled respectfully. Pretty sure Mohammed is just a glaring stereotype, which is a shame, because he was the closest thing to a likable character.
But you know what? I enjoyed myself reading this book. Sure, it was a dumpster fire and included death by Harry Potter books, but I at least had fun hating it. I didn’t rage and I don’t feel cheated having given it my time. If you’re looking for a trashy, easy read, this fits the bill.
Everything about this book is done poorly. Ren is incredibly shallow and self-centered, and everyone around her has the same paper-thin personality. The stakes are never really that high, because Lauren Baratz-Logsted never allows anyone to take anything seriously. It’s one long string of awkward happenings and it all ends okay. Who cares that our heroine is dumber than a sack of rocks? She gets a boyfriend, yay!
I wanted to sympathize with Ren. The themes of change and loss were briefly touched upon, but they weren’t handled with care and felt like an afterthought. And honestly, why did Ren not consider calling the police when she found out Farrin was chatting with an older man? It never occurs to her until two-thirds of the way through the book, and even then someone has to point it out to her. It’s amazing how truly idiotic every single character is, not one of them is intelligent at all.
The cast is diverse (kind of), but it doesn’t even matter because it’s not handled respectfully. Pretty sure Mohammed is just a glaring stereotype, which is a shame, because he was the closest thing to a likable character.
But you know what? I enjoyed myself reading this book. Sure, it was a dumpster fire and included death by Harry Potter books, but I at least had fun hating it. I didn’t rage and I don’t feel cheated having given it my time. If you’re looking for a trashy, easy read, this fits the bill.
October 24, 2018
Ugh. Shallow one dimensional characters, a story line I never really got into. I’ve been picking some real snoozefests lately. Here’s hoping my next book will be a winner!
April 16, 2017
Ren D’Arc's mother is killed by a stack of Harry Potter books. I’m still cackling over that. Then her grieving father moves her from NYC to the suburbs. Adventures ensue. I love Lauren Baratz-Logsted’s writing for the same reason that I love John Hughes’ brat pack films: fully-realized, quirky, and intriguing secondary characters. Thankfully, Lauren’s suburbs aren’t so uniformly bland and white as Hughes’, so Ren manages to surround herself with a diverse group of people. How Ren finds her way into a new school, new friends, new challenges, and a new adult support system makes for engaging reading on its own. The fillip of a mystery to solve a la Nancy Drew adds a whiff of danger, and provides momentum to the story.
Personal copy
Personal copy
August 31, 2020
Not the best YA novel, characters not well written and the story was much less touching than it should have been for the subject matter.
June 29, 2022
I have decided the author meant it to be over the top and ridiculous. Perhaps it is my shortcoming as a reader I didn't see it that way until I got close to the end. Considering the narrators Mom died from an experiment with Harry Potter books as ammunition ought to have been a warning? Now I am laughing because it was so obvious and I didn't get it!
It kind of felt like being punked-as-a-reader or perhaps, this is a YA sub-genre I haven't explored before.
The writing itself was engaging - so it wasn't an entirely unpleasant experience. I picked it up at a little free library because I wanted a fairly quick, entertaining read and it was that! Win!
It kind of felt like being punked-as-a-reader or perhaps, this is a YA sub-genre I haven't explored before.
The writing itself was engaging - so it wasn't an entirely unpleasant experience. I picked it up at a little free library because I wanted a fairly quick, entertaining read and it was that! Win!
April 18, 2024
This is the first book I’ve ever read through that I knew I was going to finish, but also that I would be purging it from my shelves right after. I'm honestly shocked that it’s not self-published. This whole time, I thought it was not only self-published (not that there's an issue with that), but because of that, it was also self edited. It felt very unpolished. Still, I finished it, and it had the very odd funny part here and there. So that's something.
October 4, 2024
Maybe 2.75 stars. It was smart writing, in a way, but also, it's young adult lit, and I'm not a young adult, so the content wasn't quite up my alley. It was silly. It was outlandish. It was predictable.
June 25, 2008
After a freak incident involving tons of Harry Potter books that causes her mother’s death, Lauren (better known as Ren) moves to Connecticut with her grieve-stricken father. There, Ren tries hard to fit into her school and get use to living in the suburbs. She becomes enemies with Queen Bee Farrin, who is out to get her. One careless swapping of notebooks during lunch period puts Ren in a serious predicament. She finds out that Farrin is actually talking to an older man online known as FDA and he’s pestering her to meet him. Despite her dislike for Farrin, Ren is determined to stop FDA from stalking his prey.
I’ll admit, the Harry Potter thing was what got me interested in this book—well, interested enough to at least read the first chapter. The blurb is really catchy! Well, the first part of it is, but the second part makes it seem eh, like it’s going to have lots of whining instead of seriousness that the online-predator-storyline is supposed to have. So that brings me to the plot. It IS a serious issue that everyone—especially teens—should be aware of, but this book lacks that depth. It presents the issue, but it’s more comical than anything else when you look at how the main character approaches the problem. It’s a new way of delivering a scary plot, but it doesn’t really work. I find myself looking for a more emotional explanation rather than comic relief that the protagonist seems to provide every chapter. I like the humor, but I feel it is too unnecessary sometimes.
But the good thing about the book is also the humor. It really is that laugh-out-loud funny, maybe even clutching-your-stomach-kind-of-funny, but for me, it’s let’s-re-read-that-part-again kind of funny. “Every girl in everyone one of Jo-Jo’s classes thinks she is in love. Probably the most in love is Farrin, who has a tendency to sit with her heels propped on the metal sidebars of her desk, bare legs spread under the short skirt of her school uniform. If Jo-Jo ever drops his chalk, he will see London, he will see France, he will see Farrin’s underpants” (Baratz-Logsted 47). I re-read this one three times, laughed like crazy, and my brother looked at me weirdly. It makes me think of that Rugratz movie where the kids say something like that to the antagonist. There are more LOL moments like this in the book, but this is one I remember the most.
To go back to the Harry Potter thing, though. The creator of the books is also mentioned a lot, but not exactly in a good way. This part is extremely repetitive to me. Lauren blames J. K. Rowling (as well as her books) for causing her mother’s death, so she often goes on a roll by saying something like, “If my mother wasn’t dead because of J. K. Rowling, she would have . . .” or, “If it weren’t for J. K. Rowling, my mother would . . .” Take this passage, for instance: “Being a writer killed my mother. No, it’s not what you think. She didn’t die from an exploding computer or have a heart attack because J. K. Rowling kept making the bestseller lists when she didn’t. It wasn’t anything like that. Actually, J. K. Rowling did kill my mother. No, it’s not what you think. She didn’t come over here from Scotland or England or wherever she lives and stab her in her sleep or put arsenic in the new paint” (Baratz-Logsted 14). And then, maybe six or even paragraphs later on the next page, the author writes, “But it was still pretty great until the day J. K. Rowling killed my mother” (15). Just in these two pages, this author’s name gets mentioned thrice! Not that it stops here—it goes on a few more times like this towards the ending chapters. Not cool. I love Rowling and HP, but I’m not too fond of other authors using them as bait to get other people to try to read it. I feel like that’s what the blurb’s trying to do—get people’s hopes up that this might be something that delves into HP’s mysteries and other fan-like stuff. But then again, the national bestselling books are mentioned everyone. They get referenced just as much as Adam and Eve, practically!
Overall though, it's okay. The writing is surprisingly fresh—I first thought it’d be something lame and very childish without an ounce of sophistication (I mean, chapter one started with the word “Omigod!” so what was I supposed to think?) but it’s actually not so bad once you get into it. Hey, at least it works. The time frame, on the other hand, gets quite confusing. I’m never too sure whether Lauren is talking about the past or the present, despite the grammar rules for tenses. It’s a mix and match kind of style, I guess.
I’ll admit, the Harry Potter thing was what got me interested in this book—well, interested enough to at least read the first chapter. The blurb is really catchy! Well, the first part of it is, but the second part makes it seem eh, like it’s going to have lots of whining instead of seriousness that the online-predator-storyline is supposed to have. So that brings me to the plot. It IS a serious issue that everyone—especially teens—should be aware of, but this book lacks that depth. It presents the issue, but it’s more comical than anything else when you look at how the main character approaches the problem. It’s a new way of delivering a scary plot, but it doesn’t really work. I find myself looking for a more emotional explanation rather than comic relief that the protagonist seems to provide every chapter. I like the humor, but I feel it is too unnecessary sometimes.
But the good thing about the book is also the humor. It really is that laugh-out-loud funny, maybe even clutching-your-stomach-kind-of-funny, but for me, it’s let’s-re-read-that-part-again kind of funny. “Every girl in everyone one of Jo-Jo’s classes thinks she is in love. Probably the most in love is Farrin, who has a tendency to sit with her heels propped on the metal sidebars of her desk, bare legs spread under the short skirt of her school uniform. If Jo-Jo ever drops his chalk, he will see London, he will see France, he will see Farrin’s underpants” (Baratz-Logsted 47). I re-read this one three times, laughed like crazy, and my brother looked at me weirdly. It makes me think of that Rugratz movie where the kids say something like that to the antagonist. There are more LOL moments like this in the book, but this is one I remember the most.
To go back to the Harry Potter thing, though. The creator of the books is also mentioned a lot, but not exactly in a good way. This part is extremely repetitive to me. Lauren blames J. K. Rowling (as well as her books) for causing her mother’s death, so she often goes on a roll by saying something like, “If my mother wasn’t dead because of J. K. Rowling, she would have . . .” or, “If it weren’t for J. K. Rowling, my mother would . . .” Take this passage, for instance: “Being a writer killed my mother. No, it’s not what you think. She didn’t die from an exploding computer or have a heart attack because J. K. Rowling kept making the bestseller lists when she didn’t. It wasn’t anything like that. Actually, J. K. Rowling did kill my mother. No, it’s not what you think. She didn’t come over here from Scotland or England or wherever she lives and stab her in her sleep or put arsenic in the new paint” (Baratz-Logsted 14). And then, maybe six or even paragraphs later on the next page, the author writes, “But it was still pretty great until the day J. K. Rowling killed my mother” (15). Just in these two pages, this author’s name gets mentioned thrice! Not that it stops here—it goes on a few more times like this towards the ending chapters. Not cool. I love Rowling and HP, but I’m not too fond of other authors using them as bait to get other people to try to read it. I feel like that’s what the blurb’s trying to do—get people’s hopes up that this might be something that delves into HP’s mysteries and other fan-like stuff. But then again, the national bestselling books are mentioned everyone. They get referenced just as much as Adam and Eve, practically!
Overall though, it's okay. The writing is surprisingly fresh—I first thought it’d be something lame and very childish without an ounce of sophistication (I mean, chapter one started with the word “Omigod!” so what was I supposed to think?) but it’s actually not so bad once you get into it. Hey, at least it works. The time frame, on the other hand, gets quite confusing. I’m never too sure whether Lauren is talking about the past or the present, despite the grammar rules for tenses. It’s a mix and match kind of style, I guess.
April 1, 2011
Ren, or Lauren, the protagonist of Lauren Baratz-Logsted's Secrets of My Suburban Life started out so incredibly unlikeable that I hope Ren wasn't supposed to be an author's self-insert (though with the name being a fancy, never-used version of the author's own name, perhaps she's past self-insert and gone straight to Mary Sue).
Ren is incredibly shallow. She begins the book by complaining about how she has to move from Manhattan to Danbury, Connecticut after her mother gets accidentally crushed to death by a stack of Harry Potter books during a publicity stunt/research for her novel. Neither Ren nor her father know how to drive (kind of endearing to me, since I have my license but refuse to drive anywhere without my parents because I am terrified of it), but while her father takes lessons and tries to convince Ren to do the same, Ren decides to just cab it everywhere. Thus it is clear from the get-go that Ren might not be relatable to the average teen who can't afford new shoes, much less money for a cab plus tips.
The money issue is especially apparent a few times. I'm not sure what if anything Baratz-Logsted actually knows about Danbury vs. Manhattan, but I know the area fairly well, and while it's an affluent area, you aren't going to find NBA players, Emmy-winning soap opera stars, or other mega-rich people there. As of five years ago, I remember mostly professionals (doctors, lawyers, Wall Street people) making up the "moneyed" class, and while those people were rich, their kids did not have the cash to cab it everywhere. The rich of Danbury would actually be more like Jack's family, so why his sister Amanda is envious of Ren and her money make no sense.
The first time she meets her classmates shows how shallow Ren is--she basically comments on people's looks and explains that in her school she used to be popular and basically states that her intention is to impress the right people and become popular in her new school as well. The girls she later becomes friends with are initially attractive to her because they look cute/rich. And while they turn out to be good friends at the end, we literally don't have other reasons why Ren would like them until that point. Sure they invite her to a party, but we don't hear conversations to make them seem like "bosom friends" as Anne Shirley would say. Additionally, Ren's crush on Jack, the school's most popular guy, seems equally shallow. He's caring enough to always ask if Ren's doing okay, but other than that, we don't see any of his interests or a deeper level of connection with Ren. I know you don't meet your soulmate at 16, but I'd like to think any potential love interest in a book has some interesting dimension to them. Baratz-Logsted, however, makes everyone seem so flat.
Anyway, the saving grace of this book is the main plot: through an accidental switching of notebooks, Ren realizes that the most popular/b!tchiest girl in school, Farrin, has a secret. Farrin's a member of a website called SexWorld and is communicating with a guy who clearly indicates that he's much older than she is and that he wants some underaged tail. One of the only redeeming characteristics about Ren is that she knows right from wrong in this sense, and is willing to try to stop this guy from perving. She starts impersonating Farrin and starts to set a trap to catch the guy. But as she gets deeper into the problem, she realizes that the perv may be someone she already knows. I won't spoil the ending, but I will say that the last third of the book is when Ren starts becoming less annoying (although I must say I wish certain characters/storylines were fleshed out more at the end).
Overall, this book sucked, but I think the message of online safety was a good one. Honestly, I think teens of Ren's age would find this book kind of bad and would never get far enough into the book to get to the main plot of sex perverts on the Net (seriously, the plot was introduced like 1/3 of the way in), so the message is lost. And those that would most likely need the message and would think the book is interesting or at their grade level of writing (kids around 8-12) should not be reading books where there is such racy content. It's not that it's explicit, but the idea of SexWorld as a website and the villain's messages are a bit...sensual. Ick.
Ren is incredibly shallow. She begins the book by complaining about how she has to move from Manhattan to Danbury, Connecticut after her mother gets accidentally crushed to death by a stack of Harry Potter books during a publicity stunt/research for her novel. Neither Ren nor her father know how to drive (kind of endearing to me, since I have my license but refuse to drive anywhere without my parents because I am terrified of it), but while her father takes lessons and tries to convince Ren to do the same, Ren decides to just cab it everywhere. Thus it is clear from the get-go that Ren might not be relatable to the average teen who can't afford new shoes, much less money for a cab plus tips.
The money issue is especially apparent a few times. I'm not sure what if anything Baratz-Logsted actually knows about Danbury vs. Manhattan, but I know the area fairly well, and while it's an affluent area, you aren't going to find NBA players, Emmy-winning soap opera stars, or other mega-rich people there. As of five years ago, I remember mostly professionals (doctors, lawyers, Wall Street people) making up the "moneyed" class, and while those people were rich, their kids did not have the cash to cab it everywhere. The rich of Danbury would actually be more like Jack's family, so why his sister Amanda is envious of Ren and her money make no sense.
The first time she meets her classmates shows how shallow Ren is--she basically comments on people's looks and explains that in her school she used to be popular and basically states that her intention is to impress the right people and become popular in her new school as well. The girls she later becomes friends with are initially attractive to her because they look cute/rich. And while they turn out to be good friends at the end, we literally don't have other reasons why Ren would like them until that point. Sure they invite her to a party, but we don't hear conversations to make them seem like "bosom friends" as Anne Shirley would say. Additionally, Ren's crush on Jack, the school's most popular guy, seems equally shallow. He's caring enough to always ask if Ren's doing okay, but other than that, we don't see any of his interests or a deeper level of connection with Ren. I know you don't meet your soulmate at 16, but I'd like to think any potential love interest in a book has some interesting dimension to them. Baratz-Logsted, however, makes everyone seem so flat.
Anyway, the saving grace of this book is the main plot: through an accidental switching of notebooks, Ren realizes that the most popular/b!tchiest girl in school, Farrin, has a secret. Farrin's a member of a website called SexWorld and is communicating with a guy who clearly indicates that he's much older than she is and that he wants some underaged tail. One of the only redeeming characteristics about Ren is that she knows right from wrong in this sense, and is willing to try to stop this guy from perving. She starts impersonating Farrin and starts to set a trap to catch the guy. But as she gets deeper into the problem, she realizes that the perv may be someone she already knows. I won't spoil the ending, but I will say that the last third of the book is when Ren starts becoming less annoying (although I must say I wish certain characters/storylines were fleshed out more at the end).
Overall, this book sucked, but I think the message of online safety was a good one. Honestly, I think teens of Ren's age would find this book kind of bad and would never get far enough into the book to get to the main plot of sex perverts on the Net (seriously, the plot was introduced like 1/3 of the way in), so the message is lost. And those that would most likely need the message and would think the book is interesting or at their grade level of writing (kids around 8-12) should not be reading books where there is such racy content. It's not that it's explicit, but the idea of SexWorld as a website and the villain's messages are a bit...sensual. Ick.
September 25, 2011
Ok, so it's been a while since I was 16, but I sincerely hope most 16-year-olds aren't this shallow and stupid. I had to look back to remember how old Ren was supposed to be because most of the time it seemed more like she thought like a 12 or 13-year old. She was constantly going off on these stupid little rabbit trails about how pretty her watch was and things like that. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if she wasn't seconds away from meeting a pedophile alone in a dark hotel room...I started this book with fairly low expectations. I expected a light read about a heavy subject - which it was, but it still managed to disappoint me somehow. I was very disappointed with Ren. I just can't get over how stupid and shallow she was. Not to mention disloyal. After figuring out that this other girl is the target of a predator, knowing she'd be no match for him, she decides to 'trap' him, herself. Never mind that she's a 16-year-old, native New Yorker who should have a pretty good idea of just how badly things could go in a situation like that - especially considering that she's smaller than most girls. She feels she could handle it. Who needs the police, right? To add onto her stupidity, she wasn't even planning on telling anyone what she had in mind. And I was very disappointed how quickly she jumped to the conclusion that her dad was the predator. I mean, I thought it was at first - until she did and then it became way too obvious who it actually was. But it's her dad for crying out loud - The one person she has in the entire world. There was no conflicted thoughts where she was just 'sure' it couldn't possibly be her father. Nope, she sees the initials - which of course could have no possible meaning for anyone else in the world - and assumes it's her father. And I'm sorry but her little excuse at the end was no excuse for that at all.
Also, it was incredibly stupid for her to be banking on the fact that it was her father. She didn't even entertain the possibility that it could be some psychotic ax murderer.
And I swear, another Jimmy Choo reference and I was gonna scream. I realize it was part of her character that she was an avid shopper and had style, but the way it was constantly referred to made her seem extremely shallow.
I generally find the main character likable and relatable to an extent, but I just didn't like Ren all that much. I mean, I felt bad when her friend stabs her in the back and all, but I was sort of wondering why her new friends and Jack even like her. There just wasn't that much there for them to have bonded over.
I can appreciate the attempt at a book on this subject - there should be more like it out there. It just could have been done better.
Although, I have to say, there were a few lines in there that made me laugh, like the one about how after the Apocalypse, the only things to survive would be the cockroaches, Farrin, and Jessica Simpson. lol
Also, it was incredibly stupid for her to be banking on the fact that it was her father. She didn't even entertain the possibility that it could be some psychotic ax murderer.
And I swear, another Jimmy Choo reference and I was gonna scream. I realize it was part of her character that she was an avid shopper and had style, but the way it was constantly referred to made her seem extremely shallow.
I generally find the main character likable and relatable to an extent, but I just didn't like Ren all that much. I mean, I felt bad when her friend stabs her in the back and all, but I was sort of wondering why her new friends and Jack even like her. There just wasn't that much there for them to have bonded over.
I can appreciate the attempt at a book on this subject - there should be more like it out there. It just could have been done better.
Although, I have to say, there were a few lines in there that made me laugh, like the one about how after the Apocalypse, the only things to survive would be the cockroaches, Farrin, and Jessica Simpson. lol
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 20, 2009
Over the summer, Ren's mother was killed by J.K. Rowling. No not physically by Rowling, but a pile of Harry Potter books did fall on her mother's head and killed her. If having her mother die isn't enough grief for Ren, her father decides to move her out of her beloved Manhattan to plain old Danbury, Connecticut. It seems life is out to get Ren, because she has no new friends, the evil "it" girl Farrin is out to get her, and it seems that her dad never wants to talk with her anymore. Things start to look up for Ren when she meets Jack, an uber cute boy! Unfortunately Farrin likes to think Jack is hers and that Ren should just stay away. One day when Ren and Farrin's identical notebooks get mixed up Ren finds printouts of chat rooms from a website called Sex World. Even though Ren despises Farrin she can't resist the urge to help her get out of the mess she has put herself into. Ren creates an account on the website and pretends to be Farrin. She's not too scared about meeting this predator until she thinks she's found out who it is. Could it be so obvious? Is it someone close by? Ren sets off on an adventure to save her enemy and find out the true identify of this sick man. Along the way she gains the friendship of two girls and catches Jack's heart. In the end she gets the bad guy, but it will shock us all as to who he is!
This book wasn't my favorite, but in no means was it a bad book. It had mystery and romance in it and kept the reader wondering who the predator was. I enjoyed Ren's character, but to me she was just like a lot of characters in many other books. She didn't have that extra special something that makes me want to be the character. The book's theme seems to be geared more for older readers, but the writing, in my opinion, is geared toward a younger age group. The one thing that did really speak to me though is the fact that a lot of girls go online into chat rooms, like Sex World, and get themselves mixed up with creepy sex offenders. This is a growing problem in today's world and people need to really be made aware of it. If you know anyone who even think might be involved in this type of activity don't hesitate to tell someone because you could be saving a life.
This book wasn't my favorite, but in no means was it a bad book. It had mystery and romance in it and kept the reader wondering who the predator was. I enjoyed Ren's character, but to me she was just like a lot of characters in many other books. She didn't have that extra special something that makes me want to be the character. The book's theme seems to be geared more for older readers, but the writing, in my opinion, is geared toward a younger age group. The one thing that did really speak to me though is the fact that a lot of girls go online into chat rooms, like Sex World, and get themselves mixed up with creepy sex offenders. This is a growing problem in today's world and people need to really be made aware of it. If you know anyone who even think might be involved in this type of activity don't hesitate to tell someone because you could be saving a life.
November 5, 2012
Reviewed by Sally Kruger aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com
Just imagine living with the knowledge that J. K. Rowling, of Harry Potter fame, is responsible for your mother's death. That's the way Lauren "Ren" sees things. Her mother, a successful author in her own right, was researching for her latest book when the unthinkable happened - she was crushed by a pallet-load of Harry Potter books.
After the unfortunate accident, Ren's father decides they should leave New York City and head to the suburbs of Connecticut. Upon arriving at their new home, Ren finds herself attending an exclusive private school called Waylord. She isn't exactly welcomed with open arms. Finding friends just adds to the complications of adjusting to her mother's sudden death.
Perhaps it is her recent loss, along with an overactive imagination, that leads Ren into an unexpected situation. When she mistakenly picks up a classmate's notebook resembling her own, she learns that stuck-up, annoying Farrin is communicating in a chat room known as Sex World. The mysterious stranger appears to be an older man, and Farrin may be planning a meeting with him. The more Ren learns about this dangerous communication, the more she begins to suspect the mystery man could be someone she knows; that's when her own plan begins to take shape.
Even after revealing significant facts, author Lauren Baratz-Logsted keeps the suspense flowing in Ren's story. Teens will enjoy the twists and turns as Ren tries to get comfortable in her new surroundings, develop new friendships, and discover the identity of the mysterious FDA. In her "Author's Note," Baratz-Logsted references an interesting website with statistics showing how quickly and easily online predators can access information about potential victims. Teens are warned to be careful and to be safe.
Just imagine living with the knowledge that J. K. Rowling, of Harry Potter fame, is responsible for your mother's death. That's the way Lauren "Ren" sees things. Her mother, a successful author in her own right, was researching for her latest book when the unthinkable happened - she was crushed by a pallet-load of Harry Potter books.
After the unfortunate accident, Ren's father decides they should leave New York City and head to the suburbs of Connecticut. Upon arriving at their new home, Ren finds herself attending an exclusive private school called Waylord. She isn't exactly welcomed with open arms. Finding friends just adds to the complications of adjusting to her mother's sudden death.
Perhaps it is her recent loss, along with an overactive imagination, that leads Ren into an unexpected situation. When she mistakenly picks up a classmate's notebook resembling her own, she learns that stuck-up, annoying Farrin is communicating in a chat room known as Sex World. The mysterious stranger appears to be an older man, and Farrin may be planning a meeting with him. The more Ren learns about this dangerous communication, the more she begins to suspect the mystery man could be someone she knows; that's when her own plan begins to take shape.
Even after revealing significant facts, author Lauren Baratz-Logsted keeps the suspense flowing in Ren's story. Teens will enjoy the twists and turns as Ren tries to get comfortable in her new surroundings, develop new friendships, and discover the identity of the mysterious FDA. In her "Author's Note," Baratz-Logsted references an interesting website with statistics showing how quickly and easily online predators can access information about potential victims. Teens are warned to be careful and to be safe.
November 6, 2011
It was an entertaining read and it had some good points in it. I've read some of the reviews on here and I think people get way too caught up in little things. If I find a book I don't like...I stop reading it. The very fact that they finished the book says something. I also saw one reviewer arguing about the location of the book and how mega rich would not live there....this is a book for crying out loud. You were either entertained or you weren't. Arguing about something that is make believe and from a writers mind is ridiculous.
I laughed my way through some of the inane conversations "Ren" had with herself and being the mother of a 16 year old girl I can tell you the shallowness and self centeredness other reviewers have complained about is alive and well in even the non rich 16 year olds...Welcome to the teenage mind thank you very much! :) It is what it is...enjoy the book or don't.
I laughed my way through some of the inane conversations "Ren" had with herself and being the mother of a 16 year old girl I can tell you the shallowness and self centeredness other reviewers have complained about is alive and well in even the non rich 16 year olds...Welcome to the teenage mind thank you very much! :) It is what it is...enjoy the book or don't.
August 10, 2016
When Ren's mother dies and her father moves from New York City to the suburbs of Connecticut she believes her life is over. She must say goodbye to the lifestyle she has always known and her old friends. As she struggles to fit in at her new school she accidentally picks up the wrong binder and discovers that a classmate is having an online relationship with an older man. Ren takes it upon herself to save Farrin and catch the pervert in the act. Then she finds out who he is.... A story of the dangers of online chat rooms for teens that is also comedic and surprising. Girls will enjoy this book.
February 4, 2013
This was a pretty good book. Lauren has recently lost her mother and moved to the Connecticut suburbs. She is having a hard time adjusting to all the changes in her life. She mistakenly takes a notebook of one of the nastier girls in her class, thinking it was her own, and finds a printout of some sketchy online conversations. Lauren decides to go on a mission to rescue this girl. Along the way, she finds out who her real friends are and who she can really trust. In some ways, this book was predictable, but that might be because I skipped to the end to
see what would happen. Even so, there were some surprises in store.
see what would happen. Even so, there were some surprises in store.
February 15, 2008
SMSL is a quick, engaging read. Ren's father has moved their household to the burbs of Danbury, CT after a freak accident involving a load of Harry Potter books that kills Ren's mother. There is an array of usual suspects at Ren's new school and it seems the twist in this teen novel is that it's a cautionary tale about internet predators. There were enough loose ends--Ren becomes a mentor, befriends a trio of cabdrivers, makes a couple friends, catches the eye of cute boy--that LBL could easily make a series out of Ren's life.
March 28, 2008
This was a fun little YA book that required no heavy lifting in the brain cell department. It was pretty formulaic YA chick lit. Ren, a NYC transplant to CT, is sure her dad is up to no good on a sex site after the death of Ren's mother. She is also struggling to fit in at a new school and keep up with her New York friends besides. It helps that she is apparently rolling in piles of cash.
There were a few moments that were actually laugh out loud funny and I actually liked this book a lot more than Baratz Logsted's adult fiction. Worth a shot if you have nothing better to read!
There were a few moments that were actually laugh out loud funny and I actually liked this book a lot more than Baratz Logsted's adult fiction. Worth a shot if you have nothing better to read!
June 5, 2010
I learned from this book that communication in a family is very important and to solve problems. After Lauren (called Ren)'s mother died, she moved to a new place with her father. Ren's parents were both writers and not much of a speaker. After Ren's mother died, she had even less communication between her and her father. She meta popular girl in the school named Farrin, and found out that she was dating with an oldman online, who is probably her own father... Ren tried very hard to not let Farrin hurt by the man online while finding out the truth about her own father.
November 9, 2009
Ren is struggling with the loss of her mother, who happened to be killed by JK Rowling. Her father decides to move out of fast paced New York City, so Ren is forced to adapt to new surroundings and make new friends. She ends up getting herself into a sticky situation after entering a chat room. While parts of this can seem all to realistic and scary, I found the book very dull and predictable at moments.
June 29, 2012
thoroughly mediocre. I did not gain anything from this book. Ren was annoying, shallow, and self-involved. I needed more of Mandy, Farrin, and Jack. The whole story was Ren, Ren, Ren, Ren, Ren and I did not care one bit about Ren. The end was also not surprising at all.
If you want a beach read then this is for you. If you are looking for a life changing piece of writing then go for something else.
If you want a beach read then this is for you. If you are looking for a life changing piece of writing then go for something else.
June 28, 2008
Ren is furious that Harry Potter killed her mom,(freak book accident) and her dad moved them from NYC to Conneticut. Fitting into her new school isn't easy, and bitch Ferrin isn't helping. Then Ren leanrs Ferrin's secret, she is meeting an older man in a sex chat room. Now its up to Ren to save Ferin, only she thinks the older guy may be her father. . .
December 8, 2009
This book is about a girl named Lauren or "Ren" moves into her new home in Connecticut with her dad after her mom's death. She tris to fit into her new school, but Farrin, the most popular girl in the school doesn't like her and blocks Ren's way in the school. Ren then finds that Farrin is secretly dating an old man online and that old man might be Ren's own father...
January 13, 2011
I couldn't put this book down today, good thing it was an easy read.. I just had to see who FDA was, although I knew it wasn't the person she tried to make out to be the villan. And before the end it was easy to determine who it was. One thing I really didn't like or understand was the point of the 8 year old girl with the bad mouth. No need for it!
April 12, 2008
Blech. This is an awful book. I can only imagine it was published based soley on subject matter (online predators vs. teenage girls). It gets a star because maybe--just maybe--it will prevent its readers from acting like the complete jackasses that the girls in this book were. Just bad, bad, bad.
July 3, 2008
This book is definitely written for teenagers. That made it a quick and easy read. So if that is not your thing than you better pick something else. It was a fun book. I read it in two sittings. Good for hanging out by the pool when you don't want to struggle following the storyline.
October 26, 2008
I didn't reallly like the first part of the book because it was quite boring. I like the end though. Except I already knew who is the perv online before I read the end. It was pretty obvious. I got the clues in the book. Ren was brave. Overall I thought the book was alright.
December 22, 2010
Well, I never believed that the dad did it.... cuz thats just way too creepy. It was obviously JoJo (thats the creeper) but yea, other than that it was good. i wish there was more mandy in there.. i kinda liked her
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Currently reading
April 20, 20114/20/11: I've just started this book and so far it looks really good. I like this kind of social drama and classic teenage troubles. When I read the back I saw that there was a twist in the story and I love those kinds of books. I cannot wait to read it.
February 10, 2013
I've finished this book last night. Well, I didn't read the last 40 pages because the story was pretty predictable. I hate the main character. She was such a nosy git. I've wasted my time reading this. One of the awful books I've read so far.
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