College Life 101: Freshman Orientation

by J.B. Vample

When it comes to life, class is always in session Leaving home for the first time to attend college is stressful enough. But when the roommate lottery of Paradise Valley University strikes, it produces couples who have absolutely nothing in common; causing personality clashes which takes the stress to a whole new level. Dismay hits Sidra Howard, the prim and proper princess, when she contemplates spending an entire semester with Chasity Parker, the troubled beauty with a sharp tongue and even sharper claws. Malajia Simmons, a boy crazed, attention seeking diva, is no happier. Not only does she get stuck with the upper bunk bed, she has to share a triple room with Alexandra Chisolm, a nosey and overbearing, self proclaimed “know-it-all”. But even the meddling Alexandra isn’t as bad as Emily Harris, the shy, mommy’s girl with a non-existent backbone. Coming to college to escape her home life, Chasity hopes to get through the semester without any problems. Her hopes are tainted once she begins to have to resist the advances of a determined football star, on top of dealing with family drama which seems to have followed her. Alexandra’s need to fix everyone’s problems not only rubs her roommates the wrong way, it also causes her to fall blind to the problems brewing with the boyfriend that she left behind. Eventually she’ll be forced to face the issues head on. Emily’s refusal to come out of her shell is too much to handle for party girl Malajia, whose main purpose is to have fun and be seen. The same doesn’t apply to Sidra, who’s more concerned with trying to keep her over-the-top stress level under control. These five young women try to handle family drama, pressure, and conflicts; all while trying to maintain their grades. They quickly learn that college life isn’t what they expected and must adapt to their new environment if they ever hope to make it through their first semester.

Genres: New Adult

334 pages, Paperback

First published December 19, 2015

About the author

Instagram: @jbvample
Facebook: Author J.B. Vample
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J.B. Vample is an author who fell in love with the written word at a young age. While in her final year of high school, she came up with the concept of her new adult fiction series The College Life Series. After years of writing only for herself, J.B. published her debut novel College Life 101: Freshman Orientation in 2015. Since then, she has written and published the other eight installments of TCLS. Her latest contemporary romance standalone Right as Reign is her tenth novel. Currently residing in Philadelphia, J.B. continues to write while managing her career as an indie author.

Reviews

[Paula Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heading to college can be a big challenge and change for many, it is one of the American's passages of life and steps to Adulthood. In College Life 101: Freshman Orientation, we will meet a group of students starting their college lives. Each one will be from a different background, family and struggling with an issue and over time will discover that one of the most important things in college is creating friendships that will turn into lifelong relationships and that sometimes the person you least expect to be in your life will become your besties. In College 101 - we have Sidra, Chasity, Alexandra, Emily, and Malajia. Each girl will learn to be their person and in their first year of college overcome an obstacle that has them at a standstill. From Sidra - a prim and proper princess , Chasity - a girl who has never experienced love from her mother and has an attitude to kick , Alexandra who is like a mother hen dishing out advice and trying to solve everyone's problems , Emily - a shy and naive girl that needs to learn not to be a pushover and Malajia - an attention seeker who has to always be the centre of attention. Read College Life 101: Freshman Orientation as these five girls will learn to navigate through the halls of their first year of College through Classes, Friendships, Parties, and Boys.
As I am a fan of College Life stories, I loved this book and am looking forward to the next Semester to see how the girls get on with Year #2.

[BookzBookzBookz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Because I was always the new kid, I didn't have the opportunity to build up an abundance of long-term friends, though I do have a few that hung in there with me, over time and distance. In College Life 101: Freshman Orientation, by J. B. Vample, a few of these girls knew each other from middle school, but they were like animals at each other's throats! From different backgrounds, each girl, and later guys, brought something different to this book's table, allowing for an ending that was satisfying to me. So let me tell you about College Life 101...

The story is centered around Sidra, Malajia, Alex, Emily and Chasity - girls of color, looking to make something of their lives by attending college. One is looking to escape her mother's over-powering grip, one just looking to get away. One who is always trying to take care of others, no matter how annoying and the other a know-it-all. Then there's that one who's more boy crazy than any other. They all have their backstories, but it's the stories they create while together that makes the book a hit.

At first, I wasn't sure how to take this book. It brought out a life I never truly understood, but saw all the time... on tv and in movies! Girlfriends who always called themselves the worst of names, dressed poorly or overly dressed, but wanted to be on top. I couldn't relate to any of them, and worried I wouldn't like the book, but I was happily mistaken. The more I read, the more I found their lives intertwine, sharing and helping, despite their cut-downs and jibes. I found I wanted to know more about them, especially Alex.

From boys, to nearly blowing up the science lab, these girls get to know one another. The form bonds that will eventually bring them across two more books by J. B. Vample. If you enjoy funny drama, insane attitudes and how complicated life can be when you're adulting, read College Life 101! I'm on to the next read!

*for the full review: http://www.areneehunt.com/the-reviews... Life 101: Freshman Orientation

J. B. Vample
Published by J.B. Vample
December 19, 2015

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honey these heffas is something special in this book! OMG they all need to be committed to an institution other than college. LOL! Chasity just mean as hell, but she is also my favorite character thus far. Malajia needs too much damn attention, and I absolutely hated her throughout most of the book. But as self centered as she was, somehow she grew on me and became a fave towards the end! Ugh the struggle! Alex had time to fix everyone, but herself. Sidra is the normal one, which confuses me a little, but hey we all need one normal friend in the bunch! And Emily just needs a backbone, a new wardrobe, and some guts to tell her mom to back off. Add to the mix their guy friends and this book is the total package.

This book takes you back to being in college and having to forge friendships with people who wouldn't necessarily be in your circle. Old friends became new friends again and solo people became a part of the circle. It was an amazing story of friendship and having each other back whether you want to or not. Now don't get me wrong it was a lot of bickering honey. I'm talking down right nasty feuding in this book. Secrets get revealed and secrets get half told. Lots and lots of drama! And straight up laugh out loud moments.

I'm dying to know if Chasity's mom and aunt's secret is revealed. And if her and Jason finally hook up! If Emily steps out of the shadows and finally becomes an adult. And I don't know why I keep thinking Malajia is going to hook up with the guy in the group we would least expect.

With all that...I must go...book 2 is calling my name!

~Tiffany (556 Book Chicks)

[African Americans on the Move Book Club · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved everything about this book from the cover to the different characters. This was a refreshing read with just the right amount of drama that goes along with college. You can see the great character development of each character. Each girl struggled with their own problems but the author message about friendship was strong and invaluable. These are some unforgettable characters. My only suggestion would be to give each character her own chapter so the readers can focus better on them instead of going back and forth. Well written!

Shai Bass
AAMBC Reviewer

[Chrys Minter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome Read

After coming across this author on TikToc I had to follow and read her works. I loved the story and how well thought out it was. I am looking forward to reading the whole series as well as anything else she puts out.

[Amber Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I struggled at first to really get into the book but once I did I was invested into the chAracters and couldn't stop reading.

[Nikkoe thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw this author on TikTok, and I love a good HBCU storyline. Overall, it was a good read. It is more like a YA read. The storyline is good. I love how, through all the differences, they built a friendship, no matter how difficult it was. I will say this, Chasity momma can definitely get these hands lol. And Malajia is annoying lol. And Chastity needs to give in to Jason lol. But again, overall good read.

[Shelby Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m going to put my hands up here and say I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to get in to this book as there’s so many characters to keep up with and it was all rather confusing, however, I didn’t give up and as soon as I was introduced to all of the characters and knew what was going on, I couldn’t put the story down!

College can be a big challenge and also a big change for many students. It’s the first step to adulthood and is the time to know whether you’re ready to take that step or not. J.B. describes the college life so accurately, with just the right amount of drama and the real truth and stresses behind exams. We meet a group of students starting their first year of college, each with a different background, family and issues, however, while dealing with their own lives they discover that the most important thing in college is creating friendship that will turn in to lifelong relationships and the people you least expect to be friends with become the people you wouldn’t want to be without.

Let’s introduce you to the gang:

Sidra is very prim and proper, who takes college very seriously and has the devil as her roommate.

Chasity is Sidra’s devil roommate, however, you soon see why she is the way she is.

Alexandra is the mother hen, trying to solve everybody’s problems.

Emily is the shy girl of the group who soon learns the ropes of how to not be such a pushover.

Malajia is the attention seeking girl who believes herself to be something she’s not.

This is college so it’s only right to throw some boys in to the gang right?

Mark is the extremely loud class clown who doesn’t take life seriously.

Jason is on the football team but his real dream is to make Chasity his.

David is the brain box of the group.

Josh is Sidra’s good friend but maybe he wants more?

All 9 personalities are so different and unique that it’s so hard not to get drawn in. Their back stories are all fascinating, some deal with bigger problems than others but that doesn’t stop their problems being something to deal with. It’s a web of problems, emotions and bonding! I was really entertained by the girls as they have such sass and aren’t afraid to tell their honest opinions about each other, which surprisingly made them all respect each other by the end. I have to applaud J.B. for writing so many characters in to a book as the main focus and absolutely smashing each and every one! I can’t wait to read book 2 and I advise you all to pick up this one off of Amazon!

I publish my book reviews at: https://platinumdiaries.wordpress.com/

[Da Reviewers · Rating 5 out of 5]

The cover of the book is nice. Most of the time when you choose a book, the pictures on the cover kind of give you a picture to go in your mind with the characters as you are reading. I know you described the characters very well, but the cover picture gives you a face to go along with the descriptions. So, even if it was just a bunch of teenagers with book bags, a cover picture would have been great.
The story was very well written. The plot of the story focused on the college students and it stayed there. The story flowed at a great pace. It covered all aspects of college without boring the readers.
The spelling and punctuation was perfect. It had no errors that I could catch. The author started off with giving you a peep into the lives of the female characters. 
The characters were hilarious. There was a group of young ladies that just graduated high school and moved to college. There, they met a group of guys that had just graduated high school and moved to college. All of them had their own personalities. In the beginning of the book you would assume that they all were going to be enemies. Somehow, someway they all turned out to be the best of friends.
I would recommend this book to any reader. This book will make a great gift to graduating high school seniors. I give this book 5 stars, great job. #DaReviewersApproved

www.Facebook.com/DaReviewers

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ll be honest, it was difficult to get into this book but once I got to know the characters, College Life 101 grew on me. I suppose having the main characters show the worst sides of their personalities was intentional. Having initially hated all five girls for being… well, awful! But that’s the point right? Shoving five different people together under stressful circumstances, naturally everyone will be at their worst.

As the story progressed and I got to know the real girls, I enjoyed it more. It was a cute read. One that reminded me of my misspent youth, and also of how catty young women can be. Damn, we can be terrible creatures!

If the author’s intention was for readers to find the beginning of the story intensely irritating and stressful, then she was successful. Using the characters’ initial impressions as a device was definitely a clever way to create an authentic experience. As I said before, as you get to know the real girls, you will warm up to them and the rest of the story.

This book will appeal to new adults starting the next chapter of their life and also to people like me who have “been there, done that.” Those were the days.

www.readsandreels.com

[DayShawn R. Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was Different

I didn't know what I was getting myself into when it came to this book. A college tale about 5 black female friends. As a man I was like this probably going to be boring. It was hard to read and get into at first due to all of the female's drama shenanigans. I shook my head like come on now. I guess, it is true about what they say. They say that women can't get along and that they absolutely hate each other. I took a few months off from reading this book and then I picked it again. It was at that point I couldn't put it down. Chasity's attitude and toughness intrigued me. I found out a few secrets about her past and it drew me in as her story started to unfold. This book shows the up and downs of friendship, sisterhood and a certain mean girl trying to open up and trying to step outside of her comfort zone. That alone made me want to read more of this book series. To read more about Chasity and to read more about these young women developing into adulthood. You have a fan in me Ms. Vample, keep up the good work! Keep inspiring other authors like me. Don't stop what you're doing! Peace and Love 4 out of 5.

[Daiisyy · Rating 4 out of 5]

whewwww

Let start off saying that i will be crying once this series is over because i know we are about to grow with these young ladies. Chasidy is literally my fav even though she mean there’s a reason behind that. I know it’ll take time to break her from that shell of hers but Jason definitely working on it. Sidrea was really the normal one and we love that. Mel had me cursing her out each chapter, but she grew on me at the end she still have a lot to work on, but i will say she much better then where she started. Emily need to toughen up like my momma , and sister would’ve got it idc ! ALEX stressed me out she came in being one of my favs to being one of my least fav character she was overbearing and annoying now I’ll say i love how she took up for Emily, but damn girl she needs to learn how to do that on her own then she wants to lash out when she’s going through her issues but when it someone else … she want them to handle it different like BFFR ! Mark and Mel is giving enemies to loves real bad

[India · Rating 5 out of 5]

A breathe of fresh air!

I love the dynamics of friendship this book brings! These girls have the kind of friendship I wished I had in college. There were minor typos and some parts of the formatting threw me off, but overall this book was an excellent read! The characters are very well developed. I found myself relating to both Chastity and Alex, more so Alex with her overbearing attitude and I'm now going to change some things about myself! I'm excited for the sequel!

[Timia J Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book I can't wait to move on to the next part of the series. The characters were relatable and fun to get to know. I can clearly see they will be developing throughout the series. I love how the entire book took place in one semester. I don't want to say too much on here because will have more of this review on my Youtube channel in January!!! All in all it is a must read and definitely a page turner!

[Arionna Stanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somebody's mom wrote this

Cute. I will say story was cute but this is nothing like true college life. I kept like someones mom wrote this trying to relate to her daughter. The constant bickering was way too much. Also noone sticks to their roomie 24/7 completely unrealistic.

[Alisha Benjamin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this book for my daughter who was entering high school. She likes it and that intrigued me to read it as well. I love everything about this. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series to see the ladies growth.

[Kayla Myler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really great book!!! I enjoyed reading a book where I could relate to the characters and it's a Must read!!!

[Carmel Polk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Drama!!

Wow, this was a funny dramatic story of ladies experiencing life outside their homes! I was reading ready for the next dramatic moment!