Deceit

Stellar #1

by Rebecca Clark

Alexa Jenkinson is a self-appointed class nerd with no friends. Lately, her only excitement comes in the form of a tall, dark, and handsome Greek-like god, who visits her every night in her dreams. On top of the strange dreams, she can't help but think she's leading the wrong life. She believes that her mundane existence is the average teenager's worst nightmare.

When the popular boy at school begins to show interest in Alexa, she thinks her luck just might be changing. Until the unthinkable happens—the boy in her dream appears, and everything changes. Now, in order to sift reality from fantasy, she must navigate through the lies and relationships, separating the truth from the Deceit.

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy

180 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 2, 2016

Reviews

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

If new authors make you nervous, don't let that stop you from reading this YA coming of age sci-fi book by new author Rebecca Clark. The characters, though many, are great and well defined. You will have no problems keeping track of them. I'm hoping to learn more about some of them in future books. Alexa is your typical teenager. She's insecure, self conscious and shy. The author does a good job sticking with her attitude throughout the book. Sometimes a character will change unrealistically as the book progresses, but that doesn't happen here. I do see her growing quite a bit though. There are some surprises and some you see coming. It's a short book, but an enjoyable read. The chapters run together smoothly and some end with you wanting to continue right away. It was hard to set aside at times. The ending has a cliff hanger that leaving you itching for book 2. I look forward to reading more by Rebecca Clark.

[Sylvia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title of this book is very right. Deceit is everywhere and there are a lot of sad moments and you really live with Alexa in her pain.
I will not tell more because then I can easily give spoilers away and that is not very good here.
So you can just read the book and enjoy.

[Shirl Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the story of Alexa. She's 16 and lives in a small town with her mother. She's a high school nerd, a loner, and never expects anyone to pay her much attention. Then, the new guy at school, a gorgeous guy, starts hanging around her, talking to her, then asking her to tutor him, just so he can be close to her. She questions his behaviour, wondering why on earth he'd notice her at all! He could get any girl at school! But, she can't help herself from falling into those big brown eyes. How on earth could a guy so hot be interested in boring old Alexa, she thinks. Then comes her 17th birthday, and Mr. Gorgeous has asked her to go with him to a dance at school! Could things get any better?? YES!! It's Saturday, her birthday!! Her mother has promised her a wonderful birthday breakfast! When Alexa awakes, she smells no coffee or pancakes, so she decides her mother must be out jogging or running an errand. She takes a shower and prepares for her big day and even bigger night at the dance!! But... The story continues and goes in directions I didn't expect, but really got into, and it held my interest until the last page. I love the fact that this story is not predictable and I could relate to the characters in the story. Oh, did I forget to mention the blue-eyed Greek God-like boy she meets every night in her dreams? Oh, yes, my bad. His aquamarine eyes enthrall her and she can't stop thinking about him. She looks forward to going to bed each night because she gets to see him again. Where is he from? And, how did he get into her dreams every night? She knows she's never met him, she'd definitely remember him if she had. And where in the world are they in her dreams?? There's 3 moons in the sky and purple flowers everywhere. She's completely confused by her feelings for both of these boys. The one there with her when she's awake, or the one who haunts her dreams and weakens her knees? Which will she choose, and for what reasons? I have to admit, I'm not happy the story didn't continue on and I have to wait for the next book to arrive before I get to see what happens and how she deals with her new life. This is a wonderful book, written by a talented story teller. I volunteered to read this book, and received it, for my honest review, and my reviews are always honest, whether good, bad or meh. I won't blow smoke, so to speak, to be on an author's good side, but I truly do look forward to more by Rebecca Clark. I can't wait to see how Alexa takes charge and kicks some serious booty!!

[Paula Phillips · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's interesting that often certain books can attract us due to what we feel in our personal lives as the main character Alexa in Rebecca Clark's new book Deceit was a nerd and a girl who didn't have any friends and found it hard to fit in at school and for me , I was like that - I had a few friends but they were more so acquaintances and I was viewed as a nerd as I loved reading and spent all my time in the library. So whenever I see books that have this kind of characteristic I am drawn to them. The other thing I loved is the paranormal twist with the handsome new guy that walks her dreams at night , as I also love ability novels. Alexa thinks that her life is a living hell and this is one of those books where she is going through that awkward loner teenage phase , until the new guy shows up at her school and has all the girls going ga-ga for him and who does he pick to show interest in - none other than Alexa. Like most books , we can see where this goes but readers do not despair as the excitement is just beginning as the guy from Alexa's dreams turns up too and soon things go from being awesome and on top of the world to disaster status as she must learn to decipher what's true and what's a lie. One of the main things that I loved about Deceit is though the author had her becoming more popular in the school, it wasn't an instant thing and that throughout the novel Alexa is still growing into the young adult she is and trying to navigate her way through life, newfound friends and troubles.

If you love Love Triangles, Paranormal and Nerds/Geeks and all that fun stuff in between that we all succumb to in High School , then check out Deceit by Rebecca Clark today as you will not be disappointed.

[Tonja Drecker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice, light fantasy, coming of age story, which is sure to hook high school romance fans. The main character, Alexa, is a nerd, but the author still gives her a great attitude which makes her easy to like and fun to follow. Although she starts out relatively shy, there's a definite character development which had me really liking her by the last page.

At under 150 pages, this is a short read, perfect for a bedtime read. The plot moves along nicely, and I had no problem reading this from front to back in one sitting. There are several unexpected twists and turns to keep the reader on their toes, and I appreciated the way Alexa continued to work through whatever was thrown at her. Of course, there's romance as well. It was sweet and great for the high school level. I'll admit, it had me smiling at times.

Although I'm usually not a fan of cliff hanger endings, this one caught my attention enough that I'll be looking forward to book 2.

I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

[KayeC Jones · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a strange story. I usually love strange stories, but this was strange in a I'm-not-trying-to-be-strange way. No matter what the main character did, I didn't like her, and I always try to get behind the main protagonist in a story I'm reading.

There were quite a few annoying things in this book. For one, the main character, Alexa, was always fainting. Do people really faint all that much? It seems to put odd pauses in the story. Second, the plot seemed forced into the number of pages, making the story feel rushed and jumpy. I think a girl being kidnapped to another planet should pretty much encompass one book, but it involves a lot more. I think characters are the reason why people keep reading any work of fiction and the author just didn't put enough behind the main character in this one.

But it remains at two stars because it does have potential if the author would go through it another time to make the main character more relatable or sympathetic. I did like the idea of a person morphing appearance.

[Charity · Rating 5 out of 5]

For full review please go to: 5girlsbookreviews.blogspot.com, Twitter @camartinez and Facebook "5 Girls Book Reviews"

REVIEW BY: Arianna, age 12 years, 2 days until 13!

MAY CONTAIN SPOILER:

This book was wonderful!

My favorite character is Alexa because she is smart (according to her "nerd" status), kind and brave. Instead of giving up, she works harder.

[Tallie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this story. I felt bad for Alexa. No one would give that girl a straight answer!

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ok, good for a teen

This book was just ok. I think it was written for more of a tween/teen audience. There’s a lot of back and forth, not knowing who to trust and we don’t really find out about Alexa’s powers at all, just that weird things happen when she sleeps.
It’s a pass for future books for me.

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Must say I'm a bit disappointed it was so short being under 150 pages but for the price you can't beat it but think maybe if it had more in it would have pushed this to a 5 star rating from me. This is a light read very YA friendly coming of age story with a not so normal main character Alexa. Have to admit it was nice not having a female lead character not whine so that was refreshing. Of course it seems these days there has to be some type of love triangle so expect one here.

For the most part the plot was solid though of course there's always room to add to it since this is the 1st of a series but a good start. While this did end on a cliffhanger it wasn't a horrible one. I am looking forward to reading the next installment and maybe some more length to it ; ) A for sure a fun read.

Highly recommend to those who love YA/paranormal/diffe

[Julie Reece · Rating 5 out of 5]

I could not put this book down. Well, except that my 17 year old daughter "borrowed" it, and then she could not put it down. I had to wait for her to finish. It is a page-turner. The characters are delightful, engaging and relatable. We (my daughter and I) can't wait for the sequel to find out what happens next....

[Melissa Flickinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a good book - perfect for YA audience. Alexia seems like your every day teen, stumbling through school trying to find her place in the world. I've read a few reviews where some have mentioned Alexia being a bit whiny - well, you know what? Most teens are whiny, lol. I found Alexia easy to relate to and enjoyed how she develops throughout the story.

[Jayme Beddingfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adore Alexia, and really enjoyed how she grew throughout the story. From the first chapter to the last, the story was engaging, fun, and an exciting fantasy adventure. I can't wait for the next one in the series!

[Melissa]

Less than Stellar

The story moves way to quickly and some aspects of the story seem too farfetched. I like a love triangle, but this book is lacking a certain quality of character.