The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove

author: Lauren Kate

published: November 12th 2009

publisher: Penguin Books

format: paperback

pages: 235

The following synopsis comes from the back of the book!

What she wanted:

Natalie Hargrove wants one thing and one thing only- to be her high school's Palmetto Princess. Among the Southern Belles, a.k.a. Bambies, competing for the crown, she's by far the most beautiful, and the most deserving. Or so she thinks.

The catch:

Her boyfriend, Mike King, is on the brink of losing Palmetto Prince to Nat's nasty nemesis Justin Balmer. And let's just say Natalie and Justin have a history so shady it could wither flowers. Sure, Natalie could share the throne with Justin-over her dead body.

The trick:

So Nat convinces Mike to help her play a naughty little prank on Justin . . . just to make him look bad. Little do they know, their plan is about to go terribly, terribly wrong.

The fatal flaw:

Natalie and Mike desperately try to cover up what happened to Justin. But blackmail and buried desire, dark secrets and even darker deeds slowly begin to tear them apart. Because as it turns out, fate is the one thing more twisted than Natalie Hargrove.

My Thoughts:

The Cover:

This time, the cover is not what caught my interest. I had read Fallen by Lauren Kate and when I saw on her website that she had another novel, I decided to read it. The cover did not make me want to read it, but the synopsis did. The cover is not the type of cover I would pick out in a store and want to read, although it does make me wonder what the story is about. And then the title, The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove definitely piqued my interest. The text on the cover looks really nice. I really like that the cover people used the two different fonts.

The Book:

Natalie Hargrove is the type of girl that I hate. She seems to have everything. The hot boyfriend, looks, popularity, and money, among other things. But she also has that, higher than thou attitude. She KNOWS that she's gorgeous and popular and she uses that and she treats people badly because she feels that she can. I usually don't even like to READ about this kind of girl. But Lauren Kate's writing of this story put me on Natalie's side. I was routing for her throughout the novel.

The prologue and epilogue are written as if they are talking to YOU. I love that, I think it helps the reader understand Nat more.

This story is nothing like I've ever experienced. As far as I am aware, my high school was not like this at all! It was fun to see into a society like that of Palmetto, especially through the eyes of the character Natalie. She was not always a part of this group and that could be a contributing factor to why I don't hate her completely. I think Natalie is a character that I hate to love. She puts so much into how her other people perceive her. Appearance and popularity are the most important things to her, which I, personally, just don't get.

It was really fun to see into this type of world, a world I will never belong in! But by reading it from Nat's point of view, I did belong, if only for a little while.

It was definitely worth reading.

Torment Cover!

Lauren Kate revealed the cover of Torment today on her blog!

I'm so excited! I absolutely love this cover and it will look fantastic next to Fallen!

Torment is set to hit stores in 172 days! (September 2nd)

Fallen

author: Lauren Kate

published: December 8th 2009

series: Fallen (book #1)

publisher: Delacorte Press (An imprint of Random House Children's Books)

format: hardcover

pages: 452

genre: fantasy

The following synopsis comes from Goodreads.

There's something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.

Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price's attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He's the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move.

Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce--and goes out of his way to make that very clear--she can't let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her.

Dangerously exciting and darkly romantic, Fallen is a page turning thriller and the ultimate love story.

My Thoughts:

The Cover:

I think this cover is compelling. I saw it and thought it would be a book I'd like; and I was right. The cover makes sense to me having read it and I think it's beautifully done. It makes someone looking at it wonder: who is this girl? why is she upset? what is with the woods and the dress? So you read the inside flap or back cover to find out whatever you can; then you're hooked. I read about it and I had to read it, but I ordered it with other things, had to wait, then read the others first. I love this cover so much and I really hope the cover of the sequel is just as good as this one and has a similar theme. Because when it comes to book series, I like the covers to be cohesive. Sometimes they aren't! I'm going to post about series covers some time.

Anyway, I really love this cover.

The Book:

It begins with a quote. Personally, I like it when books begin with a quote from somewhere else. It usually gives the reader an idea of what the book is about or something that happens, without really giving you anything at all! This quote is from Heinrich Von Kleist "On The Puppet Theater". So, having not heard of this Henrich fellow, I googled him. Wikipedia says he "a German poet, dramatist, novelist and short story writer." I am intrigued and will probably read up on him some more.

The quote at the beginning of Fallen is this,

"But paradise is locked and bolted. . . .

We must make a journey around the world

to see if a back door has perhaps been left open."

I like this quote. I think it sets up the story nicely.

So, Fallen is about a girl named Luce (short for Lucinda) who finds her way into Sword & Cross reform school where she meets kids with issues and baggage that they don't want to share, which is fine with her; she doesn't want to share hers and more than they do.

It starts off with her getting to the school for the tour and she is already making a bad impression, she's late. She gets set up with Arriane to give her a tour and they quickly hit it off and she shows her the ropes. Now this would be a YA novel without some boys. She meets two that really stick in her mind: Cam & Daniel. Cam is cute, immediately nice to her and treats her well and she knows his intentions. While on the other side, there's Daniel. Also a resident cutie, but he's mean to her right off the bat. For some reason Luce is just drawn to him and can't stop thinking or dreaming about him.

Luce has to get used to life at Sword & Cross while also trying to avoid the shadows lurking around her. Then on top of that, she has to figure out which boy she really likes.

I find that Luce is quite mature, which I don't think is often the case in books like this one. She has obviously been through a lot and that comes across in both her actions and thoughts. I found this to be one of my favorite things about her. She uses her head, most of the time. The two boys were quite different in the way they treat Luce and that was very interesting to see.

Now, I have to mention, Luce does have female friends, so this isn't purely male driven relationships. Arianne and Penn quickly become the girls that Luce trusts and hangs out with; her best friends at Sword & Cross. They show her the ropes and help her out with her admirers. Watching her relationship with these girls develop was just as intriguing as that with Cam and Daniel.

I was hooked from the beginning and could NOT put this book down and when I did have to, I thought about it. I still am thinking about it! It's one of those books that gives me this feeling in my gut that I just can't shake even after I've read it. (I got the same one with The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Shiver among a few others. Those are the ones I can think of at the moment)

I highly recommend this book. I loved it and am eagerly awaiting the sequel, Torment which hits stores (according to Goodreads) September 2nd 2010 or (according to Amazon) October 26th 2010! Amazon is probably the more reliable, but we will see how it pans out.

Five out of five stars.