Review: Burn for Burn by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian

Burn for Burn by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian
358 Pages
Release Date: September 18th, 2012
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Genre: Contemporary
Level: YA
Rating: 3 STARS

Goodreads Summary:
BIG GIRLS DON'T CRY...
THEY GET EVEN.

Lillia has never had any problems dealing with boys who like her. Not until this summer, when one went too far. No way will she let the same thing happen to her little sister.

Kat is tired of the rumours, the insults, the cruel jokes. It all goes back to one person– her ex-best friend– and she's ready to make her pay.

Four years ago, Mary left Jar Island because of a boy. But she's not the same girl anymore. And she's ready to prove it to him.

Three very different girls who want the same thing: sweet, sweet revenge. And they won't stop until they each had a taste.

Burn for Burn by Jenny Han and Silobhan Vivian is a different kind of YA book especially genre wise. It wasn't a cute, fluff read but it wasn't necessarily a "dark" kind of read either. Maybe a mischievous read? It does have some main contemporary aspects like family, friendship, and cliques/"mean girl" but certainly hints at a paranormal twist that I hope to see explained in Fire with Fire (Burn for Burn #2). I was especially exited to read this book since I haven't  read a revenge plot in a while and I did have expectations for it and it reached it but at the same time it didn't. I know that doesn't make much sense, but there were some scenes that were plain genius and awesome and at the same time I felt like the writing needed something more that could have been added to the story.

What I  liked about Burn for Burn was how different all the characters were, which also made each of their POVs interesting and helped to story development. All 3 had a vendetta against someone for a particular reason; Mary against reeve, Lillia against Alex, and Kat against Rennie. Mary is your quite, shy, and super nice girl who has her own sad story and I feel for her. Her unexpected bursts of electrical power was the only mysterious part of the book that seriously has me questioning if this contemporary like story is going to turn to paranormal. Reeve is the big guy in town, with the looks, charm, and amazing football skills, he's basically idolized among everyone and sought after by the one and only Rennie, Queen B, of the school. What he did do Rennie was such a jerk move and this is probably the worst thing I could say but I didn't feel much hatred for him which is weird because I usually feel like punching guys like him.

I thought that Lillia was a cool character albeit she was annoying at some scenes. Being the rich one in the book and asian, Jenny and Siobhan did  a great job added racial variety within the story and faced down some racial stereotypes that a lot of teens think of. Alex also was a cool character and I didn't have anything against him for most of the book. Kat was kick-butt! With her wit and sarcasm plus history with her ex-BFF who is now Queen B and treating her like trash, her revenge against Rennie seemed the most reasonable and totally worth it!! Rennie is the most annoying, insecure character ever. >.> She's the kind of girl who's hair you want to tear out and unleash your inner claws at.

There wasn't a huge build on romance. But form what I understand: Rennie likes Reeve who may like either Lillia or Mary. Mary who likes Reeve even through what he did to her. Alex who I think likes Lillia but may have had a thing for Kat. And Kat who liked Alex. All different and I'm not really shipping anyone just yet.

Burn for Burn is for all you readers up for some revenge. I would recommend this more to the contemporary reader audience. However, some mystery lovers may or may not like it. Burn for Burn is a hard book to recommend to considering the fact that it borders on a thin line between readers if they would like the book or not. So really, if you think the synopsis seems interesting then go for and read it! Happy Readings!!