The Exile of Gigi Lane by Adrienne Maria Vrettos

The Exile of Gigi Lane by Adrienne Maria Vrettos

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry

Publish Date: April 6, 2010

Hardcover, 256 pages

My Review:

Rating:  4.25/5.0

When I first started this book, I honestly didn't think I would finish it.  But for some reason I kept reading.  And by about 20 more pages I was glad I did.

Gigi Lane is not very likable at the beginning of this book (and that is the point).  She is in line to be the ruler of the school for her senior year and the book starts at the end of her junior year as she and her friends are finishing rushing the elite, but secret group in the school.  Once you are in this group, you do rule and the opportunities are opened to you for life plus you get a great secret room to hang out in.  Gigi is very open about the different cliques in the school and what is wrong with various members of them.  Some of them she is distant friends with and some of the other students she treats horribly.  But then the unthinkable happens when she is openly mean to one of her fellow students.  Gigi is no longer at the top of the ladder and now she has to work her way through the cliques to find one that will accept her.

A very intriguing premise, a kind of a Christmas Carol meets high school.  Gigi finds her past sins as she goes through each group and along the way she becomes a different person.

Very well written and very hard to put down once Gigi was put in her place.  I enjoyed the plot and the various characters in this book.  Gigi doesn't end up completely changed in the end, but her growth is astounding and makes the book a very interesting read.  All of the characters are interesting and I could not stop turning pages to learn more about each of them.

About the Book (from Amazon.com):
Heathers meets Bring It On in The Exile of Gigi Lane, where a high school queen bee's rise to glory is nothing compared to her fall from it.

About the Author (from Amazon.com):
Adrienne Maria Vrettos grew up on a mountain in southern California, where she rode dirt bikes and made a mean double-mud pie. Her first novel Skin, was named an ALA Best Book for Young Adults, an ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, and a New York Public Library Top 100 Books for Reading and Sharing selection. Her second novel, Sight, was an ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers and a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age. Adrienne lives with her family in Brooklyn, New York, and you can visit her online at adriennemariavrettos.com.

FTC Information: I received this book from Around the World Tours for review.  I have Amazon links on my review pages but I do not make any money from these because of NC laws.  I put them solely for people to check out the books on a retail site.