So while I wait for things to move along on my own book front, I thought I’d share my thoughts on some of what I’ve been reading.
Title: 90 Cats and No Litter Box In Sight
Author: Molly Zenk
Rating: 3.5
As I’ve noted elsewhere on the site, Molly is a good friend of mine and her success makes me so happy we traveled this publishing journey together. Having now finished with my legal education (including the bar exam), I had the time to settle in and read Molly’s first contemporary young adult romantic comedy. I will admit that this not a genre I typically read but I found it an enjoyable read. If you’re looking for something fun and quick, this is probably a book you would enjoy.
90 Cats centers on romantically challenged college freshman Glynis Kirby and Corin Lancashire, the boy who loves her. He loves her so much he blogs about how he feels. And it turns out the blog comes in handy in the final chapter of the book. From the start it is pretty obvious that the pair is destined to be together (as with any romantic comedy) and there are more than a few stumbling blocks before either of them are in a place to consider a relationship.
For the most part Glynis and Corin are likable, if a bit young emotionally (even for 18). I would have liked to see Corin a bit more fleshed out, although I realize that would be kind of difficult since the chapters themselves are in Glynis’ point of view. The story was supplemented by Facebook status updates and blog entries which I thought was a very interesting and unique device to move the story along. I think in the blog posts which were from Corin’s point of view, he did come off occasionally as a little stalker-y but that was part of his charm. He cared so much about this girl that he longed for her to be happy, no matter what that entailed.
And I would have liked to see Glynis shrug off the controlling forces of her mother and best friend Kathy a little sooner than she did. However, her struggles to follow her heart rather what others want for her is believable based on her past relationships (which are discussed earlier in the book). Corin’s main competition, Daniel Bond, was appropriately devious and creepy. From the moment he first steps on to the stage, you know something is really off about him. Some of the other guys Glynis almost ended up with thanks to Kathy before the stand-off between Daniel and Corin were rather hilarious. From Jaxson who lives his life by the Ouija Board, to Bill the thrill seeker who can’t hold a conversation for more than a few seconds without getting a call from his ex-girlfriend. Molly did a great job making the reader feel (like Glynis) that they were just too weird.
I thought the story was well-paced and it was believable that all of the action could take place over only a couple months (although the opening chapter does take place about 9 months prior to the rest of the main story line). Molly did well in creating a unique voice for both Glynis and Corin which I think lent itself to keeping the pace moving.
I will be interested to see what happens in book 2 during sophomore year with a longer time frame to work with.
