Perfect Chemistry (Perfect Chemistry, #1)

by Simone Elkeles

When wealthy, seemingly perfect Brittany and Alex Fuentes, a gang member from the other side of town, develop a relationship after Alex discovers that Brittany is not exactly who she seems to be, they must face the disapproval of their schoolmates--and others.

• ISBN10: 0802798233
• ISBN13: 9780802798237
• Publish Date: 23 December 2008
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 16 June 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Walker & Company
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 357
• Language: English

Reviews

[kymmiejournals]

When bad boy meets good girl is just the Perfect Chemistry.



Pretty perfect! It is yet again one of the romantic New Adult series/books I have read. It is fascinating how the author came up with the idea of how to end the story without losing the idea of where it all started.





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[thebookdisciple]

These were pretty likable characters for the most part. I thought the 'drama' for Brittany was lame. But, I liked her and I liked Alex. The story was good and it kept me entertained. Sometimes though I felt like I skipped a page or something-the author sometimes jumps from 1 setting to another with no indication of a change! It was annoying at times but nothing that ruined the book for me or anything. So, it was a good romantic story, pretty tame in terms of sex (which I appreciate!), and ends well.

[KitsuneBae]

Predictable but I have all the goosebumps and toe curling moments. Perfect Chemistry indeed!

[nitzan_schwarz]

Loved it~

[Katie King]

The Spanish felt forced, like the author was trying way too hard to make them Mexican. I know sometimes they speak in that English/Spanish mix, but it didn't seem real here.

The romance seemed to develop quite rapidly. Although it is a Romeo/Juliet type story.

I respect the author for not selling out the sex scene and making it graphic. It was done very tastefully.

Overall, I was surprised I liked this as much as I did. It is a good read, but I'm not interested enough in Alex's brothers to continue the series.

[cornerfolds]

After reading seemingly endless reviews singing praises for Perfect Chemistry, I decided to see what all the hype was about. In all honesty, I normally do like whatever books are the current "thing" (Twilight, The Hunger Games, etc), and I LOVE YA books in general. I feel that the stories are just better since they cannot rely on an abundance of sex and violence to make the story readable. I opted to listen to this as an audiobook on my way to and from work and school. I truly wanted to love this book. Unfortunately, I thought it was just okay.

My initial feelings about this book were on the fence. In Elkeles defense, the first problem I had was with the performers of the audiobook, not the book itself. The voice of Alex (a character so unmemorable I just had to ponder what his name was for several seconds) reminded me of Stephen Hawking. Don't get me wrong, I love Stephen Hawking! His work is amazing and I've spent hours attempting to understand his books. However, Stephen Hawking is in no way sexy, and I'm pretty sure that Alex is supposed to be just that. I grew up in the south and have known many people from Mexico. Trust me, none of them sound like computers.

Robotic voices aside, I immediately noticed other issues with this story. The cussing (which I normally have no problem with) was out of place and seemed like it was just there in order to have the highest number of cuss words possible in the book. They mostly just sounded awkward.

The main characters, Brittany and Alex, were not memorable or likable, in my opinion. Brittany was annoying and whiney. Honestly, what teenager cares that much what her parents think? She was extremely wishy-washy and got emotional at really strange moments. And Alex... Well, Alex just wasn't memorable. I can't quite put my finger on what my problem with him was. The relationship, while it did seem to progress naturally, was also awkward and frustrating.

My last problem with this book was the epilogue. Why was it even there? Isn't there another part to this story? I might have picked up her second book just to see what happens after the last chapter, but then it's ruined with a horribly cheesy epilogue.

Overall, the book wasn't horrible. It made my commute more entertaining, at least. Perhaps this book would be more appropriate for a teenager or someone with lower expectations.

[Amber]

Have I ever told you how much I struggle when reviewing books that I’m in love with? It’s kind of like criticising the person who you’ve fallen head over heels for. It’s just not easy.

Perfect Chemistry is centred around Brittany Ellis and Alex Fuentes (*swoon*) who are partnered together in Chemistry class. The pair couldn’t be more different.

Brittany is a blonde, gorgeous cheerleader who is dating the school’s football captain and lives on the rich side of town.

Alex has all the typical dark features of a Mexican American, shares a tiny room with his two younger brothers and is a member of the local gang.

I loved both of them. They both had huge flaws, and they both hated the way they lived, yet kept that a tightly wrapped secret. For being complete opposites, they sure had a lot in common. I loved reading about their personal growth - which this novel was full of - and I loved reading about the growth of their relationship.

The typical good girl meets bad boy plot makes up the foundations of this book, but it is so much more than that. This is the ultimate love story. Think Romeo/Juliet, but ten times better - much more realistic and no suicide.

Simone Elkeles has one of the most compelling writing styles that I have ever read. It’s captivating and beautiful, and so thrilling that I was kept on the edge of my seat throughout the whole book. There’s no slow starts or filler scenes in this book!

I loved the fact that what she wrote was so realistic. She’s done her research into gang life, how Alex would have lived and what his status would have been in the gang. And the way that Alex and his friends spoke was brilliantly done - with so much Spanish thrown in! Some of you may already know how much I love the Spanish language, but if not then you’ll probably know now. I love it THIS *stretches arms out to both sides* much. Beautiful. I think that this is probably one of the more important factors which made me fall in love with Alex and this book. Yes, I’m obsessed.

Overall, this is an incredible book, and a must read for any young adult reader or blogger. I will honestly start begging you to read this if you haven’t already done so. Alice, I’m talking to you!

[Joni Reads]

This book kept me up at night because I didn't want to put it down. Once I did put it down the first thing I did in the morning (after getting my daughter changed and getting her breakfast ready) was pick up the book and finish it. Needless to say, I LOVED this book. At first I thought it was going to be a going to be the cliche Romeo and Juliet style love story, but then I got so wrapped in the characters. I absolutely love Alex. He is such a great character and I was rooting for him and Brittany from the beginning of the book.
This book kind of reminded me of the movie Freedom Writers with the references to the gang life. Alex shows you that everything is not what it seems when he explains that he got jumped into the Latino Blood gang to protect his family after seeing his father get shot when he was only 6 years old. He works so hard be the man of the house and take care of his mother and his two younger brothers.
Brittany is the golden girl of her high school. She is captain of the pom-poms (her schools name for the cheerleading squad), she drives a BMW, and she is dating a football player. But her life is not as perfect as works to hard to make it seem. Her father treats his home as a hotel, coming and going so that she barely ever sees him, her mother has severe anxiety issues and criticizes everything Brittany wears and everything she does, and her 20 year old sister Shelley has cerebral palsy and her parents want to send her to live in a care facility.
Another thing that I loved about this novel is that when things are in Alex's point of view, Simone mixes English with Spanish. I could hear the characters talking in my head with their Spanish accents. It made it seem more real. And she also does a very good job of making sure that the reader understands what is being said in Spanish without interrupting the flow of the story

[Leah]

These days when I’m looking for book recommendations I search the blogosphere and see what reviews jump out at me and may sound as if they’re the type of book I’d like to read. Once such book I saw appearing everywhere was Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles. It came out in America last year but was only just being published in the UK this April and absolutely everybody was raving about how fantastic it was. I had the chance to pick the book up half price from bookdepository.com so pre-ordered it and awaited it’s release date. I was thrilled when I received it a month and a half early and I started it during the week-end.

I can’t say I really knew what to expect when I started Perfect Chemistry. When you begin a book so many people loved there’s definitely a sense of expectation there that says I should love it, too. I eagerly started Perfect Chemistry and I was surprised at how quickly I got into the book. At first both Brittany and Alex fit their respective stereotypes: Brittany is essentially perfect but of course, as is usually the case, that’s not exactly the truth. Ditto Alex, he’s a gangbanger who acts tougher than he really is. Both project a front that isn’t necessarily them which is something we learn from the outset – Brittany tells us herself that she “works her butt off to come across as though she’s perfect”.

The fact that Brittany and Alex are so different makes for some interesting reading as they get paired together in chemistry class. They both believe the front the other projects so Brittany thinks Alex’s is nothing more than a gangbanger and drug dealer and Alex believes Brittany is self-obsessed and has everything land in her lap. Alex then makes a deal with his friends that he’ll try and lure Brittany into his world and as the two get to know each other it seems they have more than just chemistry in common. I’m sure some people might think the plot is a bit too convenient: Mexicano boy falls for white girl (and vice versa) but I found it incredibly interesting. I liked getting into Brittany’s and Alex’s heads and for all they project to the world, there are actual depths in there to be explored and I enjoyed doing that.

Brittany and Alex are both fantastic characters. They spark off each other really well and their chemsitry together is evident pretty much from the off. The book is told in alternating points of view from both Brittany and Alex so they are essentially both the main characters of the book. It’s easy to see why they both fall for each other (hot gang member anyone? beautiful rich girl?) and I enjoyed as they went from hating each other to loving each other as the book progressed. None of the other characters in the book really stand out as the book is essentially about Brittany and Alex but some of the recurring characters do make lasting impressions. In particular Brittany’s sister Shelley who is ill. I thought it was sad to read about what happened to Shelley and to see just what Brittany and Shelley’s parents wanted to do about it but Brittany’s protectiveness was fierce and shone off the pages.

A lot of research must have went into Perfect Chemistry as there is a lot of talk about what it is to be in a gang. And believe me, some of it is not pretty. A lot is made about Alex being a member of the Latino Bloods and it was, at times, difficult to read. Not because it was graphic or anything but because there are gangs everywhere who do the things mentioned in Perfect Chemistry. Simone Elkeles doesn’t shy away from what happens when you’re in a gang – or wanting to get out for that matter and I applaud her for that because she really didn’t hold back. Her writing is very easy to read and both Brittany and Alex are easy to distinguish when it comes to their alternating chapters (even without their names above each chapter, may I add). The ending of the book (or near-ending, to be precise) actually made me quite sad. Some things go down that although I saw coming I never actually expected to happen and although it made me tear up I also thought it was… fitting. The actual ending itself just made me smile and the Epilogue more so.

I absolutely adored Perfect Chemistry and I’m incredibly pleased I took the plunge and bought it for myself. It both thrills and terrifies me that there’s a sequel of sorts coming out in America in the next few days called Rules of Attraction. It thrills me because I adored Perfect Chemistry yet it terrifies me for the same reason. I’m torn between pre-ordering it and waiting a while because I don’t want to feel let down by it. That’s how good I thought Perfect Chemistry was and I look forward to the time when I’ll almost certainly pick it up to read it again!

[Jo]

When Brittany Ellis walks into chemistry class on the first day of senior year, she has no clue that her carefully created "perfect" life is about to unravel before her eyes. Forced to be lab partners with Alex Fuentes, a gang member from the other side of town, Brittany finds herself having to protect everything she's worked so hard for - her flawless reputation, her relationship with her boyfriend and, most importantly, the secret that her home life is anything but perfect. Alex is a bad boy and he knows it. So when he makes a bet with his friends to lure Brittany into his life, he thinks nothing of it. But the closer Alex and Brittany get to each other the more they realise that sometimes appearances can be deceptive and that you have to look beneath the surface to discover the truth. From Amazon UK

When I received Perfect Chemistry for review, I was pretty pleased. I heard a lot of people had good things to say about it, and so was intrigued, though I was particularly wowed by the blurb, but I thought I’d give it a go. I cannot tell you how amazing Perfect Chemistry is! I am not the fastest reader going, and Perfect Chemistry isn’t exactly a skinny book, but it was so good, I couldn’t put it down, and read the whole thing yesterday. I loved it!

This book is about so much more than just a love story. It’s also about accepting yourself for who you are, being yourself, and not living by the social rules of your environment. It was fantastic to see how these two very different people – Brittany, who is little miss popular and Queen Bee of high school, and Alex, dangerous gang member who strikes fear into just about everyone – were so similar. How they are seen by the outside world is nothing compared to who they are inside, but a front they put on for reasons far more serious than social acceptance.

I love the way the story was structured, with mostly alternating chapters from both Brittany and Alex’s points of view in first person. It was brilliant to really get inside their heads, to see what they were hiding, yet see their misconceptions of the other. It’s not completely original, but it was brilliant.

It was great to see them struggle with their individual lives, having pretty much no-one to confide in about their issues, and then seeing them thrust together to, little by little, learn to trust, open up, and let the other in. They are both so much more complicated than the other thought; Brittany is a nice, good person, rather have superficial and arrogant, and Alex is fiercely loyal and protective of his family, and does what he must to keep them safe. Watching them fall in love as they realise they may have actually found someone who understands is just beautiful.

As I said before, Alex is a gang member, but the fact that this is a romance doesn’t mean that Simone shies away from what that means to Alex. Everyone knows gangs are dangerous, but it was shocking to see just how much. Alex’s pretence is not only for what others think of him, but for what his friends and his fellow gang members think of him. If the guys on top got even a whiff that he is anything but fiercely dedicated to the gang, not only his life would be at risk. There is violence, drugs, and extreme fear running throughout this book; it’s dark and gritty, and there’s no lack of suspense. It’s hard not to admire Alex for what he has to live through, day in and day out, knowing if he takes his eye off the ball for one second, that could be it. It’s thrilling for a book, but deeply disturbing to considering this is life for some people.

The issue of living with a disabled relative is also covered in this book. Brittany is carrying around so much guilt that she was born “normal” while her older sister wasn’t, and is also having to deal with a mother who is perpetually on the edge of breaking down at the possibility of the slightest scandal – what would the neighbours think? Brittany has to deal with so much pressure, from in and outside school, it’s admirable, though unfair, that she plays the worry free pampered princess so well.

This book is just incredible, and I finished it with the urge to cry at just how beautiful it is. Perfect Chemistry is far from a simple love story; it’s complicated, it’s dangerous, but it’s completely wonderful. There really is no way for me to express how much I have been touched by this book, and I really look forward to reading more of Simone's novels. If you don’t read this book, you’re missing out on something completely unforgettable.

From Once Upon a Bookcase - YA book blog