Book Review: The Julian Game by Adele Griffin

The Julian Game by Adele Griffin
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
Release Date: Available Now
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Pages: 208
Source: Received from author for honest review

Summary: All new girl Raye Archer wants is a way into the in crowd, so when ice-queen Ella Parker picks her to get back at her ex, the gorgeous Julian Kilgarry, Raye is more than game. Even if it means creating a fake Facebook identity so she can learn enough about Julian to sabotage him. It's a fun and dangerous thrill at first, but Raye hadn't counted on falling for Julian herself and igniting Ella's rage. As Raye works to reconcile the temptress Elizabeth with her real-life self, Ella serves up her own revenge, creating an online smear campaign of nasty rumors and trashy photographs. Suddenly notorious, Raye has to find a way out of the web of deceit that she's helped to build, and back to the relationships that matter. Adele Griffin's riveting novel explores the issues of generation Facebook: the desire to be someone else, real versus online friends, and the pitfalls and fallouts of posting your personal life online for all the world to judge.

My Review: The Julian Game was a light, fast-paced and amusing novel. Raye, was a mellow, book-smart girl who had a relatability factor. Her overall personality came across as someone sweet yet, yearning for acceptance from the popular cliques. While, her best friend Natalya, was the complete opposite. The realism behind her voice of opinion was respectable and on point. When Raye found times to give into temptation, Natalya pulled her back to reality, maybe not right away - but eventually. Ella, one of the popular girls, was ignorant, self-centered, and malicious. Just talking about her makes me want to gag. She was the typical stereotype of a "mean girl" who sought out new, innocent girls to do her dirty work. The plan was for Raye to play jokes on Julian, a guy that Ella targeted because he didn't reciprocate her feelings. Adele's development for Ella was perfect. I definitely had the urge to punch an imaginary person.

After Raye realized she could no longer play Ella's twisted games, she molded into a strong individual that I was proud to see mature. Unfortunately, Ella wasn't done having fun with Raye and decided to focus on making her life a nightmare. A lot of people throughout this book were jerks, which didn't surprise me, since it does take place in high school after all. I really liked how Adele presented themes such as bullying and blackmailing. It's a subject that happens every day and it's nice to see how good Raye handled herself through it all. Lastly, the ending pulled it all together and left me feeling satisfied. Adele's approach to the plot and characters were well-written and I am excited to read more future works by her. I recommend this book if you're looking for a quick read that tells an apparent story that we've all experienced or seen in school.

My Rating:
Author's Info:

Adele Griffin’s critically acclaimed novels include The Other Shepards, Amandine and National Book Award Finalist Sons of Liberty. Her numerous awards and accolades include ALA Best Book for Young Adults, ALA Notable, CCBC Choice, IRA-CBC Children's Choice and Bank Street Book of the Year. She lives in Brooklyn, NY.

For more info on Adele, visit her site(s):
-Website
-Twitter
-Facebook
-GoodReads
-Picture of the Dead Website
-The Julian Game Website

Other books by Adele:
Picture of the Dead
Tighter (5/10/11)
Where I Want To Be
Vampire Island (MG)
My Almost Epic Summer

Go here for more books: GoodReads