At Fairfield High, where you happen to have been raised matters a great deal. If you were lucky enough to be born on the north side of town, you live in a mansion, wear designer clothes, are most likely lily-white and either cheer or play football. On the other hand, if you ended up living on the south side of town, you live hand to mouth in a cramped apartment with your family and probably one of your brothers (or sisters) has been 'jumped' into the Latino Blood gang. Worlds apart and expected to mix on a daily basis at school without consequences.Yeah, right.Brittany Ellis can't wait for senior year to start, she's captain of the pom-pom squad and is dating the gorgeous football captain, Colin. Everyone thinks she has the perfect life - but on the inside she's constantly stressed about her perfection-driven mother and handicapped sister.Alex Fuentes has had to be the man of his family for a long time. He joined the Latino Blood gang to protect his mother and two younger brothers and now wields his bad-boy rep like the weapon it is. Unlike many of the other gang members, he's stayed away from drugs and works hard at school even if he knows he's never going to escape his life of violence. But he's made his choice and he's not afraid.Neither Alex or Brittany are prepared for their chemistry teacher to assign them as year-long lab partners who are required to submit a final project together. Both expect one thing from the other person and what they get has to be the furthest possible thing from that. Lots of verbal sparring matches, pranks played, and honest emotions shared take these two to a relationship more real than anything they've ever come across in their entire life. Not to mention some truly undeniable teenage sexual tension leaving both super-confident teens completely unsure of themselves. *grin* I don't miss high school one bit...So many aspects in this book of two cultures clashing could have gone wrong but they were handled so well, I didn't even notice. Number one on this list could have been Alex's involvement with the LB gang. This element could have come across as contrived or even comical, but to my complete surprise the LB's scared me silly. Most of the teenagers in the gang I just felt sorry for (with the one exception of Alex's ex Carmen. Carmen? That girl with her stiletto boots and long red fingernails would have had me running for the hills), but the older Original Gangsters had me seriously considering the consequences of Alex's choices.After having recently finished Jennifer Echols' 'Going too Far' (loved, loved), I was looking forward to the switch from good boy/bad girl to good girl/bad boy. All I can say was that it was done to perfection here. Brittany retained her good girl shine without ever becoming annoying and Alex had so many hidden insecurities and dreams that I couldn't but help love his bad boy swagger. I know it's the cliched 'West Side Story' plot all over again, but this time, it's totally up to date and unbelievably well written. And I do have to note, out of the many epilogues I've read - most extremely cheesy - this one was so needed and just so endearing sweet and funny, it totally rocked. I think I read it at least three times. ( )

Perfect Chemistry has had it’s fair share of review lately, and many ask their selves what is the rave about this book. I am here to tell you that every awesome review you have read can not do justice to this book. It is a sin for you to have not read it already, so drop what you are doing and run to the bookstore NOW! Perfect Chemistry is a very loosely based modern day Romeo and Juliet. Alex and Brittany may come from opposite sides of town, and this difference may also be equivalent to black versus white, but they have no control over what is about to happen to them. They soon find that they are not so much different, and that no matter how hard they try their paths are determined to cross and converge. Simone Elkeles is a fabulous author that has a gift of reflecting the emotions of her character into the reader. If you are up for a trip down lovers lane; this is the book for you. This story is one that will continue to linger well after the last page. Perfect Chemistry is an incredible story, but it is something that must be experienced nothing I or anyone else can say will do this book justice.

I am caught up a ready for the release of Rules of Attraction by Simon Elkeles on April 27th, 2010
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When Brittany starts her senior year her plans were to reconnect with her boyfriend and her friends, be the best captain of the Pom Poms anyone had ever seen and keep up her appearance of being perfect and having a perfect life.
When Alex starts his senior year he expects to not even finish it. Being a member of the Latino Blood gets in the way of school.
What they both didn't expect was each other. A gang member and a seemingly perfect girl would never have a chance but is that all they really are?

When I started Perfect Chemistry all I wanted was a break from whiny annoying main characters. I just wanted something fun to read. What I got is a book that will probably stay with me for years to come. It was perfect! I would not change a thing. It really is an incredible love story between two unlikely characters.
Alex and Brittany's relationship is the ultimate forbidden love story. One a seemingly perfect rich girl the other a poor gang member. But they definitely are more than meets the eye. I found myself thinking what would I do in their shoes. This was such a complex story. Simone Elkeles really did a amazing job.

So often in books you get characters that fall flat or that are one dimensional. Not in this one. Alex and Brittany have layers and layers that are revealed as the story progresses. The narration goes back and forth between the two. I think that makes the story so much better. You get to know both of them intimately and not just how one perceives the other. I fell in love with these characters and even days later I'm still thinking about them.

The writing is superb. Spot on. And any other positive phrase you can think of. It was not predictable at all. Just when I thought I had things figured out Elkeles throws you a curve ball. I loved that! On the surface this is just a teen romance but it's so much more. There is a great message in the book and it makes you think.

I will definitely be reading other books by Elkeles in the future. She has definitely won me over with this amazing book. If you haven't read it yet please do and soon!

http://www.pureimaginationblog.com/ ( )

Another version of Romeo and Juliet with a rich, white girl (with a handicapped sister secret to most people) and a Mexican "gang" member.

Well done, and ends happily for once.

Lets see, I can say this words that describe this book: Incredible! A-Must-Read! Hott!!! :)

I enjoyed this book so much, thanks to a few other book bloggers and their reviews of this book, and to my friend for owning this book, I finally read it. And I am so glad I did. This book was W-O-W! I loved every moment of reading it. Every page I turned I was wanting more. Ever line I read felt like I was right there with the characters, experiencing everything they were going through - the good and the bad.

As you read this book you are reading through the minds of two individuals, Alex Fuentes and Brittany Ellis. Alex is the kid from the wrong side of the tracks, the gang banger. He is a Mexican with a past that others see as bad, but he sees as just his past, something he can never forget. He is part of the Blood gang in a suburb outside of Chicago [the South Side], where him and his fellow gang members but also long time friends deal with drugs, alcohol, and frequent deaths of other members. Alex has had a tough life, but he never wants any one to feel sorry for him. Then there is Brittany, who is on the 'right' side of the tracks, the one with everything you could ever ask for plus more, plus shes the school head cheerleader. She's got the nice house, the fantastic car, the hot bod, the beautiful hair and of course the quarterback boyfriend. Except what you see on the outside, isnt always what you get on the inside. Brittany's home life isnt what you would expect. She rarely sees her father, and her mother has outbursts of total frustration, and her sister, well, her sister has problems of her own.

Brittany and Alex get paired up in Chemistry. Much to Brittany's protests to her teacher, she cannot switch partners. These two are total opposites, or at least thats what they think at first. But then, as their relationship together grows into friendship, they see each other for who they truly are. They both learn to lean onto one another, and what they have together blossoms into something beautiful.

This book is written very well, and at times it can be a little provocative [so it may not be suitable for anyone under 13], but it is an amazing story of two teenagers finding themselves, and learning to open up to someone else and become vulnerable.

I recommend this book to basically everyone, and I plan on rereading it in the future. And I cannot wait to read more from Simone Elkeles :) ( )