Thursday, May 6, 2010

Book Review: My Double Life by Janette Rallison

Alexia Garcia is a doppelganger for pop sensation Kari Kingsley, so when a rival at her West Virginia high school posts a picture mocking her online, Kari’s manager calls her with a job offer: move to California and work as Kari’s double.

With MY FAIR GODMOTHER (read my review) Rallison won me over with her witty dialogue and inventive scene-building - on a fantasy stage no less. This time, Rallison lends her unique voice to a well-tread modern fairy-tale to spin a light, engaging confection with just the right amount of sweetness.

Alexia has her fair share of family drama. Her mother works long hours as a maid to afford their run-down house and their thrift-store wardrobes. She’s never revealed who Alexia’s father is, but when Alexia finds out from another source, it spurs her to accept the job offer as Kari’s double.

Once she’s in Hollywood, Alexia has to work hard to be a convincing double, studying both Kari’s life and her concert performance techniques. It’s her job to make people believe she is Kari, and she’s so successful, she even attracts the attention of rock star Grant Delray. But can Grant ever like Alexia for who she really is? Or is he only attracted to the famous “Kari” image?

Alexia is a very down-to-earth character who not only manages to stay true to herself, but also brings out the best in others. It might not be the most plausible of stories, but it’s the type of modern wish fulfillment that pop culture loving teens will savor to the last page.

MY DOUBLE LIFE hits stores next week in hardcover. Find out more about it at the author’s blog.

14 comments:

  1. I'm glad to hear that you liked this one! I've been hesitant to add it to my wishlist but now I'll probably check it out.

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  2. I bet this is something that my daughter and I would both get a lot of enjoyment out of. We tend to like to speculate about celebrities and their lives, so this sounds like it would be right up our alley. Glad to hear that it was such a good read for you. I hope we feel the same!!

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  3. I'm not big on novels like this, but the cover is really pretty!

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  4. I've not actually read the first book, but this does sound rather interesting!

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  5. Plausible or not, it sounds like a fun book!

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  6. Sam - It's not a series. Just another fun book from the same author!

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  7. Sounds fun...now I'm going to try to read her other book that you mentioned seeing how I have it on the middle school library shelves!

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  8. It sounds like a fun book! I hadn't heard much about it yet, so I'm glad to read you liked it.

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  9. This reminds me of a book I just read, Just Like Me Only Better by Carol Snow. I enjoyed that one and will have to check this one out!

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  10. I can't wait to read this. It's in my TBR pile. Great review!

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  11. I'm not really crazy about this book but will give it a try if I have a chance ^^

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  12. This sounds pretty fun. I think I'd enjoy it in the same way I enjoyed Airhead by Meg Cabot. Thanks for the heads up.

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  13. I agree with Lauren, this sounds like Airhead to me!

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