Twelve Steps by Veronica Bartles

Twelve Steps
by Veronica Bartles
Publisher: Swoon Romance
Release Date: 25th March 2014

Rate: Average+ (3,5 stars)

Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Andi is tired of being a second-class sibling to perfect sister Laina. The only thing Andi’s sure she has going for her is her awesome hair. And even that is eclipsed by Laina's perfect everything else.

When Andi’s crush asks her to fix him up with Laina, Andi decides enough is enough, and devises a twelve-step program to wrangle the spotlight away from Laina and get the guy. 

Step 1: Admit she’s powerless to change her perfect sister, and accept that her life really, really sucks. 

Step 4: Make a list of her good qualities. She MUST have more than just great hair, right?

Step 7: Demand attention for more than just the way she screws things up. 

When a stolen kiss from her crush ends in disaster, Andi realizes that her twelve-step program isn’t working. Her prince isn’t as charming as she'd hoped, and the spotlight she’s been trying to steal isn’t the one she wants.

As Laina’s flawless façade begins to crumble, the sisters work together to find a spotlight big enough for both to shine.

Twelve Steps is for everyone who's ever felt second best, for those people with a gorgeous sister or friend that overshadows everyone else. Veronica Bartles wrote a funny, sweet and lovable story where Laina must stop being the second best of her sister, and she's willing to do anything!

Laina's in love with Jarod, but Jarod doesn't see her that way thanks to her gorgeous and innocent sister. Because she's a good friend, she tries to discover who her sister likes, and it turns out to be Shane, who's going out with Laina's ex-best friend, Rachel. So the master plan is helping her sister get her crush (aka Shane), so she can have Jarod for herself. Sounds like a good plan, right?

However, throughout the story Andi gets to truly know her sister and discover she's not as perfect as Andi thought. The two sisters get to spend more time together and the once "broken" bond starts to heal. In the meantime, Jarod seems to be willing to leave Laina behind so she can be happy with Shane. Losing Laina, means that now there's nothing between Andi and him. But how can Laina keep being the second best? She wants someone who loves her for herself, not being a second choice because her sister wasn't available.

As the story keeps going, we meet new characters, new awkward and funny situations, we will discover Laina's deep secret and we would know what Andi decides to do with her love life.

Twelve Steps is a clean read, with funny situations and with a character that has a strong and powerful personality. It reflects perfectly how someone must feel after being in love and end up rejected for your lovable sister, but always being there to be the second choice just in case the first plan doesn't work. Veronica Bartles brings some humor to the situation but putting her main character in some situations like when she has a place in the production of Cinderella, and she's one of the step-sisters and Jarod Prince Charming. 

What I liked about this book was Laina's personality. You could know just by reading her point of view that despite her not-so-lucky love life, she's a strong girl and secure of herself. She's not afraid to go after what she wants and she has to have some guts to play matchmaker for her sister. Her snarky comments and whatever-attitude create some wonderful and funny situations throughout the story.

I think that my problem was that there were an overwhelming amount of boys in the story. I couldn't place my heart with only one and I must confess that I was kind of confused. 

I also liked how this story changes from "my life sucks thanks to my sister just for being beautiful" to a more mature and rational aspect like understanding what's best for her sister and try to do the right thing. Also the author wrapped up everything, by giving Andi her shot at true love. Although, I would have like more of those moments (not saying who she ends up with, sorry!). And by the way, just saying that I'm team Dave all the way down and I didn't like how she treated him sometimes.

Overall, Twelve Steps is a hilarious, sweet and romantic YA story. Entwined and complicated relationships, a group of friends and a main character seeking her happy ever after along with some sister rivalry, this YA story will make you smile and think about what's like to be left as a second choice. If you like this type of stories, Twelve Steps is definitely your story!

As the second of eight children and the mother of four, Veronica Bartles is no stranger to the ups and downs of sibling relationships. (She was sandwiched between the gorgeous-and-insanely-popular older sister and the too-adorable-for-words younger sister.) She uses this insight to write stories about siblings who mostly love each other, even while they’re driving one another crazy. When she isn’t writing or getting lost in the pages of her newest favorite book, Veronica enjoys knitting fabulous bags and jewelry out of recycled plastic bags and old VHS tapes, sky diving (though she hasn’t actually tried that yet), and inventing the world’s most delectable cookie recipes. TWELVE STEPS is Veronica Bartles's first novel.

Win (1) ebook of Twelve Steps & $10 Amazon gift card (INT)

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Release Day Blitz: Twelve Steps by Veronica Bartles

Twelve Steps
by Veronica Bartles
Publisher: Swoon Romance
Release Date: 25th March 2014

Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Andi is tired of being a second-class sibling to perfect sister Laina. The only thing Andi’s sure she has going for her is her awesome hair. And even that is eclipsed by Laina's perfect everything else.

When Andi’s crush asks her to fix him up with Laina, Andi decides enough is enough, and devises a twelve-step program to wrangle the spotlight away from Laina and get the guy. 

Step 1: Admit she’s powerless to change her perfect sister, and accept that her life really, really sucks. 

Step 4: Make a list of her good qualities. She MUST have more than just great hair, right?

Step 7: Demand attention for more than just the way she screws things up. 

When a stolen kiss from her crush ends in disaster, Andi realizes that her twelve-step program isn’t working. Her prince isn’t as charming as she'd hoped, and the spotlight she’s been trying to steal isn’t the one she wants.

As Laina’s flawless façade begins to crumble, the sisters work together to find a spotlight big enough for both to shine.

Twelve Steps

by Veronica Bartles

The scent of buttered popcorn fills the air, and my mouth waters as I step into line with Summer and Emily to buy our tickets for Fiero Furious. I don’t see Jarod or his friends, but the movie starts in ten minutes. They’re probably already inside.

“Hey, Andi. What’s up?” Dave appears in line behind me.

“Are you following me now?” I take a half-step away from him, carefully maneuvering so that Emily stands as a buffer between us.

He laughs and points to the long line forming behind him. “I guess, if getting in line behind you means I’m following you, then I’m guilty as charged. But so are about thirty other people.”

I cross my arms and turn my back on him. “Whatever. I just think it’s awfully coincidental that you happen to show up right after we get in line.”

“You’re right. I planned it. Because it’s completely unbelievable that two random people could both want to go to the movies. On a Friday night. At the only good theater in town.”

“Hey, Dave, what’s up?” Summer asks, giving me her patented, exaggerated eye roll. I can practically hear her thoughts screaming at me. What are you so afraid of? Dave’s harmless. It’s not like he’s going to attack you right here in the middle of the mall. But she wasn’t there when Dave tried to kiss me in the coat closet after recess in fourth grade. She’d be freaked out too if some guy had been flirting with her nonstop since they were nine years old, even though she kept telling him she wasn’t interested.

Dave is totally following me. I’d bet anything that he was listening to our conversation in the cafeteria. I bet he doesn’t even like race car movies, and he’s only here because he wanted a chance to “accidentally” run into me. And if Summer can’t see what a creepy stalker he is, I’ll just have to prove it.

I give Dave a million-megawatt smile. “What movie are you going to see?”

He blushes and points to a little boy who’s probably about four years old hiding behind his leg. “My aunt and uncle are visiting, and I promised my cousin I’d take him to see Ninja Unicorn Strikes Back. He’s a little shy, so my aunt always worries that he isn’t socialized enough. Not sure that hanging out with his old cousin counts, but he’s a cool kid, so it’s all good. What are you here for?”

Very clever. Of course he’d choose a different movie, so he could pretend to be all innocent. And I have to give him bonus points for bringing along a decoy kid. I bend down and wave at the cute, little mini-Dave. “You like ninja unicorns?”

The little boy nods solemnly and releases his death grip on Dave’s pant leg.

I glance at Dave and then smile at the kid. “How long did Dave make you wait around for us to show up before you got into line?” That’s one thing Dave didn’t count on. Kids always tell the truth. He is so busted.

The little boy smiles and pats my cheek. “You have lots and lots of freckles,” he says.

I stand up quickly and cover my face with my hands. Summer and Emily are laughing so hard they’re practically rolling on the floor. “Well, it was nice meeting you,” I say and shuffle forward as the line slowly advances, leaving my friends to fend for themselves.

Dave scoops the demon kid up and closes the gap between us. “We think your freckles are adorable.” He hugs the kid. “Don’t we?”

The little boy nods. “I like freckles.”

As the second of eight children and the mother of four, Veronica Bartles is no stranger to the ups and downs of sibling relationships. (She was sandwiched between the gorgeous-and-insanely-popular older sister and the too-adorable-for-words younger sister.) She uses this insight to write stories about siblings who mostly love each other, even while they’re driving one another crazy. When she isn’t writing or getting lost in the pages of her newest favorite book, Veronica enjoys knitting fabulous bags and jewelry out of recycled plastic bags and old VHS tapes, sky diving (though she hasn’t actually tried that yet), and inventing the world’s most delectable cookie recipes. TWELVE STEPS is Veronica Bartles's first novel.

Win (1) ebook of Twelve Steps & $10 Amazon gift card (INT)

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Book Blitz Organized by:

The Unofficial Addiction News: Divergent Movie

Book Addicts,

It is well-known that Divergent, the first book in Veronica Roth's YA series, started filming in Chicago a few weeks ago, in April.

So many movies based in books are being made and we are thrilled with this idea. We are always looking the same in movie and, at least, the books adaptations will provide some thrill to this movie world.

Divergent takes place in a dystopian future where society is divided up into five factions and when they turn sixteen they have to decide a faction. Interested much, uh?

And who is going to be Tris Prior?

Shailene Woodley aslo seen in the TV show The Secret Life of The American Teenager or also in the movie The Descendants where she played George Clooney's daughter. Yes, lucky her. Although some of us would like to play Mr. Clooney's girlfriend (*wink*).

As far as we know, she's playing Beatrice "Tris" Prior's roll in the Divergent movie along with Kate Winslet as Jeanine Matthews and Miles Teller as Peter.

We would also see Ansel Elgort playing the roll of Caleb Prior (yummy!). Although some of the Divergent fans would have wanted to see Alex Pettyfer as Four or Benjamin Stone also as Four, the chosen one is Theo James also seen in The Underworld movie.

It is also known that the daughter of Lenny Kravitz, Zoe Isabella Kravitz, would be in this film as Christina.
Wow, seems that the Kravitz family is going to be in Hollywood for a while, because we are expecting to see hot-papa in Catching Fire, the second film of The Hunger Games series.

We do not know if we are thrilled about this cast. We were expecting also Pettyfer to be shown as Four and it is kind of a deception to not see him (*snif, sniff*). But as soon as we see some trailer or more photos about the film, we think we would be able to decide what Gorjuss Ranking this cast is in.  

Because we have not material to judge, yet, we are going to show you, Book Addicts, the only photo we have found:

To know more about the film, click on the icon below.

What do you think about the cast?