Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers - Review

Synopsis via goodreads:

Climbing to the top of the social ladder is hard--falling from it is even harder. Regina Afton used to be a member of the Fearsome Fivesome, an all-girl clique both feared and revered by the students at Hallowell High... until vicious rumors about her and her best friend's boyfriend start going around.

Now Regina's been "frozen out" and her ex-best friends are out for revenge. If Regina was guilty, it would be one thing, but the rumors are far from the terrifying truth and the bullying is getting more intense by the day. She takes solace in the company of Michael Hayden, a misfit with a tragic past who she herself used to bully. Friendship doesn't come easily for these onetime enemies, and as Regina works hard to make amends for her past, she realizes Michael could be more than just a friend... if threats from the Fearsome Foursome don't break them both first.

Tensions grow and the abuse worsens as the final days of senior year march toward an explosive conclusion in this dark new tale from the author of Cracked Up To Be.

Some Girls Are...mean, cunning, hateful, vicious – and honestly our protagonist is one of them. Regina, is a cold hearted bitch, and I did NOT like her at all, though out most of Some Girls Are.

As the book opens Regina, is seated as the right hand girl to Anna; Anna the leader of the "pack" Anna instructs, and Regina follows though; whatever Anna says – goes, no matter how Regina feels about it, never once does Regina stand up to her, because standing up to her would be social suicide.

Until one day something devastating happens to Regina but of course, Anna does not believe her, and as we all can guess, Regina falls, at Anna's hand – and falls hard. Anna takes no prisoners and just because Regina was once "in the fold," Anna's "right hand man" even, Anna begins to plot Regina's downfall. A no holds bared kind of bullying – Anna holding all the strings and her new puppet Kara, is all to happy to comply.

Things that Anna used to get Regina to do, Kara has taken over, and she's doing them to Regina...it's a fall from grace like nothing Regina could have expected. She's living the life that she's sentenced so many before her too, a life of vicious lies and hate...but it does not stop there. Anna's setting out to ruin Regina's life – Only Regina decides to fight back. Though, when your firing fire with fire...the only thing that can happen is everyone gets burned!

When Regina is out-casted, having no where else to go, she makes her way to the "garbage" table – as the elite call it...where Micheal sits, a boy she herself ruined, even though Anna pulled the strings, Regina was the one who did the dirty work (just like Kara is doing to her now).

Micheal, with a heart of gold, accepts Regina, a one time enemy he offers her a chance...and as Micheal grows to know and starts to understand Regina, other feelings start to come to light...that is until more secrets threaten to tear them apart.

Can Regina ever get past the hurt she's caused and find some kind of peace? Can Micheal ever forgive her enough to become a friend, or more than a friend even?

I know there are girls like Anna, Kara and even Regina in high schools, I have met these girls, I have been the butt of there jokes, the target to there wrath...so reading Some Girls Are, was, um interesting...honestly, it took me a LONG time to start to like, and even root for Regina, which may seem wrong – but those memories came sweeping back from my own experiences, and I just could NOT like her.

Though, I did, and I even root for her...it just took a while.

This book left me feeling really MAD that kids have to be like this, that this has to exisit in schools today, that my kids will have to learn to deal with this kind of thing...each and every day. But it also left me with hope; hope for the characters as well as hope, that my kids will decide that this kind of friendship is not the kind they need, even if that's the harder choice.

The characters with in the pages of Some Girls Are, were soo very very real, I could feel them, taste them, and hate them with more passion than I can tell you.

This is not a book you giggle your way though, it's a tough book to read, it was not even a book I was going to read – reading about bullies, I lived though bullying – I did not want to READ about them too, but then I saw that Peace Love & Pat was offering a borrow her book tour for it, so I figured why not.

I am so glad I did, it's one that I will be buying – It's one that I want Aubrey to read, I want her friends to read, maybe not yet – but sooner rather than later. This book takes an honest look at bullying, and I think it's one that EVERY teen should read.

Courtney Summers, is an amazing AMAZING writer for being able to create such a book...I cant even begin to wonder how she was able to bring a girl like Anna to life...but I am so glad she did!

Bottom Line – If you have not read Some Girls Are, you should; it's an excellent novel with an intense subject; it's gritty and wise, it's hard and it's beautiful; it's a 5 mushrooms read for me...and I can't wait to hit the book store so this one can hold a place on my shelves. (I also can't wait to pick up Cracked Up To Be, I have that one, already on my shelves!)

Some Girls Are
Written by: Courtney Summers
256 Pages
Published: January 5, 2010
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

This book was provided to me by Peace Love & Pat's Borrow My Book Tours, for my honest review.