CW: Gory scenes

I absolutely loved this audiobook. It was one of the funniest books I have ever read. FYI, spontaneously bursting out into hyena style laughter in the toilet paper aisle of your local supermarket results in people clutching their children close and giving you a wide berth. Sorry lady with the blue jacket on, I didn't mean to scare you. It's just that Howard Mullin's dad was reassuring Stella's dad about her safety.

"Are you telling me young Howard here is only interested in Stella because of her brain?"

Dad turned to look at Howie. My mother looked at my father with a furrowed brow. "That's supposed to be a good thing."

"Well not when you think about it from the point of view that he's a zombie."

Mr Mullin shook his head. "May I remind you that this whole family is infected with the same virus as Howard and that he is the only one interested in a romantic relationship with her. We are all aware of Stella's attractive qualities but we merely wish to eat her."

There was long pause. Hazel whispered in her father's ear.

"Ah yes, I realise that may not have been as reassuring as it was intended to be."

Gold. Absolute gold.

Stella is simply the best. I love zombie books and I totally enjoyed the Twilightesque parody vibe that was going on. I am actually going straight in for a re-listen but with a notebook close by to write down some of the zingers that Stella delivered to people she felt disdain towards...which was nearly everyone. Sit back with this one and just have fun!

Gotta love a smart, overweight and attitudinal heroine! ( )

Not a better love story than Twilight…

When I saw that this was supposed to be a parody of Twilight, I was expecting something a little bit different. I didn’t know it would be exactly like Twilight except with zombies instead of vampires. It’s unfortunate because the author had some good ideas when it came to the source of the zombie outbreak and the way that zombies exist in the world. I’ve never read any ideas like it. However, I couldn’t stand how closely the plot followed that of Twilight. In some areas, I had to skim through.

With that being said, I did love the characters in this book. Stella in particular had me laughing out loud on a few occasions because of her abrasiveness and just how little she cared about what others thought of her. I felt like she and Howie balanced each other well and made for some interesting conversations and character contrasts.

Read at your own risk. If you didn’t like Twilight, I wouldn’t really recommend this book since it feels quite similar. However, as I mentioned above, the ideas the author had about zombies were really original so for zombie fans this might definitely be a book worth reading. All depends on what you’re looking for in a book.
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This was an AMAZING book! I could not put it down. Chemistry by CL Lynch is everything Twilight should have been. It is funny, empowering, and still romantic. It is extremely telling how quickly I devoured it considering I absolutely hate anything zombies.

Lynch does a tremendous job keeping true to Twilight and keeping opposite. We have new student Stella Blunt who is large and in charge. This was so freaking great, to finally have a protagonist that can be good looking and large at the same time. Not curvy, large. She even makes jokes about it which endears her even more. Then, we have the actual realistic new student scenario where instead of being worshiped as Bella was, she is ostracized because really, who moves to a new school in the middle of the year just to be warmly welcomed by the student body when they never were at their old school?

The dynamic between Howard and Stella is fantastic. They joke about him being creepy and her warning him he better not watch her sleep, another great nod to Twilight. Howard is old fashioned, but apologizes for it and is awkward. He isn’t the suave brooder Edward was, which really, would someone that refuses to talk to the rest of the population actually be Mr Popularity?

Chemistry by CL Lynch reads much more true to life than Twilight. It’s funny and quirky with great pacing and an engaging storyline. Please, if you’ve read Twilight, do yourself a favor and pick this up. It is amazing!

// I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this title. //
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Highshcooler, Stella Blunt has just received the worst news of her life- her mother has gotten a new job and they will be moving from Nova Scotia to Vancouver. Stella is on the heavier side, tends to say what she thinks and knows kung-fu, making friends is not her forte. Stella puts on her big girl panties, as her dad says and makes the best of her first day at her new school. Stella hears a wide variety of fat jokes, and her chemistry lab partner, Howard apparently can't do much except ogle and drool directly at Stella. Stella is having a hard enough time without the one person at school who might have a lower social status then herself crushing hard on her; but the next day Howard is completely different- polite, charming and interesting. Howard can't help but be around Stella and a relationship forms, but Stella knows that Howard and his family are different. As soon as Howard spills the beans about essentially being a zombie, an outbreak happens. They all seem to want Stella's brain in particular and the Feds are blaming Howard's family for the whole thing.

Chemistry is a play on the Twilight series that fixes many of the criticisms that Twilight garnered. Stella herself is outspoken, not afraid to ask questions, tough and not your typical body type. Stella's parents are also very present, supportive and hilarious. They are involved in her life and have plenty of awkward conversations, just like real highschool kids have to go though. One of my favorite lines was " ...while I completely acknowledge and recognize that you are not responsible for men's reactions to you, teenage boy's brains do tend to shut down when they see a pretty girl. "It's all about the boobs," said my father." Howard also isn't your typical pretty boy and because of his condition, he is seen as an outcast. However, because of his elongated time as a teenage boy, he has a gentle nature and a lot of insight. I did like how the Z03818 virus was explained and how Howie and his family were still more on the living side of the virus than the dead. The romance in the story did move pretty quickly with love found within a matter of days. Although, the action, mystery and suspense of the zombie outbreak was on point and was a great blend of conspiracy, danger and chainsaw actions. Overall, a perfect read for paranormal romance lovers! ( )

Light-hearted, fun and charming!

CHEMISTRY by C.L. Lynch is the first book in the Stella Blunt series. It’s a YA, romantic comedy, told in first-person past tense, with a bit of horror and a lot of explicit language. Due to language and the sheer number of f-words, this book may not be suitable for readers under 16.

Stella Blunt has never fit in. She's overweight, under-confident, and she has some serious anger management issues. It took her years to make two friends at her previous school and now her parents are moving her to Vancouver. She's dreading the torment she'll likely receive at her new school, and sure enough, during the first class of her first day, she is literally being drooled over by the biggest loser in the school. Then after a cheating scandal with one of the popular girls, she can't walk down the halls without being verbally assaulted.

Howie, the drooling boy, has decided that Stella is the most perfect creature on the planet. He will do anything to be with her, and he doesn’t listen when she continually tells him to go away. When he finally wears her down and she lets him in, she finds out that he has a big secret--he may not be entirely human.

I loved this book. It was so silly and fun and sometimes that is the perfect read. This book was a play on the Twilight Saga, right down to the brilliant cover. Instead of the pale vampire hands holding an apple, it's pale zombie hands holding a human heart. The main character is Stella instead of Bella and her love interest is Howard Mullins. Although some of the circumstances are similar, (ie. Stella moves to a new school, the two meet in science class, there's a school dance, a fortuitous meeting in a book store, and a supernatural hero) the characters and specific details are not. Stella is not a popular girl and tends to yell throughout the majority of the book. I could have done with a bit less of that but it didn’t take away from my enjoyment. Howie’s idiosyncrasies leave him friendless apart from his brother and sister who also attend the high school.

The story moves from Stella’s abuse of Howie to a serious love connection. Then to an apocalyptic event that may not only mark the end of Stella’s relationship, but may also mark the end of her life. Although there are these overt similarities to Twilight, this felt like an entirely different story with endearing characters that I could relate to considerably easier than the sparkly vampires.

This book earns 4 North of Normal stars. I cannot wait for the next book entitled HISTORY. CHEMISTRY ended with a sneak peek that promises another hilarious and fun read. ( )