Delightful read of a class of teens attending the Shakespeare Scholars summer class in Verona, Italy. There are many false steps that lead to hurt feelings turning to love.

I loved this book. Some of the students are very into Romeo and Juliet. Some are out of their league and world. I enjoyed the characters. I enjoyed the repartee between them as they argue about how to answer the letters sent to Juliet for answering, which is part of their class. I also enjoyed how the tables get turned on them all when it comes to love.

Just so much fun. I was sorry it ended. ( )

Pros: Teens will enjoy this lighthearted story that (unwittingly) will expand their knowledge of Shakespeare and Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, in particular.

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I got this book from the library because the title and cover intrigued me. So before I read it I started to read it's reviews. Lots of people didn't like it but I decided to give it a try anyway. And I am so glad I did. I usually like novels with romance intertwined with a good story. I don't necessarily like romance focused books because I find them to be cheesy, boring and predictable. But this book, thankfully, was not like that although somewhat predictable the romance wasn't cheesy to the point where I wanted to hurl. That is precisely what I liked about it. It was cute an not too over-bearing. It was a fast read, despite the length of the book. In conclusion I really like this book and recommend it to anybody who just wants a light read. ( )

This book literally sat on my desk for over a year (somewhere around the time my daughter and I went to see Letters to Juliet, I honestly don't remember which happened first, I found this book or we saw that movie), waiting for me to read it. Taunting me. Tempting me. Its only flaw, and the reason why I resisted it? Because it's a book. A real book. An actual book, not on my nook. Well, now I'm on vacation, when my goal is to read as many books as possible and to whittle down my pile of "real" books in the process, so I read it. And loved it, which I knew I would. And bonus--at the back is a short little blurb about the Juliet Club, which really exists, and the address so that you too can write to Juliet. Nothing happens in this book that will surprise anyone, which is perfectly okay. You shouldn't read this book looking for surprises, just like you wouldn't go to see Letters to Juliet (which really doesn't have any relation to this book at all, but both take place in Italy and have the Juliet Club in them and main characters who write letters as Juliet, so it's hard not to make comparisons--both are predictable, but still totally fun and worthwhile) in suspense of what is going to happen. You should read this book because it's a lot of fun to read. The characters could have stepped right out of real life, and the situations they're in are often laugh out loud funny. Really. I drove my mom off of the deck because I kept bursting out into laughter, and she was trying to read a much more serious tome. I was only about three chapters in when I decided I needed to get another book by Ms. Harper, which I did this morning--and I'll probably have it read before this vacation is over. I can't wait! (But I'm going to make myself wait...because those are the only two books I have by her and I'm going to pace myself. Sort of.) ( )

Pages: 416
Release Date: June 1st, 2008
Date Read: 2011, October 30th-31st
Rating: 3/5 stars
Recommended to: 12+

Summary -
Kate is done with love. She has given it up - no more will she fall into its clutches. Jerome broke her heart and crushed her soul. Never again. When she wins a contest - and a trip to Italy with the other winning teens - Kate wants to spend her time properly examining the ridiculousness of Romeo and Juliet, instead of prancing around falling in love. And when the chance comes to turn the tables and play a prank on the girl who's trying to prank Kate, she more than happily seizes her chance, never expecting the snare that awaits her.

My thoughts -
I'm not too much of a Romeo and Juliet fan. To be honest, even with my ridiculous romanticism, I've had my own practical statements and refutes and arguments about their love story. So while Kate was, for the most part, ridiculously practical, I admit freely that I, for the most part, agreed with her.

But anyways - apart from that...

This book was fun, but nothing special or extraordinary. I actually think it fell below the mark of ordinary or good. It had lots of issues - the writing was fun and dramatic but lacking the good stuff; the characters were all fluff and there was no personal connection; the story line had holes; the POV shifted weirdly. I wasn't expecting much, however, so I wasn't disappointed. But neither was I excited, and that is the problem.

Character notes -
I really wish this book had been more personal. There were POV shifts that made no sense; but not only that, the characters themselves were choppy and inconsistent. For the most part, I saw these 16-17 year olds as 11-13 year olds. They had major maturity issues - issues usually overcome by the time you turn 13. It was awkward.

The best character was Giacomo, but even he lacked consistency. I thought of him as 14 years old for the majority of the book. He had a nice back story to add depth to his character but I thought him making up conversations between himself and a saint at the Catholic church, and then running around with a ladies' man reputation was such a strange combo. I think the author may have been trying to show the reader that he really was a great guy underneath?

I really liked Kate, but she was so poorly crafted that I didn't really get to know her, and that made me sad.

And to add to matters, at the end of the story, in the last 15 pages, all the characters just suddenly acted their ages.

What????

Story notes -
Overall, I really liked this story. It made me laugh and had a nice ring to it. The story-line twisted and turned with hilarious events and complication. However, I felt that it was poorly done and as a reviewer I must be honest...

What really bugged me was that it held no personal connection between characters or me and the book. For example - Kate and Giacomo are trying to make everyone believe they've fallen in love. They are about to kiss for the first time to throw off the spies following them - and it suddenly cuts to the POV of the spy! Therefore leaving me, the reader, with no idea of how Giacomo or Kate felt about the kiss that was supposed to be a farce. Basically, there was very little progression of feelings.

Summing it up -
Playful! For the most part, this book had very little to offer when it comes to being a good book, but I did enjoy it all the same. A quick and fun summer read and it'll make you want to travel to Italy! :D

Nothing for the parents - 12+ ( )