Review: The Lipstick Laws by Amy Holder

Title: The Lipstick Laws
Author: Amy Holder
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pages: 240
Release date: April 4th 2011
Genre: Contemporary YA
Source: Bought at The Book Depository
Find out more: Amazon ; Goodreads

Goodreads description:

At Penford High School, Britney Taylor is the queen bee. She dates whomever she likes, rules over her inner circle of friends like Genghis Khan, and can ruin anyone's life with a snap of perfectly manicured fingers. Just ask the unfortunate few who have crossed her. For April Bowers, Britney is also the answer to her prayers. April is so unpopular, kids don't even know she exists. But one lunch spent at Britney's table, and April is basking in the glow of popularity. But Britney's friendship comes with a high price tag. How much is April willing to pay?

First sentence:

Sitting near Darci Madison on the school bus is enough to put anyone with woman-sprout issues over the edge.

My rating: 3 out of 5 stars

I've been dreading writing this review - I just don't know what rating to give The Lipstick Laws. At times it is cute and fun, at others it's annoying and even kind of ridiculous, and it just went back and forth between the two for me.

***The next paragraph sort of contains spoilers, but since the whole book is very precictable, I don't think it's anything you wouldn't know after reading the first few chapters. Still, you have been warned!***
The plot is nothing new - invisible girl becomes popular, falls out with the popular girls, gets revenge and, in the end, realizes it's not worth it. However, the idea of the Lipstick Laws and the Lipstick Lawbreakers is fun, making the novel stand out.

The writing is pretty good. It's not spectacular, but the tone is sweet and heartfelt and fits the plot perfectly. I really enjoyed the humor in the story, that had me laughing out loud.

I'm split on what to make of April. At times she's easy to relate to. Even though the reader knows it's not good for her, you can understand her wish to be popular. Her addiction to "bosom-sculpting" is a fun quirk. Sometimes, though, her immaturity annoyed me to no end. Other than April, Britney and maybe Delvin McGerk, the characters are underdeveloped. I would have liked to know more about the backstories of the Lipsitck Lawbreakers, and the Lipstick Lawlords, too.

This is probably the shortest review I've ever written, but I just don't have all that much to say about this book. It's nothing special and it's predictable, but I know I really would have enjoyed it had I read it two or three years ago, so maybe I'm just getting too old for these books. For the younger set of YA readers, this could be a sweet and funny read. In the end, it's exactly what you'd expect from a book with this cover - decide for yourselves if that's good or bad.