Review: What Danielle Steele is for adults, Barbara Morgenroth just might be for young adults.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 31, 2013
Kip Chanin moved out to LA with her mother who had dreams of making it big in Hollywood.  Kip had no such illusions and set out to help scrape them by through taking photos.  She would be quick to point out she is a news photographer, not a paparazzo.  One day, though, she takes a picture which would change her life forever.This is one of those books where almost nothing happens and yet, well, you can't put it down.  The style of writing is addictive and is what keeps you reading.  I read this one in about a day and a half.What Danielle Steele is for adults, Barbara Morgenroth just might be for young adults.  She captures drama, romance, and the modern world in a way that reminds me of Danielle Steele.  This story is compelling, the setting interesting, and characters who are creative, believable, and have depth.  Each character is envisioned so well, they seem to really come alive.  The professions, the routines, the relationships are all well-defined and explained.  It is all amazingly imaginative.Youngsters, teens in particular, have a habit of seeing the world in such a way, they tend to forget the fact they are indeed still children and believe themselves to be older than they are.  Teens oftentimes mistakenly assume they are mature enough to be adults and can make adult-like decisions.  The main character here captures this concept so well.Selfishly, I would like to have seen more.  More interaction with Alex was needed toward the beginning, I felt.  The story seemed a little disjointed when Kip calls Alex from jail.  I did not realize that after a couple of phone calls and a night spent overlooking the city that they were all that close.  Course, wouldn't we all have loved to have seen more Kip-Alex time?  Um, yes.  Yes, we would.  I also would have liked to see some explanation, again, toward the beginning which explained why she was not in school.  This was answered later on, of course.  If it could have been explained earlier, though, it would have saved me the trouble of wondering if this was summer break or if they were just that poor?This is such a minor detail, I hate to even mention it.  However, I must admit I was a little irritated at the "Skeleton Dance".  The leg bone is connected to the hip bone.  Folks, seeing line after line after line missing the verb was like nails on a chalkboard for me.  I do not get irritated by typos in general.  This irritated me enough that it was worth mentioning.  But, it is small potatoes.One of my biggest pet peeves I have unpleasantly discovered:  there is no ending.  Again.  I have read another book which has left me with a jarring cliffhanger but no ending.  So, there I am loving this book, the characters, the conflict, the story and then, bam!  It all stops.  Apparently, there is a part two, Flash of Light.  So, there's that.My advice?  Pick up this one plus the second one and you won't be disappointed.  Right now, on Amazon, Flash is on sale for $0.99 here and Flash of Light is $2.99 here.  Pick up both for less than $5. You won't regret it.This was a highly entertaining story and I would recommend it for pretty much all audiences. There is a drug overdose scene. Hey, it's set in Hollywood.  So, if you are thinking of this for your teen, be aware. I would feel comfortable having my teenage daughter read this because of the nature in which drugs and drug abuse are portrayed (which is as something negative and drug abuse is complicated and difficult, etc).  But, that's me. If you don't want your kids reading about drugs AT ALL, then maybe skip this one.Disclaimer: All books reviewed by me have been received via purchase, lending, or given to me by an author or publisher for the purposes of an honest review. No reviews are purchased. They are my own opinion.