Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

I joined Goodreads in 2010, when I got my first library job. One of the first books I added was Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles and it has been sitting on the top of my TBR list for 4 solid years. Well I finally decided to tackle it. I didn’t have any preconceived notions that hindered me from picking up this book. I’m much more of an “in the moment reader”. Whatever someone just recommended to me has a higher chance of getting read than a book that I have had checked out for 6 weeks.

I read Perfect Chemistry over a few days and I found that it wasn’t that bad. When I first started it, I wondered if this would be a typical “boy from the wrong side of the tracks” story and it was. But what made this story a step higher was the supporting cast. I loved Shelley. I thought the element that Shelley brought to the table added a deeper meaning to Brittany’s story. Another character that I thought really helped the story was Isabel. Though she was only a minor character, I thought her realness was genuine and she was very likeable.

The story does have some stereotypical plot lines, but overall I thought the author did a good job. It could have been really bad. Another surprising factor was the minimum amount of angst. Oh, there is some angst, but after reading a slew of New Adult books, the level of angst in Perfect Chemistry was appropriate for the plot. I read one review where the reader had an issue for all the Spanish in the book. Though I didn’t always know the phrases, I thought the author’s use of spanglish was very appropriate. It was a characteristic of this culture and I was glad it was included.

My only issue was with the cheesy epilogue. I would have been perfectly content to give this book 4 stars until I read the epilogue. I don’t want to give anything away for anyone who hasn’t read the story, but it was cheap and unnecessary.

Am I glad I read Perfect Chemistry? Yes, for the sole reason that I got it off my TBR.

Would I continue with the series? Probably not. 

Will teens love this book? Oh, yes.