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Book Review: Sirenz by Charlotte Bennardo and Natalie Zaman

Monday, July 11, 2011

Sirenz Title: Sirenz

Authors: Charlotte Bennardo & Natalie Zaman

275 pages, Published by Flux

Charlotte’s Information: Twitter

Natalie’s Information: Blog | Twitter

Buy The Book: Amazon

Summary:

Bickering frenemies Meg and Shar are doing some serious damage at a midnight sample sale when the fashionistas find themselves arguing over a pair of shoes-with fatal consequences. One innocent bystander later, the girls are suddenly at the mercy of Hades, Lord of the Underworld himself. To make them atone for what they've done, Hades forces the teens to become special-assignment Sirens, luring to the Underworld an individual whose unholy contract is up.

Finding that delicate balance between their fashion addiction and their new part-time job in the eternal hellfire biz turns out to be harder than Meg and Shar expected, especially when an entire pantheon of Greek deities decides to get involved. Then there's the matter of the fine print in their own contracts... (Summary provided by Flux.)

My Thoughts:

I met Charlotte Bennardo and Natalie Zaman, the authors of Sirenz, at BEA this past May. They were so nice and funny at their signing that I knew I would most likely love Sirenz once I got around to reading it. And boy did I ever love Sirenz! I haven’t crushed on a book this hard in a long time.

Sirenz is about two girls: Goth attired and artsy, Meg and Shar, a Barbie girl in a Barbie world. Meg and Shar are a classic odd couple. The girls have trouble getting along after they are assigned to be roommates at their high school in NYC. However, once they get tricked into making a deal with Hades, they must find a way to work together. Above all, this book is about friendship. While there is some romance in the novel, there is no overpowering/overdramatic romantic storyline. It is simply about two girls trying to get along, and it is pretty hilarious. If it were a movie, I’d call it a “buddy comedy.”

Following the hugely popular Greek mythology trend in YA, Sirenz is a unique take on the Hades/Persephone story and is told from the perspective of the Sirens (Meg and Shar). Did I mention that Hades is not only haute but a certified hottie? Oh, I didn’t? Well, he is. At the signing, Natalie told me to picture Ian Somerhalder (Damon from Vampire Diaries) as Hades. I have absolutely no problem doing do.;) Hades is written perfectly. Part comic relief. Part tempting charmer. Hades is an awesome adversary for Meg and Shar.

Charlotte Bennardo and Natalie Zaman are friends in real life, so it is quite fitting that they would be so adept at writing a story about friendship. I am so happy I got a chance to meet the authors of Sirenz and just as happy that I read the book. I can’t wait to see what kind of antics Meg and Shar are up to in the next book in the series!

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2 comments:

Roxanne Rhoads said...

What a fab review! This book is in my TBR pile, my daughter already read it and LOVED it, so now I'm anxious to get to it.

Kate said...

Oh, this looks like a must read!! BTW- How did I not know you have a YA blog??? This is fantastic!

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