Thursday, November 19, 2009

At Face Value by Emily Franklin

A tennis champion, straight-A student, and editor of the school paper, Cyrie Bergerac has learned to live with her (ahem) peculiar proboscis. And she's got an armory of witty retorts for every schnoz joke that comes her way. But despite her talents and charm, Cyrie is convinced that no guy—hot or otherwise—would deem her crush-worthy. Certainly not Eddie "Rox" Roxanninoff, who's gorgeous, smart, and genuinely nice to boot! There's someone else smitten with Rox, too. It's Leyla, Cyrie's pretty yet tongue-tied best friend. Helping Leyla seduce Rox through email provides a wonderful way for Cyrie to express her true feelings. But watching her crush hook up with Leyla may be more than she can take. Will Cyrie find the strength to risk it all—nose be damned—and confess her love?
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Based on the originial big-nosed romantic, Cyrano de Bergerac; At Face Value  is a charming and witty novel exploring friendship, love, and self-confidence. Everyone has a part of them they don't like. Noses, bean-pole body, skinny legs, big ears, too short (that's me) and so on. It's caused by lack of self-confidence and brought on by teasing and insecurity just as Cyrie experiences in this semi-romantic narration. Personally, I loved reading this book because of its classic, yet suspenseful love triangle at the center of this story. The characters were just as lovable with their humor, awkwardness, and cleverness which keeps you in touch in reality and that will ring true to many teen girls.
I have read-not a lot- but enough to where I know what I want from a YA romance novel: I want to be kept guessing, end of story. I have read many a teen romance in which I have guessed right on the dot what was going to happen. With At Face Value however, Franklin kept me surprised and I honestly think that this book will please even the pickiest of readers. Even though the acceptance and friendship themes are expected, I still think the romantic side of the novel does have a few twists up its sleeve. The best part of this charming novel is not the romance nor the characters, but how the school scene and Cyrie's comedic mistakes are portrayed. Cyrie will make you laugh or shake your head as she falls head over heels and pokes her nose in places it shouldn't be in.
Overall, At Face Value is a lovable story of several smitten boys, the school's "it" chicks, and one big nosed girl who must discover that value doesn't lie on the outside, but the inside. I highly recommend to any teen girl.


Emily Franklin is the author of dozens of books for teens including The Principals of Love series, the Chalet series, and The Other Half of Me.



|Pages: 264|Year Published: 2008|Publisher: Flux|
|Genre: Contemporary fiction, teen romance, friendship, teen issues|
|Age Group:YA, ages 12+|Content:Very mild language and mild sensuality|


|Enjoy It: 4/5|Content Rating: 4/5|Cover: 5/5|
|Overall|

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