Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

Pub Date: August 2009

Summary: Can I ever feel okay about myself?

Five teenagers: three girls, three guys.

Four straight, one gay.

Poor vs. Rich

People who care, no one at all.

All of them live differently but ultimately they’re all looking for the same thing.

Safety. Freedom. Love. Family.

When three little words, I love you, are said for all the wrong reasons, everyone can get hurt.

Five separate stories come into one.

The difference between love and sex often get blurred.

Sometimes though, the experiences help one un-blur those difference.

Growing up. Falling down. Picking yourself back up. Making decisions. Taking a leap of faith.

Those are all factors into how we live our lives, how we find out how we are, and ultimately how we all become truly happy.

Rating: 5 Stars

Review: There hasn’t been a book yet by Ellen Hopkins that I haven’t loved! Tricks was no exception. The way Ellen writes really just amazes me. She can tell a story in so little words. Her characters always have so many sides but she depicts them all so clearly. Whenever one picks up a novel by Ellen Hopkins, they can expect to be surprised by the content and the topics. Ellen isn’t afraid to tackle something new and controversy and she has yet to repeat a topic. Tricks was mainly about prostitution and how easily people can get sex and love confused. I’ve always been able to relate to novels by Ellen, but this one definitely hit home more than any other one has. Don’t be surprised if you walk away from this book balling, because I did. But it doesn’t change that fact that this book really just quite amazing. I recommend this book to everyone!

-Lexi (:

FTC: I did not received the novel from any publishing company or author. It is my own personally copy that I bought, but still I am not getting paid in any way to do this review.