Um, so, this book. This book was 100 percent a guilty pleasure for me. I’m honestly not sure that I can pinpoint any things that I like about it, but at the same time I got totally addicted. I gulped it down so fast. It’s the third (and last?) in the Perfect Chemistry series, in which the hot, gangbanging, trouble-making Fuentes brothers find true love in high school with their own little-miss-perfect rich girls. These books have seriously gotta be so unrealistic, but that never seems to stop me. Really, every time I read one of these Perfect Chemistry books, the whole time I just think, “Is that really what gang life is like? Is that what being Mexican American is really like?” It always seems so impossible to me, and yet since I am so far removed from either of those lifestyles, who am I to be skeptical?Like his brothers, Luis Fuentes is a risk taker; whether he's scaling the Rocky Mountains or dreaming of a future as an astronaut, Luis is always looking for the next thrill. Nikki Cruz lives her life by certain rules -, don't trust a boy who says "I love you", boys lie to get their own way and never date a boy from the south side of Fairfield. Then she meets Luis at his brother Alex's wedding and suddenly she's tempted to break all her rules. Getting Nikki to give him a chance is Luis's biggest challenge, until he finds himself targeted by the head of the gang that nearly destroyed his brothers' lives. Will Luis's feelings for Nikki be enough to stop him from entering a dark and violent world that could prove to be the ultimate risk?
Chain Reaction was probably my least favorite of the three in the series—neither Luis or Nikki really did it for me. I’m not actually sure that either of them have redeeming characteristics, especially Louis. When is it a good idea to join a gang, let alone lie to your girlfriend about it? It’s no wonder they make mistakes considering they both have to deal with really tough situations, but I couldn’t help rolling my eyes at them rather than sympathizing.
The book is also a straight up YA romance. It doesn’t bother trying to pretend to be anything else, which I found quite refreshing. It is what it is and isn’t ashamed of it. The romance is pretty hot and heavy too—it’s full on makeout sessions and groping and the whole shebang. Probably the cover gives that fact away.
Overall, if I hadn’t read the first two books, I wouldn’t have read this one, and if you haven’t read the first two, I don’t think this one is good enough to stand on its own. It more like, “Yay, let’s find out what happens to Louis!” But if you do decide to read it without having read the others, you won’t be lost or anything—the plot is separate from the others. And honestly, despite all my criticisms of this book, I had a hard time putting it down. It reeled me in for sure.
Rating: 2.5 / 5
I haven't read any of the others in this series so I think I'll start off with those. Nothing wrong with a straight up YA romance. Sometimes you just want to read something quick and light.
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