Frenemies Review

Frenemies - Alexa Young
What happens when two besties become full-blown worsties?

Halley Brandon is back. After spending the summer at art camp where she's discovered a funky new style, Halley can't wait to see her best friend Avalon Greene. And boy are the duo in for a surprise! Avalon has been planning the soiree of the season to celebrate her forever-friendship with Halley. But maybe Halley's new funky artist rocker chic clashes with what Avalon wants...

Avalon and Halley are in for quite the emotional ride when they discover what happens when you battle the person who knows you best - and isn't afraid to use your secrets for personal gain. From sharing custody of Pucci, their puppy, to seperating extra-cirriculars, Avalon and Halley better be prepared to deal with the carnage of this full out battle.

Best friends. Worst enemies. Frenemies.

In Frenemies Alexa Young has struck just the chord when it comes to teenybopper friendships. Individually, Halley Brandon and Avalon Greene are both likeable enough characters. Together though, they're explosive. Throughout the course of Frenemies, characterization was well done. Although a little more development before the major fall out would have been nice, sometimes tween-teen friendships can be fickle, especially since at that age, even little things can seem like the end of the world.

Emotions are portrayed nicely and readers are able to emphathize with what the characters are going through. The plot is nicely woven, leading through a series of spikes before getting to the climax. And of course, what's a book nowadays without a love interest? Wade fills the role of Romeo beautifully - a nice play-on, considering that he's in a band called the Dead Romeos. The supporting characters are also characterized relatively well, but in Frenemies, they seem to be just that - support. It works though, in this case. The ending also seemed a little abrupt, but it melds seamlessly into Faketastic.

The writing itself was crisp, fresh, and snarky. In short, entertaining; and surprisingly hard to put down. It was actually a pretty pleasant surprise that Frenemies delved deeper into the intricacies of friendship and thirteen year old behaviour than some of its counter parts for older teens. It's the kind of insight that you don't really realize right away. Frenemies is an entertaining read brimming with witty play-ons and banter. Snarky.