Sugar and Spice: An L.A. Candy Novel by Lauren Conrad

Yes, I read Lauren Conrad's third novel in her series, L. A. Candy.  I had to, because I've read the first two.  I admit it, I like to indulge in some fairly bad chick lit and this most definitely takes the cake when it comes to extreme fluff read.  Luckily for me, I had a doctor's appointment, which meant that I had plenty of time to kill in the waiting room and seeing that this book is only 279 pages, well I knew I could finish it off in one sitting.  And I did. 

From the book flap:

Sugar and Spice...not everyone's nice.  Fresh from being betrayed by one of her closest friends, new reality-television celebrity Jane Roberts has learned a few lessons.  Most important: know who to trust.  And in Hollywood, that list is short.
Although the press is intent on creating a tabloid war between her and ex-friend/current co-star Madison Parker, Jane just wants to take control of her life.  She's started by swearing off guys and the drama that comes with them.  But when her high school sweetheart Caleb and her unrequited L.A. crush Braden shows up, both acting sweeter than ever, Jane has a hard time remembering her no-boys rule...
Her best friend, Scarlett, has only one guy on her mind: her new boyfriend, Liam.  The girl who once thought love was a four-letter word is now head over heels.  The problem is, being on a hit reality show means hanging out with other guys on-camera, and Liam isn't too happy with pretending to play a bit part in her love life.
Just when everything feels out of control, Jane makes a shocking discovery - one that changes everyone's definition of "reality" forever.

My thoughts:

Hmmm. I suppose that summary from the flap actually tells all with regards to the plot, so I don't have much more to reveal.  Basically, Jane and Scarlett, finally figure out what is most important to them and that is: living their lives their way.  Jane finds out that the show's creator has a journal in which he has been planning out the entire season's story lines before they have even happened; he's basically creating the "reality" that she thought was her crazy life.  And Scarlett finds out that she wants more for herself with regards to education and decides to leave USC for Columbia and she wants to enjoy having a boyfriend out in public (instead of having Liam waiting in the shadows, because the show wants her to be single). The rest of the cast of L.A. Candy have some rather ridiculous realities to deal with: Gaby undergoes a complete makeover and becomes rather catty to Jane and Scarlett per her new agent's instructions, while Madison gets blackmailed by her little sister (she wants to be on the show, too).  Overall, another ridiculously superficial look at the "reality" of a group of wannabe celebrities on a somewhat scripted reality show.  Gee, I wonder where Conrad got the idea for her trilogy?

Anyhow, the book did provide me with a few good chuckles and plenty of eye-rolls; not bad for a waiting room read.  The writing was bad and the characters one-dimensional, but still I found myself enjoying the book for a number of reasons, such as: I like to use the books to try and figure out what happened to who from the reality show The Hills (the show the books are based on) and I like to let my brain rest with a good fluff read.  So, all in all, not bad for a day's reading.

And now I'm off to read ROOM, which I've been hearing mixed reviews about. Nonetheless, I'm really excited to pick it up and dive right in. Happy Reading!!

Sweet Little Lies by Lauren Conrad

Okay, so I am supposed to be reading To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, but I just can't seem to settle into the book. For some reason I've found myself in a reading funk lately. Normally I pick up an old favorite to read or I dive into some fun magazines, but neither of these fallbacks seem to be working. Instead, I wound up buying LC's new book, Sweet Little Lies; its the second book in her L.A. Candy series. Yes, I admit that I am a fan of the pseudo-reality show, The Hills. Actually, since LC left the show, I've lost interest in it. Yes, I am on Team LC. How lame and silly, I know. Its just that it is such fun to watch. Anyhow, I wound up reading LC's first book, L.A. Candy, and actually enjoying it, so I figured when the next book came out I'd pick it up. And so I did.
Sweet Little Lies picks up where the first book left us: the aftermath of Jane and Braden's night together. Basically we have: girl breaks up with boyfriend and meets up with ex-boyfriend's best friend. Pictures of girl and boy's tryst are plastered all over the tabloids and the ex-boyfriend is not happy. The show's ratings are sky-rocketing, but the girl's life is taking a tumble. The girl and her best friend are on the outs with each other. Ex-boyfriend becomes boyfriend again. Truths come out and tears are spilled and apologies are made. The end. Simply put: drama, tears, drama, tears, hugs and kisses.
Okay, so the book was what you would expect - poorly written, with very predictable plot lines. However, I found myself completely engaged with the novel, because of the fact that LC wrote it. What I mean is that she based the characters in the book on the people from, The Hills. And I'm pretty sure some of these things did happen to the cast of The Hills. So, its rather interesting to try and figure out who is who and what happened to which castmate - its what makes the book a fun read. All in all, I think reading Sweet Little Lies helped get me out of my reading funk. So, now I can focus on To Kill A Mockingbird or maybe even start a new book. Hmmm. Which one to choose? I did buy the new Kostova, so perhaps I should start reading, The Swan Thieves. Happy Reading!!

L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad

Yes, I admit it - I am a fan of The Hills. I am on Team LC and therefore I picked up her book the other day and read it. I wanted to see which characters in the book resembled the characters on the "reality" show. I found it a bit hard to tell who represented who, but I did enjoy the book. Was I impressed by the writing or story line - no. But I will admit that it was not badly written and I did laugh a few times at the situations the characters found themselves in. Overall, I would rate this book as a solid C. Will I read the next 2 books (apparently, LC has signed a three book deal) by LC? Yes, I will read them and I will probably enjoy them, because I do enjoy my fluff reads now and again. And yes, L.A. Candy is most definitely a fluff read. All in all, its good to see that LC is doing something post Hills that is actually tantamount to work. I do admit that I think that The Hills will crumble without its main protagonist in the picture, but I will watch it to find out how the new LC will fare. Hmmm. Should be interesting t.v. no doubt.