Author: Andrea Portes
Rating: 3/5 Stars
Hardcover, 336 Pages
Published September 2014
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Summary: Outside, Anika Dragomir is all lip gloss and blond hair—the third most popular girl in school. Inside, she’s a freak: a mix of dark thoughts, diabolical plots, and, if local chatter is to be believed, vampire DNA (after all, her father is Romanian). But she keeps it under wraps to maintain her social position. One step out of line and Becky Vilhauer, first most popular girl in school, will make her life hell. So when former loner Logan McDonough shows up one September hotter, smarter, and more mysterious than ever, Anika knows she can’t get involved. It would be insane to throw away her social safety for a nerd. So what if that nerd is now a black-leather-jacket-wearing dreamboat, and his loner status is clearly the result of his troubled home life? Who cares if the right girl could help him with all that, maybe even save him from it? Who needs him when Jared Kline, the bad boy every girl dreams of, is asking her on dates? Who?This book is definitely something different. In a good way.
Andrea Portes creates this super-humorous character in Anika Dragomir, a fifteen year old girl who is the third most popular girl in school, under the all-seeing goddess Becky. Who isn't a goddess at all. She's more of a witch.
So even if Anika isn't happy about how her posse treats other people, she deals with it. Why? Because she's half-Romanian in Lincoln, Nebraska - which she considers to be the most purely white American place in the universe. And if she ditches Becky or stands up to her, her immigrant status will be revealed, and she will be ostracized by her entire high school.
That's only one of Anika's problems. Another is that a cute boy named Logan suddenly takes interest in her. Which is a problem, because last year he was a totally dorky social pariah. So taking up interest in him will land her in throwing range of Becky's wrath as well.
Lastly, not only does Logan take interest in her, but so does Jared Kline, the hottest and most sought after guy in Nebraska, possibly in the world. His interest in her would shoot her straight up to the top of the totem pole...but also land her right on Becky's assassination list.
Basically, anything she does will land her in deep water with Becky if she doesn't just shut up and obey. Of course, this doesn't stop Anika from doing it anyway.
I read through a few other reviews of this book and discovered it was supposed to be set in the 80's, which would make sense since they didn't really use cell phones or the internet, but nothing else in the book really relates to that. The language doesn't add up. Anika may have talked like she's young, but she still talked relatively similar to how kids do today. I can't really name an exact time period that this book feels like it's set in. It's just a mix of everything, I guess.
This book was so funny. I kept sending screenshots of funny scenes and lines to Amber to giggle about because I just couldn't take it. Anika's mentality about things is just so amusing and her conversations with her friends and her responses to situations are just golden. So funny. I definitely recommend this book if you need a good laugh or two (thousand)!
The ending of the book...there are semi-spoilers ahead, so skip this paragraph if you don't want to know. The ending broke my heart. I couldn't believe it. I dropped my book and just made a bunch of weird noises that sounded like something along the lines of "?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!??!!??!?!?!" I just couldn't believe that happened. And all so fast. If Andrea Portes was looking for an ultimate plot twist, she certainly got it. I was super shocked. And super depressed. I want to know what happens after all of that - between Anika and Jared, Logan's family, Becky, etc. I was left hanging...maybe a little too much.
All in all, Anatomy of a Misfit was a cute (although mildly depressing) read that gave me lots of laughs and gasps in all of the right places. I liked this book. Portes created a very hysterical character in Anika Dragomir, who, even if she may seem childish at times, knows right from wrong and has a genuinely good heart. If you're looking for something with a new and funny voice, Anatomy of a Misfit is definitely the book to pick up!
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I really want to read this book! I've seen it countless times in the bookstore and I think that I need to check it out. Like you said, I think it is very different. Great review!
ReplyDeleteThank you! And the narration was totally different. Definitely not like anything I've ever seen before. -Jessica
DeleteAnatomy of a Misfit is one of my favorite reads of 2014. I had fun reading it and it broke my heart... in a good way. Great review!
ReplyDeleteThat ending! My heart couldn't take it. -Jessica
DeleteI read this about two months ago, and I still couldn't believe it ended the way it did. It was too much! One second, she realizes just how in love she is. Then the next, it all came crashing down. I really do admire authors who put in unexpected twists, but this one just seriously shocked me. But, I agree, it is a good book with a very humorous voice. Great review!
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