Title: You Don’t
Know Me Like That
Series: Rumor
Central, #2
Author: ReShonda
Tate Billingsley
Publisher: K-Teen/Dafina
Publication Date: September
24, 2013
Genre: Young
Adult
Reviewed by: Books4Tomorrow
Source: NetGalley
My rating: 5/5
SUMMARY
She dishes celebrity dirt no one
else dares. But now, Maya Morgan is about to get a taste of her own medicine. .
.
Gossip show "Rumor
Central" has gone beyond Miami to national syndication. So now's the time
for Maya Morgan to really make her brand blow up. But her brand starts to blow
up in her face when a super-fan takes over her online life, trashing her
reputation, and putting her gossip future at risk. Now Maya will need every
down-and-dirty move--and a little help from her frenemies--to manage this disaster
and save everything she's dished so hard to get. . .
REVIEW
From
the summary on NetGalley, this sounded like it was going to be an awesome read,
and that’s exactly what it was! When I requested the book for review, I wasn’t
aware that this is the second book in the Rumor Central series, but after
finishing it, I can safely say it can be read as a stand-alone AND this author clearly knows her fabulous! Though
references were often made to events in the first book, it didn’t make me feel
as though I was missing out on any crucial details I should know about the
characters, but it did make me curious enough to want to read the first book.
From
the synopsis I got the impression that Maya is an all-out diva and I was going
to roll my eyes often at her attitude. Maybe in her head Maya thinks she’s a
diva, but I actually liked her so much more than I thought I would. I didn’t
always agree with what she did or how she handled certain situations and people,
but the way she responded to it is exactly the way a teen would do, and thus I
felt her character to be adequately developed for teen readers to be able to
identify with her in many ways. I even liked Maya’s diva friends and I often
smiled at their antics.
What I
liked most about the story though is that there is a lesson in there for anyone
who regularly uses the internet and access their emails; one that centers
around cyber stalking and protecting your identity while online. It’s written
in an informative way and through Maya’s experiences with super-fan, Jayla, the
importance of being vigilant about passwords while online, and how easily it is
for hackers to steal your identity, is brought to the front in such a way it
makes you want to change all your passwords as soon as you’ve finished the
final chapter of this book.
This is
my first experience with Billingsley’s writing and I’m super impressed. I
definitely want to read the first book in this series, and all the books that
follow, as well as any of her other books. You
Don’t Know Me Like That is a clean read void of profanity and adult content,
and as such I highly recommend it for readers aged twelve and up. After the
last chapter, there’s also a list of questions about the story suitable for
book clubs. The dialogue is witty and though Maya’s in a class of her own, she’s
a character with values and morals, but in no way is this written in a preachy
manner. It’s also a light and quick read, and the reader walks away from it
with lots to think about. I’m happy I gave this book a go, and…oh, yes…I think
Maya should definitely give Alvin a chance!
This
review forms part of my three-month participation in the NetGalley Knockout Challenge for 2013.
PURCHASE LINKS
ABOUT the AUTHOR
ReShonda
Tate Billingsley is a general
assignment reporter for KRIV-TV, the Fox affiliate in Houston, Texas. She is
the author of the nonfiction book Help! I've Turned Into My
Mother! and three previous adult novels: My Brother's Keeper, for which she received the prestigious Gold Pen
Award for Best New Author from the Black Writer's Alliance and the Nova Lee
Nation Award from the Greater Dallas Writing Association; the national
bestseller Let the Church Say Amen, chosen for Library Journal's Best of 2004 list
for Christian fiction; and I Know I've Been Changed, a Main Selection of the Black Expressions Book
Club.
Her previous Christian teen novels are Nothing But Drama and Blessings in Disguise, both available from Pocket Books.
She is also a contributor to the story anthology Have a Little Faith.
Her previous Christian teen novels are Nothing But Drama and Blessings in Disguise, both available from Pocket Books.
She is also a contributor to the story anthology Have a Little Faith.
AUTHOR LINKS
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