Review: Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles

Chain Reaction
Simone Elkeles
Series: Perfect Chemistry #3
Publisher: Walker Books for Young Adults
Publish Date: August 16, 2011
Hardcover {p.320}
Source: Public Library
Genre: Young Adult
Characters: Nikki Cruz, Luis Fuentes
Challenge: 100+, YA Romance
Buy the Book: Amazon

Luis Fuentes has always been sheltered from the gang violence that nearly destroyed his brothers’ lives. But that didn’t stop him from taking risks — whether he’s scaling a mountain in the Rockies or dreaming of a future as an astronaut, Luis can’t stop looking for the next thrill. Nikki Cruz lives her life by three rules — boys lie to get their way, don’t trust a boy who says “I love you,” and never date a boy from the south side of Fairfield. Her parents may be from Mexico, but as a doctor’s daughter, she has more in common with her north-side neighbors than the Latino Blood at her school. Then she meets Luis at Alex’s wedding, and suddenly, she’s tempted to break all her rules. Getting Nikki to take a chance on a south sider is Luis’s biggest challenge, until he finds himself targeted by Chuy Soto, the new head of the Latino Blood. When Chuy reveals a disturbing secret about Luis’s family, the youngest Fuentes finds himself questioning everything he’s ever believed to be true. Will his feelings for Nikki be enough to stop Luis from entering a dark and violent world and permanently living on the edge?

I was a little back and forth with this one. Luis seemed to have everything going for him and was going to make it unscathed by the LB. Wrong. Of all the Fuentes brothers, Luis by far made some of the stupidest decisions.

What made it an enjoyable read for me was Luis and Nikki together, and her struggle to get past her trust issues. If it was just Luis and his struggles, I probably wouldn’t have bothered. I didn’t like him as much as I loved his brothers. He seemed to be all over the place emotionally. I know he found out a difficult secret, but really? Did his reaction have to be him losing his mind? Because he was built up in the previous two novels as being so smart, I thought he would have been more logical in how he choose to handle things.

Like the other books in the trilogy, this one is totally steamy. These are some of my favorite YA novels because they are so real when it comes to teens and sex. Some YA novels tend to skip over it like it doesn’t exist, when we all know it does.

Perfect Chemistry is yet another series/trilogy I hate to see end.