Rival by Sara Bennett Wealer

Book: Rival
Author: Sara Bennett Wealer
Page Number: 336 pages
Publisher: HarperTeen
Published: Feb 15th,2011
Source: Bought on Kindle
Summary:
Brooke
I don't like Kathryn Pease. I could pretend everything's fine between us. I could be nice to her face, then trash her behind her back. But I think it's better to be honest. I don't like Kathryn, and I'm not afraid to admit it.

Kathryn
I saw a commercial where singers used their voices to shatter glass, but the whole thing is pretty much a myth. The human voice isn't that strong.

Human hatred is. Anybody who doubts that should feel the hate waves coming off of Brooke Dempsey. But I don't shatter; I'm not made of glass. Anyway, the parts that break aren't on the outside.

Brooke and Kathryn used to be best friends . . . until the night when Brooke ruthlessly turned on Kathryn in front of everyone. Suddenly Kathryn was an outcast and Brooke was Queen B. Now, as they prepare to face off one last time, each girl must come to terms with the fact that the person she hates most might just be the best friend she ever had. ( Taken from Amazon, or Sara Bennett Wealers website. Both are the same.)
Rating: 5/5 stars

I'd thought about reading Rival since it's release so when I finished my last book a few days earlier I decided to try it out.
Rival is a riveting story about friendship,trust,rivals,and music. Usually contemporary novels are a bit slow, but this one was packed with action and memories. Memories or going back in time sometimes can be a bit annoying in novels. You just want the author to get on with the story. In Rival it's different. The memories were all part of the suspense of the book.
I felt the character were well put together and you could understand them and their actions, even Brooke. Most would think Brooke is your classic popular girl. Mean, rude, and perfect. Brooke was more real and kinder than classic popular girls. When she was mean, like to Kathryn she had good reasons.
I also really enjoyed all the music talk. Music played a huge part in the story and was what brought the girls together in the first place, and in a way make their hatred stronger for each other.
The authors writing was really poetic. If you read the summary you see how she starts the book: poeticly ( is that even a word?) She also has a a way of making you feel like the character are real people with a slight touch of making them seem otherworldly.
I would recommend Rival to anyone who wants a good fast read to drink with a cup of hot chocolate by the fire. A fabulous read!