Burn for Burn by Jenny Han & Siobhan Vivian

Reading Level: Ages 12 and up
Paperback: 358 Pages
Release Date: September 18, 2012
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Narration: First Person: Lillia, Kat, Mary
Genre: Contemporary
Challenge: None
Source: ARCycling

The Burn for Burn Series:
Book One: Burn for Burn
Book Two: Fire with Fire
Book Three: Ashes to Ashes (2014)

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Jenny's
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Siobhan's
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Goodreads Synopsis:

Big girls don't cry.....they get even.

Lillia has never had any problems dealing with boys who like her. Not until this summer, when one went too far. No way will she let the same thing happen to her little sister.

Kat is tired of the rumours, the insults, the cruel jokes. It all goes back to one person– her ex-best friend– and she's ready to make her pay.

Four years ago, Mary left Jar Island because of a boy. But she's not the same girl anymore. And she's ready to prove it to him.

Three very different girls who want the same thing: sweet, sweet revenge. And they won't stop until they each had a taste.

My Review:

Since this was marked as a DNF read at Pg. 119,
this review only reflects the portion that I got through.

Unfortunately, I have nothing good to say about Burn for Burn, so if you're an avid fan of this novel, I suggest you leave now. Or else you're going to want to suckerpunch me in the end. Burn for Burn was an absolute catastrophe. It is my reason, embodied, for not reading contemporary novels. However, the premise and the gorgeous cover were impossible to resist. Three girls seeking revenge on the people who wronged them? I mean, come on, who could resist that. Sounds a bit like modernized Furies, does it not? But even though this novel had oodles and oodles of potential, as well as an absolutely gorgeous cover to support that potential, it unfortunately fell flat and made me want to chuck it into a fire and take off running.

So this novel takes place in a teensy, tiny island called Jar Island. Kat, Mary, and Lillia are three girls who are supposedly completely different from each other, yet strive towards the same goal. Sweet, sweet revenge. Yeah, no. Even though I saw what the author was trying to do, making three completely different characters by putting them in different social circles; The Outcast, The Popular, and The Runaway, they all seemed the same to me. Completely shallow. I would've expected the popular one to be conceited and annoying, but the outcast and the runaway? They were all immature, frivolous, stupid, superficial, brats. These people kept on jumping to conclusions when they should've just asked for the truth in the first place. The levels of irritation I'm experiencing right now astounds me.

Well, this is probably one of the shortest regular reviews I've ever written. There really is nothing else to write about, because nothing was memorable to me. Perhaps, their stupidity, but I already covered that in the last paragraph. There was no action, no suspense. Just frequent moments of facepalms, headbangs, and chucking books at walls. Overall, I'm definitely not going to be finishing this novel anytime in the future. In fact, I probably won't be picking up any contemporary novels for a while either. If you're already a huge fan of contemporary, unlike me, perhaps you will enjoy this novel more. However, if you're iffy about contemporary reads, run far, far away.


Heroines- 1/5
Action- 1/5
Romance- 1/5
Writing- 1.5/5
Overall- 1/5