Sun-kissed (Au Pairs)
by Melissa de la Cruz
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Book Summary Information
Author: Melissa de la CruzEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-05-08
ISBN: 1416917470
Number of pages: 306
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Book Reviews of Sun-kissed (Au Pairs)
Book Review: Sunscreen required - 'Sun-Kissed' is smoking!
Summary: 5 Stars
Two summers have passed, and the third is on the horizon. But this year, things are quite different from the past. Fashionista, Eliza Thompson, bookworm Mara Waters, and Brazilian bombshell, Jacqui Velasco have waved goodbye to high school, and are looking forward to the future. Unfortunately, while the future lands them all in the Hamptons, this summer, they'll be working in three very different professions that will leave them struggling to find time for one another.
For the past year, Eliza has found herself in relationship bliss with Jeremy Stone, a local Hamptons "gardener," of sorts, who just opened his own business. The two couldn't be happier, but Eliza is still uncomfortable with the fact that her V card is still intact; which is why she plans on handing it over to the wonderful Mr. Stone at the next available opportunity. But opportunities are scarce when you're interning for fashion-do-turned-fashion-don't designer, Sydney Minx, a veritable tyrant who seems to have lost his artistic light, and is searching to steal it from anyone possible. Eliza, with her over-the-top fashion sense, doesn't mind lending a helping hand; after all, she has just snagged a spot at Princeton, and can't wait to set off on the road to higher education in the fall, even if it means slaving a way for an untalented schmuck over the summer.
Mara is finally with the guy of her dreams - Ryan Perry. After two years of being hot-and-cold with the billionaire brother of her charges, this au pair finally sunk her claws into the boy of the hour. And, even though their relationship has been long distance over the past year, they've held tight to their blooming romance. This summer, however, Mara has ditched diaper duty, and is interning at HAMPTONS Magazine, where she'll have the chance to rub elbows with the rich and famous, and write about it in a society column. Even better, after a long day at work, Mara gets to come home to Ryan for snuggle sessions upon his father's yacht - The Malpractice - where the two are playing house for a full three months. The only problem is that Ryan keeps questioning Mara about her impending attendance at Dartmouth University - where Mara has been wait-listed - and Mara is forced to decide whether Columbia or Dartmouth is the proper place for a budding journalist, like herself, to be.
Jacqui, as always, is the epitome of hotness. Having broken up with her boyfriend, Kit Ashleigh, after a few months of bickering, Jacqui is once again single and looking for love. And this summer, she seems to have found it in the form of three billionaire hotties next-door. Smooth-talking Grant Kotack, sensitive Ben Defever, and the hilarious John Duffy are the creators of DormDebauchery.com, and renting out the Reynoldes' house next-door for the summer. While tossing money around like water, and hosting a slew of parties, all three guys are also vying for Jacqui's affections, and waiting for the chance to be called her "boyfriend." While the attention from the three guys is fabulous; Jacqui finds it hard to keep her mind in one place, especially due to the fact that NYU has just broken the news to her regarding the fact that she's missing mathematics and science credits, and will have to complete a fifth year of high school, dashing Jacqui's dreams of embarking on the college experience with her friends. And, to top things off, she's attempting to contend with the newest addition to the au pair line-up, a fifteen-year-old from New Jersey named Shannon Shin, who is utterly obsessed with Jacqui and her friends.
Together, the three girls will have to find a way to survive the summer, or be eaten by the monster known as the Hamptons.
I fell in love with Eliza, Mara, and Jacqui when Melissa de la Cruz first introduced them to the world in THE AU PAIRS, and, over the years, I find myself delving deeper and deeper into their privileged world. SUN-KISSED is no exception. Once more, de la Cruz paints the Hamptons in a light that will make readers want to escape there for a short vacation, then escape from the over-indulgent world for a reality check. Discarding Poppy and Sugar Perry in Los Angeles, where the two have become non-stop party girls, and leaving Kevin Perry in New York, so that Jacqui must contend with the oft-times step-monster, Anna Perry, all by her lonesome, de la Cruz introduces many new difficulties and problems that come along with growing up. Mara is still the most down-to-earth character, as she looks towards her future, and attempts to make the appropriate decisions that will suit her the best in her future. She has truly matured quite a bit since recovering from the "diva" syndrome that plagued her last summer in SKINNY-DIPPING. Eliza, on the other hand, has returned to her pampered princess ways. With her parents having reclaimed their fortune, Eliza is once again, riding high. However, she exceeded my expectations when she really began to get her hands dirty, and prove that, even though she's a spoiled little rich girl, she can work it like a pauper. Jacqui, while still an au pair for the Perry's, really shows a new side to herself, as well. Gone is the unsympathetic nature that she had towards the opposite sex in THE AU PAIRS, and, in its place, comes a kind, caring persona, who wants to spare people's feelings - no matter how hard she needs to work to do so. The introduction of Shannon Shin is entertaining. She talks a mile-a-minute, and seems like an obnoxious character at times, but she certainly redeems herself as the story continues, and leaves you hoping for her return in the next book. The presence of the children - Madison, William, Zoe, and Cody - is minimal within SUN-KISSED. However, that isn't too odd, considering all of them have grown up so much, and are displaying new traits and characteristics that they lacked in previous installments. Sunscreen required - SUN-KISSED is smoking!
Erika Sorocco
Freelance Reviewer
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