Angels on Sunset Boulevard [Paperback]

Melissa de la Cruz (Author)

Book Description

Series: Angels on Sunset Boulevard | Publication Date: October 7, 2008

Pay to get in,

Pray to get out.

Johnny Silver is the world's soon-to-be biggest rock star, but on the eve of his debut concert in Los Angeles, he mysteriously disappears, causing global pandemonium. His friend Taj tries to discover the truth about his disappearance, which leads her to TAP.com and its shadowy founder, Sutton Werner, who throws the wildest parties in Bel-Air.

TAP started out innocently enough, as a website that dishes the dirt on the kids of Sunset Boulevard and beyond. But it has become something more. Membership is a privilege with responsibilities and consequences.

At Sutton's parties, anything goes, especially in the legendary backroom rituals nicknamed The Angels Practice. Rumors abound of a special drink handed out at the parties that tap into otherworldly sensations.

One night Taj meets Nick, a Westside preppie who doesn't buy into the TAP mayhem, especially since his kid sister never came home from attending one of its blow-out bashes. Slowly the two of them are drawn to TAP and to each other. But Taj just might know more than she's letting on....

Are you ready for the darker side of Tinsel-town's brightest lights?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

De la Cruz (the Au Pairs series) invents a dark world against an L.A. backdrop in this novel, giving readers plenty to puzzle over and ponder. A fictional social networking Web site called TAP.com lies at the center of this story about a missing rock star, the girl who loved him, and rich boy Nick, who is learning to see beneath the surface. Johnny Silver, Taj's boyfriend and "the kind of star that spoke for a generation," literally vanishes from the stage, and he is not alone. Nick's sister goes missing, and soon, so does his best friend. Through Taj's and Nick's alternating perspectives, readers not only watch the mismatched pair fall for each other, they learn TAP's secrets, from the "otherworldly" punch served at the site's sponsored parties, to the strange ritual that happens in the parties' secret rooms. ("TAP—The Angels' Practice... the website was only the beginning. It was also a movement, a phenomenon, and a drug," says Taj.) Nick suspects the Web site is connected to the disappearances. Memorable secondary characters people the novel, such as Taj's drag queen uncle, Mama Fay, and Sutton, Johnny's teen manager with "the smile of the devil." But the story wraps up before readers get enough of them. Teens may have trouble tracking all the pieces of the mystery, but will compulsively turn the pages—and be haunted by the story's provocative themes, such as the underbelly of social networking sites, and why "sixty percent of America's teenagers believe they will become famous." Ages 14-up. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up—Set in Los Angeles, this novel is a commentary on followers versus leaders and the ease with which teens are influenced by peer pressure. TAP is a MySpace-type Web site; via a secret password, one gains entrée to back-room orgies at special TAP parties where new members are tattooed with tiny angel wings. A drink distributed at these events induces euphoria, and individuals cannot always remember what has happened there. The plot concerns rock star Johnny Silver, who disappears during a concert, and his skateboarder-punk girlfriend, Taj. Sutton, who runs the parties, is the son of a music mogul and Johnny's manager. Taj meets Nick at a TAP event and starts dating him. When she lets him into the back room during a party, it leads to retaliation. In addition to Johnny, others go missing, including Nick's younger stepsister. Taj seeks the truth and learns that she is in deeper than she thought. As in de la Cruz's other books, there is an abundance of pop-culture references. Angels does not hold up against her richer novel, Blue Bloods (Hyperion, 2006). It's a quick, entertaining read, but it will not stand the test of time.—Corinda J. Humphrey, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers; Reprint edition (October 7, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416939911
• ISBN-13: 978-1416939917
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,972,408 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Melissa de la Cruz is the New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of many critically acclaimed and award-winning novels for teens including The Au Pairs series, the Blue Bloods series, the Ashleys series, the Angels on Sunset Boulevard series and the semi-autobiographical novel Fresh off the Boat.

Her books for adults include the novel Cat's Meow, the anthology Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys and the tongue-in-chic handbooks How to Become Famous in Two Weeks or Less and The Fashionista Files: Adventures in Four-inch heels and Faux-Pas.

She has worked as a fashion and beauty editor and has written for many publications including The New York Times, Marie Claire, Harper's Bazaar, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Allure, The San Francisco Chronicle, McSweeney's, Teen Vogue, CosmoGirl! and Seventeen. She has also appeared as an expert on fashion, trends and fame for CNN, E! and FoxNews.

Melissa grew up in Manila and moved to San Francisco with her family, where she graduated high school salutatorian from The Convent of the Sacred Heart. She majored in art history and English at Columbia University (and minored in nightclubs and shopping!).

She now divides her time between New York and Los Angeles, where she lives in the Hollywood Hills with her husband and daughter.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, February 23, 2007

By 

TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Angels on Sunset Boulevard (Hardcover)

TAP, The Angels of Practice, is all everyone can talk about. This website/drink/drug is intoxicating and no one can get enough of it. No one can explain what TAP really is, since it is all around them and they are so dependent on it. The company that owns it holds the most exclusive parties, grants everyone's material wishes, provides all the gossip and promotes the biggest rock star that everyone loves, Johnny Silver.

But then strange things begin to happen. Kids all over Sunset Boulevard are beginning to disappear, including Johnny Silver. No one knows why this is happening, and others are too busy with TAP to worry about what is going on. Everyone except for Nick and Taj, who are the only ones that don't buy into the whole TAP industry.

Before they know it, Taj and Nick find themselves together, trying to solve the mystery of what is happening and even developing a strong relationship with each other. Unfortunately, it may be too late for them to actually do anything about it.

Told through Nick and Taj's points of view, Melissa de la Cruz takes us into a world that is far from The Au Pairs. ANGELS ON SUNSET BOULEVARD captures the reader from the very first page with its unusual uniqueness. Each character brings a certain atmosphere that captivates the audience into wanting more. The reader becomes so involved in the story that they will soon become disappointed when the book has to end.

Now the only thing left to do is wait for the next novel, which may be a long wait (well, for me that is).

Reviewed by: Randstostipher "tallnlankyrn" Nguyen

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A Good Concept, But It Fell Flat, January 20, 2010

By 

Between the Lines "J. Morrill" (Sacramento, Ca) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Angels on Sunset Boulevard (Paperback)

Ugh! Let's see, I first opened this book and began reading it in hmm October, I think. It is now Mid-January and I forced myself to finish it. I hate to give up on a book, but I almost wish I would have.

The concept behind the book is good and original. TAP, or The Angels Practice is a Facebook/My Space type website with a twist. It is more like a cult, just for teens and young people. One of the biggest parts of TAP are the parties where a special narcotic/hallucinogenic drink is served to free them of their inhibitions among other things. Like I said, I thought it was very original, I just wish it played out better.

The author, Melissa de la Cruz has written some very well-liked books, including, but not limited to her Blue Bloods series about vampires. The writing in itself was good, descriptive, and easy-to-read. Somewhere after the first couple of chapters it just got painfully boring for me to read. There is a bit of mystery involving a missing rock star and some random missing kids, but I just didn't care. The characters who went missing weren't major and I had no connection with them.

The most disappointing thing for me was the ending. It just fell flat. It seemed rushed and frantic and then just ended. I felt there were so many loose ends that were just left. I would have liked some things played out a bit more and explained. We found some things out about Taj, the main female character, but it was all so rushed. I would have liked to know more about what she was thinking and why certain things happened. I don't want to reveal too much, so I will leave it at that.

Overall, good concept but poorly executed. I have not turned off of this author completely though. I have heard good things about many of her other books. Although, some people who reviewed this book loved it. Hmmm...whatever floats your boat I guess. This just wasn't for me.

~Jenn

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars I was dissapointed, September 13, 2008

By 

Hannah Leigh "Hannah" (Forks, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Angels on Sunset Boulevard (Hardcover)

I was very dissapointed with this book. I love Blue Bloods series so far. It's hard to believe that the two stories were written by the same author. This book is not very memorable at all. I can hardly remember much past the gist of it.