Customer Reviews

Rival

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

High school is where memories are made, be they good or bad. Whether you're popular or an outcast, you remember that time of your life. Sara Bennett Wealer's debut novel, Rival, recaptures high school through the eyes of two girls who couldn't be more different...or more alike. Kathryn and Brooke are two seniors competing for the same prestigious music scholarship. Kathryn is a soprano with a light, airy voice, while Brooke is an alto, her sound rich and deep. Brooke is rich and one of the most popular girls at school while Kathryn is poor and a social outcast. Their love of music should bring these two girls together in the ultimate friendship, but instead, they're bitter rivals.

The novel flips between "current day" (senior year) and flashbacks of junior year when everything went wrong. This isn't done in an annoying way, however. Each year is focused on from both points of view for quite a few chapters before flipping back again. Rival is so tightly written that readers want to know what happened junior year to make Kathryn and Brooke such bitter rivals. They keep alluding to something, so by the time you find out, you're just dying to know. Wealer did a spectacular job building suspense and keeping the story feeling natural.

Rivals focuses on relationships, but not the romantic kind. While there's a brush of romance thrown in, it's very blink-and-you-miss-it. While boy drama is involved, the male species is not the focal point of this novel: The relationship between the two rivals is. It's refreshing to read a book with this type of outlook. There's so much more to life than boys, but you'd never know it perusing today's YA market. Friendship and rivalry is very much a part of our daily life, especially in high school. At one point, Kathryn and Brooke were on the point of being friends. If what went down junior year hadn't gotten in the way, they would have most likely been best friends. They're so obsessed with music and have so much in common, but it's all overlooked due to their intense dislike of one another.

The relationship between the girls is another place where Wealer got it right. Because she chose to write from the POV of both characters, readers get a multi-faceted look at them as human beings. If we had read the book from just one perspective, we'd be looking through the flawed eyes of that one character. The remaining girl would automatically be a villain. It's amazing to see the same situation through two pairs of eyes. For example, at one point, Kathryn gets complimented on her singing and smiles at one of her choir friends, but Brooke thinks she's being smug and going, "So there!" at her to rub it in. In another instance, Kathryn thinks Brooke's homecoming platform revolves around her and the fact that her family is poor, but Kathryn's circumstances never crossed Brooke's mind when putting everything together. It's just amazing to see the way both girls become flawed, individual characters, neither right nor wrong. There are times when I really detest Brooke's character, but others when Kathryn is out of line as well. Ultimately, I cared for them both and wanted to know how everything ultimately turns out for them.

Harper's art department also got it right: Rival's design will make all the other books on the shelf jealous. I love the bright, eye-catching red. That is one gorgeous flower. I also love the significance of the one petal pulled away from the rest, alluding to the fractured relationship between two girls. Even better, the piano on the cover hints at the fact that the novel revolves around the world of music. I also love the fonts used on both the cover and inside chapter headers. In addition, each chapter details what girl's POV we're reading, with a curl at the end that reminds me strongly of a music note. There's a beautiful curl at the bottom of each page where the number is as well.

The last thing I want to point out that I love about Rival is the fact that it's centered around the arts. With so many programs being cut these days, it's refreshing to see an author focus on such students. Not only that, the high school choir is really good and constantly in competitions. Singers are regularly nominated for prestigious prizes such as the prestigious Blackmore scholarship Kathryn and Brooke are competing for. In addition, they don't focus on modern-day pop hits the way the students in Glee do. Instead, they listen to musicals, study Stephen Sondheim, and sing hard opera songs. These are some truly talented students and, music lover that I am, I adore the way Wealer gave us a glimpse into the world of pre-professional singers.

I'm so happy with how much music is in the media right now. Love it or hate it, Glee is a phenomenon in and of itself that has paved the road for more music-centered TV shows. Rival will hopefully be popular with teens as well. Fellow 2011 debut author Jessica Martinez will release Virtuosity, focused on rivalry in the world of orchestra students, this time a boy and girl competing in the prestigious Guarneri competition. If you enjoyed Rival, I think you'll want to read this as well. I know I do! In fact, Martinez released cover art this week and it is hot, hot, HOT!

I echo all the sentiments of the previous review (Tara Gonzalez)! I also didn't expect to like this as much as I did...but I stayed up reading half the night because I couldn't put it down until it was over. I thought it would be a tale of popular girl vs. not-so popular girl and non-popular girl triumphs (as has been done so many ways before), but it wasn't like that at all. Actually, it was so much deeper than that, and now that I think about it, none of the characters/relationships were cliche at all. I also wasn't sure if I would like it because I am not really into Glee, or singing, or choirs etc., but that subplot was woven so effortlessly with high school life that I loved it. I highly recommend, and can't wait for this author's next book!

No matter which side of the fence you're on, the grass always appears greener on the other side.

For Kathryn Pease, her one-time best friend Brooke Dempsey has everything. She's popular, confident and stylish. She has money. She lived in New York. She's been to the Met. She wouldn't be stuck in Minnesota after high school. For someone like Brooke there are endless possibilities. Brooke isn't hanging all her hopes on winning the Blackmore competition like she is.

For Brooke, Kathryn is the lucky one. She is beautiful and petite. Her voice is flawless. She has a father who loves her and a family who acts like a family should. She doesn't have two brothers who put her down. There is no way Kathryn could want out of Minnesota as badly as she does. And most of all she doesn't have to disguise who she is or justify her passion for music to anyone. Kathryn doesn't need to win the Blackmore competition like she does.

As these two former best-friends get ready for the biggest competition of their lives will they let their personal rivalry get in the way of their success?

***

Rival is a beautifully written, bittersweet story about two girls who are friends-turned-enemies, both with the same appreciation for and love of music, and each who envies something the other has.

Their friendship is doomed from the start as each girl, for very different reasons, cannot be honest with the other, which leads to some rather unfortunate misunderstandings and ultimately to its collapse.

Each chapter alternates between Brooke's and Kathryn's perspective and also between the present and the events that led up to the breakdown of their friendship. Readers get the opportunity to see both sides and may find that assigning blame isn't quite so easy.

Rival is quite a surprise and so much more than just a "mean girls" story. It is far more richly developed than it would seem based on the title and description.

This is not merely a snarky, one-upmanship that escalates into a showdown with one man standing. Author Sara Bennett Wealer has given her characters much more depth and complexity than is typical in this type of story, allowing readers to feel compassion for both the underdog and the bully.

But, it is still in keeping with other stories in this genre and tremendously entertaining. It's got jealousy, diabolical pranks, a complete social freeze-out, a herd of A-Lister followers ready, willing and able to do whatever the Queen B says, and the requisite lovable geeky friend waiting in the wings ready to pick up the pieces.

Even in a month with so many great releases, Rival is a debut that you will not want to miss. Author Sara Bennett Wealer is an exceptional writer and one to keep on your watch list!

Ok, I know this sounds bad, but I didn't really expect to like this book all that much. I'm not really into music (at least not the kind of music Kathryn and Brooke are into) so I thought I would get totally lost in all the music talk. But I was so wrong!

This book took me on such an emotional roller coaster ride! It alternated (each chapter) from Kathryn's point of view to Brooke's. I love this type of writing. I feel like you get a much better idea of who the characters are when they are described by themselves, and then by someone else as well. About the girls....at first I hated Brooke, and I liked Kathryn. Then I didn't like Kathryn and I started liking Brooke. Then I realized that I hated them both. And I realized I loved them both. I felt like I was nothing like Kathryn or Brooke and that I couldn't relate to them at all. Then I felt like I was EXACTLY like Kathryn and Brooke and could relate to them completely! I was angry with them and angry at them. I cheered for them and crossed my fingers for them. All this just goes to show how emotional invested I was in these characters. A sure sign of a fantastic story!

It's funny because there isn't that much in the way of romance in this book (there is a little) but I almost had the same emotions that I have in a romance. The miscommunications, misunderstandings, jealousy, spitefulness, pride, desire (although it's desire for friendship) were all there. I've never felt this way about a book about friends before. I got so frustrated by the way that they treated each other, and let each other down. I just wanted them to see how much they meant to each other, and how good they could be together if they would only stop being so prideful, insecure, and jealous.

Once I started reading this book, I could not put it down! The only thing I didn't care for was the profanity (which contemporary YA seems to not be able to live without). Mostly I just devoured it and loved it!

If you love music, you will undoubtedly adore this book. If you don't, trust me....you will love it anyway.

Andye
[...]

I have nothing but love for Rival-lots and lots and lots of LOVE. To be completely honest, I wasn't sure what I was going to think of this book because I've never been involved with choir or anything. I didn't know if I'd be able to relate with the characters. But then I heard my students raving about Rival and telling me how I needed to read it ASAP. Let me tell you, I connected with and adored Brooke and Kathryn.

Rival is going to make my Top 10 list at the end of the year. I know there are still tons of books to release, but I seriously loved this book. (Yes, I've said that a few times already). Sara Bennett Wealer wrote this so we get both Brooke's and Kathryn's perspectives currently and a year previously. This kept me hooked and turning the pages because I wanted to know their friendship and rivalry inside and out. Kathryn and Brooke both show their bad sides, but there's always an underlying vulnerability there to remind you of who they really are and the friendship they had. It's a wonderful thing when an author creates such layered characters.

Unfortunately, a couple of my students accidentally ruined the ending for me. Both times it happened when they were returning the book and talking about how they just couldn't believe... Well, I'm not ruining the ending for anyone. All I'll say is that despite knowing what was going to happen, I was pleased with how it ended :) I was bummed when it ended, but that's because I wanted to keep reading!

Sara Bennett Wealer has a written a strong debut that is sure to win over many readers. I know a lot of people are comparing it to Glee, and even though I don't watch that show, I do know that Rival deserves better than that. These characters aren't in a glee club. They're serious singers, singing serious songs, working towards a prestigious scholarship. I'm sure those that enjoy that show will like Sara's book, but I still felt the need to put that opinion out there. Sara is a fabulous author and I CAN'T WAIT to read more from her! I love Rival like I love Sarah Dessen's books.

Beautifully written, Wealer has brought us a novel quite different from what's out there. The passion for the music is so amazing. Rival has brought me back to a time that I miss, a time that only the glory that music can bring.


Brooke Dempsey seems to have it easy. She seems to have it all. She has all the friends you can imagine. She has the looks, money, and any guy she wants. She also had the ability to bring down Kathryn and ruin her name throughout the school all because she has the power. And because she could.
But why did this happen?
They used to be best friends.
They both have killer amazing singing voices and are up against each other to receive a scholarship.
Kathryn needs that money. Why can't Brooke just leave her alone? What is she still hiding? Only time will tell.

I just finished Rival and found it absorbing and realistic in terms of the story line and characters. Although this is a young adult novel, it has some universal themes that adults as well as the younger readers will find appealing. I appreciated the author's development of the two main characters as complex young people with real problems and faults rather than resort to a more simplistic and stereotypical "mean girl" and "nice girl" that you sometimes get with this genre. I look forward to more novels by this writer.

I won this ARC in a giveaway from the author. I finished it a few days ago and I've been mulling over this review since then. I really enjoyed the way the story was written. The chapters alternate between the two girls and are equally compelling. I felt myself liking each one and disliking each one at the same time. The author also goes back and forth between junior and senior years. This may be confusing for some but I didn't have a problem following this at all. I liked piecing the story together. It was a quick read. I did predict the ending but I do think it was the right one. Overall, I think the author did an excellent job relating to her characters. I really understood why they acted the way that they did. Enjoyable to see the characters evolve. My only thing is, the ending just abruptly stops. I understand why, but I was left with a few questions. I'm hovering between a 3 and 4. So I'll say 3.5 rounded up for the star rating.

Wow! You know, I was looking forward to reading Rival because it sounded quite interesting and I thought that I would like it, but I wasn't expecting to enjoy it as much as I did! This book focuses mainly around the ups and downs of friendship between two very opposite high school girls, and I found this book to be quite relatable to my own high school experiences and just a great overall read!

As I mentioned before, Rival is about the ups and downs of the friendship between Queen B Brooke and shy, quiet girl Kathryn. The story flips back and forth between present day (their senior year of high school) and the previous year, the year in which Kathryn and Brooke became friends and how it all fell apart. We get a good look into the minds of each girl and the misunderstandings between them, as well as the stress in each of their lives, that caused their relationship to crumble.

I'm not really a big fan of the mean girl (really, who is?) but in Rival, although I felt connected to both Brooke and Kathryn, I, oddly enough, felt more of a connection with Brooke. From the outside looking in, Brooke seems to have the perfect life; she comes from a wealthy family and is popular, beautiful and talented, but as we et to know her better, we really get a good glimpse at her real depths. Her life is really no where near as perfect as it seems. Her father, to whom she vies for attention, lives in New York with his big-time actor boyfriend and is so consumed by his job and relationship that he more or less neglects his daughter. It's so clear how much Brooke seeks his attention and approval and it's really quite heartbreaking how much he really hurts and disappoints her, and her realtionship with her father obviously has a huge effect on her.

Throughout the course of the book, it also became very apparent how little Brooke's "friends" really knew her. Brooke cared so much about her music and her friends would always call the people in the choir, which Brooke was a part of, the "music freaks". All her friends cared about was partying, getting drunk, the homecoming dance, and being popular, and Brooke told them throughout the book that she didn't really care about any of those things, but that she cared about music, but they would always ignore her when she said it. There was an obvious change in Brooke throughout the book as she began to realize what real friendship was, and that maybe she had lost it when she ended her friendship with Kathryn.

Although I felt more connected to Brooke, I did quite like Kathryn as well. Being a shy, quiet girl myself, I always find that I can relate to characters that are shy and quiet too. One thing that I didn't really like about Kathryn was that, during the parts where we were flashed back to her junior year, the year that she began hanging out with Brooke and became popular, she completely ditched Matt, her self-confessed nerd best friend, because she didn't want her new friends to think that she was werid for hanging out with him. Although I didn't really like the fact that she stopped hanging out with him because she was worried what people would think, it was realistic, stuff like that happens all the time in real life. Luckily for Kathryn, Matt was a really good guy and he watched out for her even when she was being horrible to him, but he did that for her because he had feelings for her, which Kathryn seemed somewhat unaware of until it was pointed out to her by others, or when he made it very clear to her himself. Although she wasn't perfect, I did feel that Kathryn really reflected the way that people change and act in high school or when hanging around with a different crowd.

Sara Bennett Wealer is a great writer and she was really able to capture the realities of friendship, family and of just being a teenager, in Rival. The voices that she created were very realistic and she was able to perfectly potray the complicated relationships between Brooke, Kathryn and the other characters and this made the book that much more enjoyable and relatable.

Overall, I would definitley recommend picking up Rival. It was a book that I really liked and that I read in one sitting because I just didn't want to put it down. Highly recommended!

I really like the TV show Glee so when I heard about this book and heard it was about singing and a school choir, I knew I really wanted to read it. I really enjoyed the book. The competition between Kathryn and Brooke was very interesting and one of the better parts of the book. I really like how the author went back and forth in the chapters so we could learn how the rivalry between the two main characters came to be. It always seems to be over a guy, doesn't it? I did keep wanting to place Rachel Berry as Kathryn and Quinn Fabray as Brooke in my mind since I like the show but I tried not to do that too much. I also liked that the relationship between Kathryn and Matt did not go the way of some boy/girl friendships in other books. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys good contemporary YA and doesn't mind a little music and competition thrown in. I will definitely be checking to see what Sara Bennett Wealer comes out with next.