Customer Reviews

So Over My Head (The Charmed Life)

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Review by Jill Williamson

Just when we all thought that Bella's life was roses, things start to smell bad. While she's on assignment, covering the circus that's come to town, Bella discovers a dead body. The police make an arrest, but Bella is sure they've got the wrong guy. Then Bella catches her boyfriend kissing his ex! So she focuses on finding the real killer. Only problem, the real killer might be focusing on her!

Sigh. I love me a good Jenny B. Jones book. Yes I do. Here's another wild tale of Miss Bella Kirkwood and her charmed life. It made me laugh, it made me cry, and I may have had to lock the door just in case there were any deranged circus performers in my neck of the woods. All in all, a completely satisfying end to this series. Nothing left to do but make everyone else read these books while we wait for Jenny B. Jones' next installment of hysterical teen novels. Hope the wait isn't too long.

Who would have though that a YA series could feature a former socialite, a WWE type wrestler who used to work in a ladies' pad factory and a small town carnival all in the same book and have it all make sense? Well what do you think Jenny B. Jones' job is as an author? She skillfully manages to work all these mismatched things together into one of the funniest and most entertaining YA novels I've read all year.

What I love about these books is that even with their fluffy looking covers, they give more meat than the average YA-lit read. First off, they're rather thick for YA at a little over 300 pages. Now you might think that is too much but once you start reading, you want the book to keep getting longer. Second, the book is a combination of contemporary YA, mystery and humor all blended together. Seriously this book cracked me up. There are several one line zingers from Bella and her friend Ruthie that had be howling. Plus there is also reference to Prince Harry, the most absolute gorgeous royal ever. It's like Jones went inside my head to get everything I wanted and put it in a book.

The main part of this story focuses on the mysterious death of the bearded lady that happened while Bella was visiting the carnival that came through town. There are suspicious folk everywhere and she finds herself once again on the case. The mystery is quite good, suspenseful at times with red herrings everywhere. I actually wasn't quite sure of who was the killer until the end. Plus Bella gets to work as a clown which means I have to avoid her as I am afraid of all clowns.

I will be honest, even though the carnival plot was very interesting, there were times when I wanted the story to keep going back to Bella's dad. That's a storyline I have been following since book one and I was just waiting for him to finally realize what was going on. And believe me, if you've been annoyed with how he's been treating Bella or how Christina seems to have something suspicious going on, you will be more than satisfied.

While this is the third book in the Charmed Life series, the story can be read as a standalone. Of course you will get the full perspective of the situation by reading the previous books but there is enough in this book for it to be read by itself. Jones is one of my absolute favorite YA authors, Christian or general market. She knows how to write for the YA audience because she knows the YA audience. She is one of those authors that I recommend to everyone to read. I cannot get enough of her books and want her next book NOW! VERY HIGHLY recommended.

You know you're in for a refreshing treat when even the Amazon review makes you laugh.
I quote: "Newly single, stalked by a killer, and in desperate need of some chic clown shoes--Bella is one skinny mocha frapp away from total meltdown."

What a fun book, and yet thought provoking. Not that I recommend this book to make you think too hard, just enough to appreciate the depth of the story beyond the pure fun of it.

Jenny B. Jones, known as JBJ to her blog fans, has written the third in her series, The Charmed Life with the same energy and chic of the first two, So Not Happening and I'm So Sure.

I recommend this book for all ages, although teens and young adults will especially appreciate.

I got hooked on JBJ books from reading her first adult novel, Just Between You and Me. Loved it so much that I immediately clicked on over to Amazon and got The Charmed Life Series. At the time only So Not Happening and I'm So Sure were out... I don't think I've ever read books that made me laugh out loud so much!! So Over My Head was just as fantastic! You are missing out if you haven't read these books yet!! Buy all three. If you don't, I guarantee you'll be back to buy the others and then you'll have to pay shipping all over again :)

i absolutely love this series and am sorry to see it end. i have read these books about nine or ten times, yet can still read them over again. a highly recomended read.

As if Truman wasn't odd enough, the circus comes to town. There's about to be a murder, and Bella is not talking about Betty the Bearded Lady; though, she's investigating that on the DL. Luke's ex-girlfriend has returned to the halls of Truman High and is trespassing all over Bella's territory (that territory being Luke's lips). The carnival mystery is nothing to clown around about. As Bella snoops, she finds that the risks are as high as the trapeze swing. Then there's her dad back in New York. He's clearly about to marry a gold digger. When she's so over her head, it might be time to trust God with her life... and Luke with her heart.

Mulling again:
Okay, the stakes in the middle were as high as the climax at the end of book one! Jones certainly redeemed her mystery in this novel. The romance drove me a little nuts - as it did Bella. Luke was constantly onto Bella to trust him, yet he didn't trust Bella about his prowling ex. Overall: 5 stars. My heart just pinched on the last page... I want to rewind and go back to Truman all over again.

In the third book of The Charmed Life series, Bella finds herself involved in another crime as she finds the body of a carnival worker. Although the police quickly make an arrest, Bella isn't sure that they have the right guy. Bella and her sidekick Ruthie go undercover to find out some answers. On top of the crime solving, Bella must deal with her own insecurities about her relationship with Luke, whose old girlfriend is back in town and after Luke, and her father's upcoming wedding to a much younger woman who is up to no good.

I enjoyed this book. It was a great end to the series with Bella finally moving past her lack of trust in people, especially the men in her life. Ruthie is one of my favorite minor characters in a long time, and I wish there was a book about what happens with her next.' She adds comic relief to a book about heavy topics like trust and death.

Overall, this is a great series for teens. Jenny B. Jones is a great YA author who writes about Christian teens without being preachy or overbearing.

[...]

Ah, I really enjoyed this book! Honestly it doesn't have a lot of spiritual content, but the plot is adorable. I highly recommend it for teenage girls and YA girls!

Loaded with snappy dialog and hilarious situations, So Over My Head was a good conclusion to the series. I didn't like Bella as much in this book as I did in the other two, but I was still rooting for her when she uncovered different things that needed to be exposed. That chick was still very stubborn, but always tried to do the right thing, and I had to admire that about her. She also had issues with men that made her afraid to trust. This was well done, and very realistic. I loved how she had developed a pretty strong affection for her new family throughout the series.

Luke was the perfect hero for Bella even though they were not together through the majority of the story. He had her best interests at heart, which was admirable. I loved how Bella still got all weak in the knees whenever he was around. The closer, the better. The author really knows how teens think, and it shows in her writing. She even knows how to make morbid things sound kinda funny, though a few times I found Bella's flippant inner thoughts (about the dead) a bit condescending. That inner dialog didn't bother me much until the third book for some reason. But it wasn't annoying enough to keep me from enjoying the book. Jenny is still my favorite YA author. Always will be.

I couldn't wait for this review copy to arrive at my front door so I could read about Bella Kirkwood and her adventures in Oklahoma. So Over My Head starts two weeks after the Prom ended in the last book. Bella prides herself as being a Nancy Drew kind of gal. Fellow students seek her talents when they have a mystery to solve.

I couldn't help but get the feeling I was watching a Scooby-doo episode as I read about Bella Kirkwood and Luke chase down possible suspects in a murder mystery at the circus. Bella was at the circus writing an article for the school newspaper when she discovered a body with a knife in it.

Luke, the editor of the school newspaper, tells Bella to stop writing the circus article. It's just too dangerous. But, since Bella cooled things with Luke on the personal level and it was back to business as usual, she didn't think she should take his advice. This was her story and she was not going to be scooped out of it.

Bella's stepdad, Jake, has hit the big time on the wrestling circuit and goes on the road to follow his dream. Bella's mom is unhappy and puts her dreams on hold so her husband can chase his. Meanwhile, Bella's dad has found true love; Bella thinks otherwise. She will use her super sleuth skills to get to the bottom of her dad's fiancé. There was more to this woman than her dad could see. There was more than love on that woman's mind and Bella would prove it.

Jenny hits another home run with the third and final installment of the A Charmed Life series. She has created an over the top believable story with Bella tracking town leads to uncover the murder mystery before it's too late. Treat yourself to one of Jenny's books. She creates a fun, witty and tender story that will warm your heart. Get ready for another amusing adventure with Bella Kirkwood. You'll be entertained, giggle and learn something that will catch you by surprise. I highly recommend this book for young readers, but I can also recommend it for all ages. I can't wait to read the next book Jenny B. Jones writes - no matter what audience she is targeting. I know that it will be worth my time and money!

The Book Club Network [...]