The Market by J.M. Steele

Genre: YA Fiction

One Word Review: Blah

First Line: “Somewhere in the distance I heard a cell phone ringing, and I slipped in unnoticed through the side door.”

Synopsis: “When Kate Winthrop stumbles upon the Millbank Social Stock Market (the MSSM), she's horrified to discover that out of the 140 girls in her class, she's ranked a bleak 71. Determined not to accept her fate as a "junk bond," she and her best friends set out to make her the fastest rising stock on the Market — and their plan works. Kate is suddenly embraced by the most popular girl in school and attracts the attention of the hottest boy. But what begins as a fun social experiment quickly turns into an obsession, one that threatens to ruin her reputation, friendships, and a chance at first love. Will Kate survive the high and lows of the Market, or will her security crash and burn?” -GoodReads

Kathy’s Review: It was pretty early on when I realized I wasn’t going to like this book. It opens with our main character Kate (Kat, Katie) at a party. She has a huge crush on a guy named Will and when he actually comes over to talk to her she is SO excited. He is totally wasted and for some reason she thinks that’s totally sexy. I guess I like my guys sober. I kept reading, but after 100 pages or so I sort of skimmed through the rest. Overall it was just kind of boring for me and not really that original. Unpopular girl goes through makeover and rises to the top of the high school food chain. Turns out things aren’t as they seem and she discovers who her real friends are and finds true love in the guy who was there all along. Blah blah blah. Maybe I’m being a little harsh, but I really think in the hands of another author this could have been a cute story.

J.M. Steele is actually a pseudonym for two NY “entertainment industry professionals” (whatever that means).