Confessions of a Wild Child (2013)

Lucky Santangelo has lived under the protective thrall of her father, the notorious Gino Santangelo, since her mother died when she was five. But after stepping out of line one too many times, Gino packs fifteen-year-old Lucky off to a boarding school in Switzerland where he hopes she will lose her wild ways. However, when Lucky befriends Olympia Stanislopoulus, she finds a kindred spirit and someone even wilder than her. And so Lucky begins to learn the pleasures of her body and how to manipulate men. Whilst Lucky and Olympia continue to rebel against their fathers' wishes, Gino finds a way once and for all to tame Lucky and use her to his advantage: marriage. Although this book is aimed at teens, I did find it difficult to pin down an audience for this novel. It's obviously not for an older audience, and I would say it is too emotionally immature for the New Adult reader. But some of the relationships felt a bit too awkward, inappropriate even, for teens. However, it certainly tackles head-on the issue of teens exploring and developing their sexuality and not being afraid of who they are. The novel seemed to flit around a lot and move on too quickly from episode to episode and I found the ending too open. Apparently this is a prequel to several of Collins' other novels and maybe the ending makes more sense in this context, however as a standalone novel I didn't feel this was the best choice. I enjoyed the characterisation of Lucky and in particular the relationship with her father and her ambition and would have liked to have seen more of this. Because I'm not the intended audience, I feel that perhaps that's where some of the disconnect lies for me with this novel but maybe teens will appreciate it more. (JC)

Poor Little Bitch Girl (2009)

The bitch girl is this novel is Annabelle Maestro, the daughter of two famous movie stars. Annabelle lives in New York and runs a high-end call girl service. When Annabelle's mother is murdered, her father becomes a suspect. Denver Jones, a former high school classmate of Annabelle, is representing Annabelle's father. Denver's best friend from high school, Carolyn Henderson, is an assistant and mistress to a Senator in Washington D.C. When Carolyn announces to the married senator that she is carrying his baby, she mysteriously disappears. Denver attempts to track down Carolyn with the help of handsome and sexy Bobby Santangelo Stanislopolous. Bobby is the son of the notorious Lucky, a recurring character in Collin's novels. This novel is a fun read filled with lots of sex, lies and gorgeous people. (AO)

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