Book Review: Pwned by Shannen Crane Camp

****--4 Stars.
Publication: April 2013
Length: 248 pages
Book Description: Reagan West has a perfect life. She’s at the top of the high school food chain as co-captain of the cheerleading squad and she’s best friends with the most evil girl in Albany, Tawny Perez, which means she’s never on the receiving end of her wrath. The only trouble in Reagan’s perfect life comes from the constant threat of her dirty little secret leaking to her fellow classmates and casting her into a lifetime of ridicule.

Reagan West is a closet gamer and hates her role as the evil cheerleader.

But, as any well versed teenager knows, it’s better to suppress your own nerdy tendencies than to submit to a lifetime of being shoved into lockers and so, Reagan bravely soldiers through life as a reluctant bully… until a boy from her guild moves to her school and becomes Tawny’s next target. The newcomer threatens to reveal Reagan’s nerdy little secret and force her to come to terms with who she truly is. Now Reagan has to decide if she’s going to defend her fellow geeks, or if she’ll continue to be a total troll.

My Review: Reagan has a dilemma--remain a bully cheerleader or come out of the gaming closet and expose her true nerd self to the high school. On one hand, I could totally understand Reagan's need to keep her real self hidden. High school can be tough and unfortunately, it often matters what people think of you. It's so much easier to start picking on others so your weaknesses aren't exposed, but Tawny was W-A-A-A-Y over the top. I honestly cannot believe that someone as sweet as Reagan could be friends with someone as mean and evil as Tawny. I also can't believe that Tawny could get away with everything she did with no one knowing. What a brat!!

I like how Parker helps Reagan realize that there is more to life than having an important label. There is definitely a lesson for all of us here. I loved the ending. :)

This is a great high school story with a great message and even if you're not a gamer (like I'm not), it's still a fun read!!

Content: some kissing.

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