Review: Smitten Romance Series

Hi guys! Recently I have finished reading some novels from a series called 'Smitten' and I felt that it would be good to share my thoughts on the series here :) This will be an overall review rather than a review for each title.

To be honest... it's been way too long since I'd read any novels (last one before this was Twilight actually :S) and I haven't written a book review since high school so I'm just going to keep this very simple.

Smitten is a newly released Australian young adult fiction series, currently consisting of 4 titles. The books aren't connected and there isn't a continuous story, however I realised that they all included themes of teenage romance, following dreams, interracial relationships, friendship and family. The Smitten girls are strong, smart and independent and this series is said to be 'fun, flirty and a little bit sexy'.

Two of the books are written by one author and the other two are written by another. There isn't a particular order for reading these books so I randomly began with 'Unlucky Break' and followed on with whichever sneak peek/preview of a Smitten novel was included at the end.

 The order that I read them in

I would say that these novels are most suited to mature audiences as there is course language, drug and alcohol references and sexual references (wow I sound like the guidelines for a movie's rating). These references may seem like a bad influence for a teenage audience but actually, there is some 'good' as smoking, illicit drugs and alcohol are negatively depicted and the love scenes are described in only little detail. Also, the characters set a good example for the young reader as safe sex is practiced. The setting of these good examples was something that I admired about the series because it showed that you can still have fun while being sensible.

I won't go into detail about each book but I do have the cover pictures up if you'd like to read the blurbs. 

*Click to enlarge the pictures*

Unlucky Break - by Kate Forster

Tall, Dark and Distant - by Julie Fison

Head over High Heels - by Kate Forster

Lust and Found - by Julie Fison

What I liked about the novels was the fact that they aren't too thick (roughly 2-2.5cm) so they are a good, quick read and a great size which makes them suitable to bring with you anywhere. Also, I liked how the main male characters weren't seen as flawless or depicted as a 'prince charming/knight in shining armour' because let's face it, what are the chances of us randomly finding a perfect gentleman who will fall madly in love with us at first sight? We ain't living a fairytale here! 

Do I have a favourite out of the 4? Hmm, well I really did enjoy reading them all but I found 'Unlucky Break' to be the funniest because of the number of twists in the plot. And the inclusion of a jealous, scheming ex-girlfriend made it rather interesting! It can be amusing if it happens to someone else and not yourself, haha.

For someone who hadn't read novels in the longest time, it was quite refreshing to see novels become much more modernised. There were references made to iPhones, Facebook and cosmetic brands such as Smashbox. I feel that these references make it easier for young readers to relate and connect with the characters. Although the circumstances and issues that the characters face may be quite extreme, we can at least relate to the importance of using technology and social networking sites these days.

There wasn't anything that I disliked about the series, though there was something that I was confused about and wasn't sure of at first. I don't know about you but I have read quite a number of teenage fiction novels where they have been written in first person. And to be honest, I prefer novels to be written in first person (like a diary or even a blog!) but the Smitten series was written in third person. That was fine for me to adapt to but a couple of chapters in I realised that the writing in third person had switched to the perspective of the main male character instead of the main female character at the beginning. And then it kept switching after each chapter which I eventually got used to and found it to be okay in the end. It actually is interesting to know how the two main characters are feeling and thinking about each other. Has anyone read a book like this before?? I'm curious.

I would recommend this series to mature audiences from about the age of 15 and above. The main female characters were around 17-18 and as a 19-year-old turning 20 soon, I didn't feel that I was too old for this series... I could still relate despite the characters just being fresh out of high school. If you're into romance and love a bit of drama, this might be the book for you in 2013!

 ★★★★/5

Unfortunately I am unsure as to where these novels can be purchased as they were only launched in February but if any of my readers are interested in reading one of these books, I'd be more than happy to send one of them over :) I haven't made room for them on my bookshelf so you'll be doing me a favour! Just email or comment below if there's one you're interested in reading - we could arrange something.

I'm not much of a bookworm as you can probably tell in my review (hehe). Nonetheless, thank you for reading my first ever online book/series review which is pretty much out of my comfort zone in terms of content to review! Beauty reviews will always be my thing ;)

Questjen of the week:

What was the last novel that you read?

Are there any novels/series that you would recommend?

Now I have no more fun novels to read so I'm going to get back to doing my compulsory university readings and reading my textbooks :( ! ... Unless you guys can give me a good suggestion for leisure reading :D

♥ Jen

P.S: Being sick sucks. Always remember to take care of yourselves~

Disclaimer: Series was provided for review purposes only. This is not a sponsored post.