Please Note:  I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.  This did not influence the opinions of my review in any way.  Also, I am part of the Amazon Affiliate program.  If you buy the book using the links on this page, I will get a small fee.

Synopsis (From Goodreads):
The only thing 17-year-old Jane Sinner hates more than failure is pity. After a personal crisis and her subsequent expulsion from high school, she’s going nowhere fast. Jane’s well-meaning parents push her to attend a high school completion program at the nearby Elbow River Community College, and she agrees, on one condition: she gets to move out.

Jane tackles her housing problem by signing up for House of Orange, a student-run reality show that is basically Big Brother, but for Elbow River Students. Living away from home, the chance to win a car (used, but whatever), and a campus full of people who don't know what she did in high school… what more could she want? Okay, maybe a family that understands why she’d rather turn to Freud than Jesus to make sense of her life, but she'll settle for fifteen minutes in the proverbial spotlight.

As House of Orange grows from a low-budget web series to a local TV show with fans and shoddy T-shirts, Jane finally has the chance to let her cynical, competitive nature thrive. She'll use her growing fan base, and whatever Intro to Psychology can teach her, to prove to the world—or at least viewers of substandard TV—that she has what it takes to win.

Review:
Even though I am not one to watch a lot of TV, I would have to be hiding in a cave not to know how popular reality television is right now.  One of the shows that started the current trend is Big Brother, which has nearly fifty versions of the program running world-wide.   But why do people want to be on such a show?  Are they seeking fame or fortune?  Are they just looking for attention?  The main character in Nice Try, Jane Sinner, by Lianne Oelke, seems to be looking for a fresh start, and some independence, after a disastrous incident at her high school.  


Characters:
Jane is smart, funny, and also suffers from depression.  She feels oppressed by her ultra religious family, and so seeks to be independent.  I can really identify with her predicament.   I liked that she had this conflict with her parents, yet still loved and respected them.

I rooted for Jane throughout the story.  As she stumbles upon what she thinks is a great idea (trading privacy for cheap rent in the House of Orange), you just know, this will lead to disaster.  And it does.  Jane, fragile from a mental health event, puts herself in a place where her emotional stability will be constantly challenged.

The other characters each have a desperate desire they are yearning for as they participate in the contest.  The student producer of the show is looking for redemption after being kicked out of a prestigious college.  Other contestants are looking for notoriety, or are participating as a way to propel them onto a national stage.  These characters were fun to follow, and I enjoyed the strategies they employed to gain advantages in the contest.  It also illustrates how difficult it is to trust people, and their motives.

Setting:
Many people discount the community college experience.  They talk about it like it isn't really legitimate higher education.  As someone who started out at a community college, I couldn't disagree more.  I loved how the book showed that it's all about what the individual student puts into it that determines what they get out of it.  While some students don't take these classes seriously, others jump in wholeheartedly.  And not just with the classes.  As Jane progresses through the school year, she is slowly drawn into extracurricular activities.  If one tries, a person can really find their tribe in college.

I also loved the Canadian setting. While there are many similarities to America, Canada has it's own character and charm.  The wildness of the open wilderness just outside of town emphasizes how close we are to our essential selves, if we will only seek it out.

Story:
The competition itself was very entertaining.  As with actual Big Brother types of shows, there were alliances to be made, and challenges to compete in.  Many of them were very creative, such as when the contestants had to get in a van and see who could remain there the longest.  The students had to figure out how they would handle things such as bodily needs without leaving the van.  It was gross, but also hilarious!
I wish the author would have been a little more serious about Jane's mental health issue.  With all the stress of the game, I was surprised that Jane wasn't more on the edge, especially since she cut herself off from her support system.  I would have liked for Jane to realize that it is okay to rely on others such as a counselor, friends, or family.  Instead she rejects these and tries to go it alone.  I think she does, in the end, finally accept some of her problems.  But I think in real life she would  have been at risk for serious harm given that she rejected any help.

                                                                  

Rating: 




Release Date:  January 9th, 2018

Genre:  YA Contemporary

Publisher:  Clarion Books

Page Length:  416 pages

Source:  NetGalley

Format:  PDF

Recommendation:  An enjoyable, if at times too light, read.  Canada , redemption, and the community college system are the highlights of this book.
 

What a wonderful Sunday it was!  I had cooked and cleaned all of Saturday; my chores were complete.  After a brisk morning, the sun came out and I was ready to do something I never do:  go on adventure, all alone, to San Francisco to attend a book event!  Held at Books Inc. in Opera Plaza, tucked away at the far end of the store, the empty chairs sat waiting for the arrival of Leigh Bardugo!  And I was happily among them!

I arrived in San Francisco from the East Bay with plenty of time so I was able to leisurely walk to the bookstore and take in some of the stunning architecture in the city:

 

City Hall, San Francisco, California            San Francisco Opera House


After walking several blocks from the BART station, I found Books, Inc. and quickly bought two more copies of Six of Crows (I think a few people will be getting special Christmas gifts this year...).  Then I located the seats and found a spot near the front.



Then I sat down and read a few more chapters of Six of Crows.  Such an exciting book!  I stopped several times and listen to the organizers talk about books, and a few other events that were upcoming at the store.  I then remembered that a few weeks ago on Twitter, I was talking to @NextPagePlease_ and we both said we would be going to this event.  Could she be here?  I didn't really know what she looked like in person, so I sent out a tweet to her, asking if she was going.  She quickly answered, "Yes, I am already here.".  I began to look around the store, and finally got up the courage to ask this teen, "Are you Kaitlin?"  She looked at me strangely (which was understandable) until I explained we knew each other through Twitter.  Then we were all smiles and hugs.  What a cool thing to meet up with people you know through social media!




Finally, the big moment arrived and Leigh Bardugo was in the house!



She began by reading from a story she had written at 12 years old.  While it was full of cliches, one could see there was talent even at that young age!  She was witty and self depreciating, talking about how difficult her teen years were trying to fit in at an all-girls school.  She mentioned that a reoccurring theme in her books is about creating your tribe of friends and how that really came to be at college.  Leigh answered many questions from the audience about her writing process and character creation.  She was full of pearls of wisdom!  At one point, she said, "You have to be bad at writing before you become good at writing".  That gave me a lot to think about.  No one instantly is good at an art.  Whether it's singing, playing an instrument, or writing, it takes work to gain proficiency.  This is so encouraging.  I think I tend to look at my writing and become exasperated that it isn't any good.  I need to keep working on it, and I will improve. Maybe not to the level of published author, but I will get better!

Finally, she began to sign books!  I was very fortunate to be in the second row, so I only had to wait a short time before I was standing and chatting with Leigh Bardugo!!!  She couldn't have been nicer, signing all my books and asking me questions too.

 


Afterwards, we got to take some swag:  I got two cool pins (one says Grisha for life and the other says Proper Thief), and a large temporary tattoo of a crow (I think I will keep it as a bookmark!).  On my book, she wrote:  The heart is an arrow.  She has certainly made reading entertaining for me.  Now, she has inspired me as well.  Thank you Leigh!

It was another great month for reading!  I was able to read 16 books (one off from last month)!  I seemed to vacillate between ultra serious books (The Miniaturist, by Jessie Burton, A Monster Calls, by Patrick Ness) and light-hearted reads (Rebel Belle, by Rachel Hawkins, The Rosie Project, by Simsion Graeme).  I made some headway in my enormous TBR pile, reading The Martian by Andy Weir, The Invasion of the Tearling by Erika Johansen, and Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee.  And I was able to continue to use audiobooks to lessen the monotony of the morning commute, listening to Not My Father's Son by Alan Cumming, and Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari.  Overall my favorite book of the month was The Wrath & The Dawn, by Renee Ahdieh.  I loved the writing, romance, and settings.  It showed love as complicated and messy.  With September comes a busier schedule for me, so I shall see if I can maintain this reading pace.

What did you read in August?  What was your favorite of the month?  Please leave a comment and let me know.

Here are all the titles, in no particular order: