Review: V is for Virgin

Title: V is for Virgin

Author: Kelley Oram

Publisher: Bluefields

Publication date: December 11th 2012

Format: ebook 

Genre: YA - Contemporary 

 

 

When Val Jensen gets dumped for her decision to stay a virgin until marriage, the nasty breakup goes viral on YouTube, making her the latest internet sensation. 

After days of ridicule from her peers, Val starts a school-wide campaign to rally support for her cause. She meant to make a statement, but she never dreamed the entire nation would get caught up in the controversy. 

As if becoming nationally recognised as “Virgin Val” isn’t enough, Val’s already hectic life starts to spin wildly out of control when bad boy Kyle Hamilton, lead singer for the hit rock band Tralse, decides to take her abstinence as a personal challenge.

How can a girl stay true to herself when this year’s Sexiest Man Alive is doing everything in his power to win her over?

My thoughts:

I have to say, this was quite a pleasant read. I started off thinking it would just be an average one but it did surprise me in how much I was rooting for the characters. 

I thought that the characters were the best thing about this read. Val was a really great, strong-willed character who eventually learned to stand up for what she believed in, sometimes no matter what the cost. There was always some obstacle in her way (when isn't there?) and she managed to get over all of them in some way or another. I loved the fact that she always stuck to her cause and never wavered at the end of it.

Val tried to spread the word of her 'V is for Virgin' campaign and 'A is for Abstinence'. This book was about being pressured into having sex and being ashamed to call yourself a virgin - it was about choices and standing up for them no matter what anybody tries to make you believe. At the heart of it, I 100% agreed with everything this book was about. At times I found myself so worried that Val would go against her own promise - that would have made me so mad - but she didn't and I was glad. 

 

The supporting characters were great too. I loved Cara at the beginning but not so much towards the end. I found her to be really selfish and sort of full of herself. I think I was supposed to eventually feel that way considering how the story ends but I didn't like her all the same. I loved Kyle all the way through though. He tested Val in all the right ways and how he ended the story was amazingly sweet.

 

My big problem with this read has to be the ending. Throughout the read everything was moving relatively slowly and I was fine with it. Towards the ending though and the epilogue, it felt like someone was pushing the fast forward button and keeping it there. It wasn't just that a few years had passed, but that loads of things happen in a few pages which wasn't the case in the rest of the book. It felt so rushed to me to the point of not liking it at all. 

 

Overall this was an enjoyable read with great, charming characters. I do recommend it as a quick read for people who are fans of this genre. 

 

My rating: 7/10

 

 

Kelley Oram:

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